It’s been a while since the last ride blog. I am involved in a charity programme for the whole of August every year, making short films with kids as part of the government's Holiday Activities And Food programme. Prior to that, a dental abscess kept me off the bike for a couple of weeks, I have a dodgy heart valve and there is nothing which makes dentists more jittery than tooth infections and heart valves, so it was a course of antibiotics and strict orders to refrain from strenuous exercise. Anyone who has seen me perform on a bike will realise that exercise and strenuous play no part in my rides but let’s take no chances. But September has dawned, 35 over-excited children have been reabsorbed into the education system and I’m free to resume my life of indolent pedalling around the best trails North Yorkshire has to offer.

Back On The Chain Gang

As the teachers and children return to their rightful places in the world, the summer begins, dry, empty trails, wending their way through sunlit heather. Equilibrium is restored. And I’m back on the bike, a little less fit than I was six weeks ago but happy to be romping about the moors again. A Clay Bank start, shouldering the bike for the climb up Carr Ridge steps onto Urra Moor, passing Round Hill, the highest point on the North York Moors and probably the most uninspiring high point in the world, nothing but a slight rise in a sea of purple heather, marked only by a utilitarian trig point. Along to Bloworth Crossing, then following the Cleveland Way to the Coal Road, a wide downhill track, the name probably because it leads to remote Armoth Wath, which once housed a coal mine. I turned left a the T junction, across Ingleby Moor, picking up some nice singletrack to Turkey Nab (Ingleby Bank to give it its proper name) Usually, there would be a blast down the bank to Bank Foot farm, then fire roads through the plantation, before climbing up the road back to Clay Bank. Evidently, giddy with excitement from being released into the wild again, I opted for more climbing, up Tidy Brown Hill, returning to Bloworth and retracing my tyre tracks across Urra Moor which gave me a nice downhill finish to the car park.

Good Day Sunshine

Second day on the trot, second day of blistering sunshine, I’m beginning to think God probably hates school children...or teachers. Swainby had the pleasure of my company today, parking on the High Street by the barely flowing stream, too shallow even for the ducks. A standard start, up the Clain Wood steps and through the woods to the top of Scarth Nick, continuing upward across Scarth Wood Moor, for the pure joy of descending the other side in the sunshine. Walkers everywhere today, from Cleveland Way hikers with packs the size of skips to canines dragging their human companions around the reservoir and nearly all returned my pleasantries. Nearly all. There is still the odd set who give mountain bikers the same reception as Gary Glitter might get turning up to spectate at a primary school swimming gala. My next stop was Cod Beck Reservoir, mandatory picture taken before the climb up to High Lane. At the top, I took a right and made my way to Silton Woods, the car park at Square Corner was overflowing onto the roadside verges, continuing past to SIlton Woods, I took advantage of a few dry trails before retracing my tyre tracks back to High Lane, continuing down the bank and through the ford at Sheepwash. Climbing up the slight incline on the road toward Scarth Nick, I was overtaken in slow motion by a couple of gadgies on electric road bikes, like when the lorry that can manage fifty mph decides to whip out into the outside lane and overtake the lorry which can only manage forty eight mph, taking a leisurely twenty minutes or so, oblivious to the queue of traffic behind it. There was no queue of traffic behind these guys as they gradually whirred past. I turned off and took my revenge on the Clain Wood steps, a whole lot more fun in the good gravity direction, continuing on the Cleveland Way to the hamlet of Heathwaite, on the Scugdale Road. From here it is a pleasant pedal back to Swainby for a streamside picnic.

Take It Easy

Third ride in a row, I’m just a cycling machine, the perfect synergy of muscle and mechanism, albeit disguised beneath a carapace of fat, sweat and profanity. Not wanting to overdo things too much on my return to the chain gang, I opted to finish my trio of trips with the often documented Scaling Dam easy ride, two great descents and less than 1000’ of ascent etcetera, etcetera. It would be a classic ride if it were not for the mile and a bit on the A171 moor road and the minority of spatially challenged drivers it attracts, for whom the concept of a metre and a half passing space when overtaking cyclists is as alien as quantum theory. A centimetre and a half of space is a challenge to some of them. Thankfully, tarmac was soon left behind and shortly afterwards I was embarking on the sublime perfection of the SIs Cross track, a ribbon of singletrack, weaving through purple heather, the occasional gully to keep things interesting, descending gradually to the road above Danby. Two ancient tracks, Lord’s Turnpike and The Pannierman’s Causeway take me to a minor road which climbs up to Danby Beacon and the second brilliant descent, which is a doubletrack across Roxby Moor, excellent despite a layer of fresh gravel which slows things down a bit. A slight climb onto Roxby High Moor takes me to a farm road at the oddly named Stepping Stone Hills, which is followed to Scaling Dam reservoir. A pleasant pedal along the dam soon has me back in the car park for another picnic in the sunshine.