The Poor bit of the Pennine Bridleway

[whitestone]

We live fairly close to the Pennine Bridleway and while heading southwards the terrain and riding is fine and interesting, heading north towards the Dales is a different matter. Once you get past Barnoldswick (Known locally as Barlick and home to Hope Technology) you have to cross the Craven Fault before the ground rears up again. We'd a picnic to attend at Stainforth on Sunday so north it was. I thought I'd try out the Revelate Saltyroll bar bag I'd bought a few weeks ago - it's huge! I ended up packing quite a bit of extra clothing just to limit the number of times I had to roll up the closures at either end. It's definitely an autumn/winter bag rather than summer.

It didn't start out too well as I forgot my water bottle and had to head back home for it so by a form of miscommunication known only to married couples we took different routes to get to Earby It was at this point that I discovered that my camera had given up the ghost and no amount of persuasion would get it to work. So no pictures. The climb up Weets is a long drag, not particularly difficult but it does go on for a long while. The benefit is that the descent is also long and gets you almost to Gisburn. It's at the point where you cross the Barrowford to Gisburn road that things go downhill but not in a good way.

To cross the Craven Fault the PBW basically traverses farmland with a few new bridleway sections to link up existing lines. Most of the new bits are fine as they are trail centre style hardpack, it's everything else that's the problem. It looks like the horse riding community don't use this part of the PBW either as there's not a lot of horse poo around and a lot of the route is very overgrown with briars and nettles. The remainder would be fine on a horse but farmland churned up by cattle and farm machinery isn't fun on a bike. There's also gates, lots of gates, lots and lots of gates. Far better to use the roads and lanes between Gisburn and Long Preston.

After a bit of liquid refreshment at the pub in Long Preston we headed to the hills. With it now being late evening we started looking for a bivy site eventually finding one above Settle. Tarp up, brew brewed and drunk it was time for some whisky before bed. At some point during the night it began chucking it down but with light winds nothing got under the tarp.

Morning time and it was down into Settle for breakfast at The Old Naked Man and a wander around the Co-op getting snacks for later before heading further on the PBW to Stainforth and meeting up with the rest of the folk for the picnic.

We cheated to get home and caught the train!

[MuddyPete]

Agreed. The PBW seems to be two areas with interesting riding joined by easy-but-tedious farmland with intermittent signage. But at least Earby sells lunch.

[ericrobo]

What about taking the canal from Barnoldswick to Gargrave, then the minor road to Hetton (about 4 miles)... OR carry on along the canal to Thorlby then minor road through Stirton (1.5 miles) to pick up the BW which goes over Sharp Haw and Flasby Fell (good riding ) to Flasby then 2 miles to Hetton.

From Hetton BW towards Mastiles Lane via The Weets (a different one) and Lee Gate... Mastiles Lane to Street Gate, then past Malham Tarn to pick up the Gorbeck BW, excellent riding to pick up the original route above Langcliffe and a bit before Stainforth...

Where does the PBW go after Stennerskeugh ? The gpx seems to end there ?

[whitestone]

What about taking the canal from Barnoldswick to Gargrave, then the minor road to Hetton (about 4 miles)... OR carry on along the canal to Thorlby then minor road through Stirton (1.5 miles) to pick up the BW which goes over Sharp Haw and Flasby Fell (good riding ) to Flasby then 2 miles to Hetton.

From Hetton BW towards Mastiles Lane via The Weets (a different one) and Lee Gate... Mastiles Lane to Street Gate, then past Malham Tarn to pick up the Gorbeck BW, excellent riding to pick up the original route above Langcliffe and a bit before Stainforth...

Maybe going a bit far east with that line. It also misses the good descent from Weets. But ...

Canal from Barnoldswick to Gargrave. Then Mark House Lane to Bell Busk then the BW to Airton. A choice here:

1. Take Scosthrop Lane over to Settle - basically all road.
2. Road to Malham then BW out of village to join the Cove Road for a couple of hundred metres before taking the BW that meets up with the high point of the Settle Loop. Down Stockdale Lane and Lambert Lane, join up with the PBW, then down to Settle.

Where does the PBW go after Stennerskeugh ? The gpx seems to end there ?

It just stops there I think the ITT just takes the road to Kirkby Stephen though TBH once you've dropped off Lady Ann Clifford's Highway onto the B6259 you are better following that to Pendragon Castle then taking the BW on the west side of the River Eden into Kirkby Stephen.

[ericrobo]

Useful info that Bob, thanks...

Having got to Airton what about the excellent BW to Weets Top (it's brilliant going the other way too, north to south), then of course it's either Mastiles or drop down the road to Malham and the Cove Road...

[whitestone]

Definitely a possibility. Apart from a short section where it flattens out in the first big field going up it's reasonably weather independent. Once on Weets Top I wouldn't drop back down to Malham as you just have to climb straight back out again, better to head past Lee Gate to Mastiles Lane.

Oh, forgot to say: I don't really like the BW over Sharphaw and Flasby Fell. Too boggy to the first gate in the wall then lots of hidden boulders and holes as you descend. Once the bracken's up there's no line or flow to it. Despite it being one of the off-road ways into the Dales I've only done it a handful of times in seventeen years.