NIDDERDALE, YORKSHIRE DALES

DISTANCE 33.5KM (20.8 MILES) CLIMBING 830M TIME (2,723FT) TIME 2HRS 30MINS TO 4HRS

The route A classic Yorkshire Dales ride, following the valley of the River Nidd on a mixture of quiet lanes and tracks around the reservoirs. It feels pretty remote and rugged, but nothing is too technical. There are some big climbs, though

Start Small car park beside the road at Wath (postcode HG3 5PP, grid ref SE 144/676)

1 Turn right towards Wath (Sportsman’s Arms Hotel), cross the bridge, pass the pub and keep ahead/left as the road bears right by the last house, to join a bridleway heading uphill. Follow this, keeping left, to eventually ride alongside the reservoir. After 4.5km, by some houses, turn left at a T-junction, then left again at another one. Cross a bridge and quickly go right, by the farm, off-road, uphill.

2 Follow this trail up to West House Farm, keeping ahead across the farmland and passing a track on the left to Grindstone Hill House. Keep ahead/left (signposted to Nidderdale Way). Go right at a T-junction (signed Stean), downhill through a farm and caravan park, then take the first road on the right (or keep ahead for the cafe). Cross a bridge to a T-junction and go left (signed Middlesmoor).

3 Climb steeply through the village and keep ahead as the tarmac ends to continue up this straight, rough track. Enjoy the views of Scar House Reservoir at the top, then take a rough zig-zag descent to the bottom. Go right and then left over the dam. Bear left on the far side, ascend, then quickly turn right on a bridleway along the hillside (Nidderdale Way).

4 Continue on up and then descend into Woo Gill. Climb steeply back out and follow the track past the shooting hut. Follow the main, obvious track left and along the top of the valley. After bearing left and finally meeting a road, go left on it, then quickly right, back off-road. Keep right at the fork in the track soon after.

5 Enjoy the long, gradual descent, crossing a bridge at the bottom. Climb to a T-junction and go right, then right again at the next one, downhill. Look out for the gates and rocks along the way down to Bouthwaite. Turn left by the houses to retrace your earlier tracks, keeping right, back into Wath to finish.

LOCATION

This area is characterised by rolling countryside with reservoirs, clumps of broadleaf trees and scattered farms on the lower levels, and wild open moorland higher up.

GETTING THERE

Coming from the west, use the A59, before heading north on the B6451, or head for Harrogate (off the A1), then Pateley Bridge and follow the Low Wath Road. There’s parking just before the reservoir.

USEFUL INFO:

Ordnance Survey Landranger 99: Northallerton. Yorkshire Dales Mountain Biking: The South Dales by Nick Cotton (Vertebrate Publishing).

FACILITIES

Stay at the Sportsman’s Arms or The Crown Hotel in Pateley Bridge. Studfold camping park is on the route (01423 755084, www.studfold.com). There are refreshments at How Stean Gorge, and a pub in Middlesmoor. For bike stuff, there’s Stif in Summerbridge (01423 802208, www.stifmtb.com).