Ride 040.

Date:   18th January 2005            Distance: 13.5 miles

“An alien keeps taking over my handlebars.” 

A meagre crew of Terra Trailblazers gathered in a bitterly cold Lordstones car park, which was unfortunate for Oz who was waiting in Clay Bank car park. Brain freeze or something. Some severe storms in the intervening days since our last ride had caused a fair bit of devastation, mainly in the forests, snapping and uprooting trees. We took the bridleway through Harry Wath Wood as a more circuitous route to the track along the front of Cringle Moor, passing swathes of flattened trees, scattered like spent matches. Back on the regular track, beneath the dank, north-facing Cringle Crags, the tracks of the previous weekend’s tyres immortalised into frozen ruts made for some interesting moments as our front wheels decided they’d rather follow the inscribed track-lines. Chris quickly took over Bob’s vacant role as back-marker and vice-president in charge of profanity as his bike attempted eject him over the precipice. Pleasantly, the few boggy sections which marred this track have been bridged over, now giving a mile and a half of flowing, roller-coaster, single-track in a magnificent setting. When it all dries out of course.  

After reaching Broughton Plantation, the planned route took us south to Beak Hills and Cold Moor Cote on a farm track. Although heading into the wind, we were comforted by the maps contours which indicated our favourite direction – downhill. It’s a pity the map couldn’t show the water–filled, tractor wheel ruts and general slurry-like slop which prevented us riding for most of the way to Beak Hills. Gravel, then tarmac led us to the Raisdale Road, so far: so good, except now we had snow blowing into our faces. At the junction, the route plan – which involved ascending Raisdale Mill Lane, followed by Barker’s Ridge, then a ride across the moor – was hastily redirected. Turning left we rode along the road to Chop Gate, manfully resisting the temptation of the Buck Inn and its open fire, onto the increasingly snowy minor road through Seave Green to Urra, where an allegedly tarmac downhill, perhaps there may have been tarmac under the thick coating of snow-covered mud, returned us to the B1257 and the slog up to Clay Bank.  

Paul and I waited at the junction for cautious Chris to rejoin us, and waited, and waited, a lady motorist, no doubt alarmed at the site of two strange mud-covered townies lurking about, inquired if we had a problem. We explained we were waiting for our cautious companion, so she waited too, fearful of him crashing into her car as she drove up the hill. She soon tired of waiting, as did we and after riding back up the hill to Urra we found a frozen-fingered Chris repairing a puncture. Back down the hill we went again, having one of those deja-vu moments as we waited again at the junction for Cautious Chris to join us.  

Safely regrouped, we warmed up once more, grinding up the B1257 to Clay Bank, then onto the track above Broughton Plantation, mud, rocks, frozen ruts and fallen trees, slowing our never speedy progress to a little above walking pace. Past Hasty Bank and Cold Moor, the old shale tips lightly dusted with white, we rejoined the still frozen track along the front of Cringle Moor knowing we were almost back at the café. Invisible aliens tried to wrest control of our handlebars the whole way back but the pull of coffee and food was stronger and it wasn’t long before we were dripping mud onto the café floor. 

Short and slow, it may have been but no-one could call us fair weather cyclists.

 Height Profile: (click to enlarge)

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