Riding on the Edge - Fremington Edge

Fremington Edge

A mild Sunday morning attracted a total of six cyclists (exceptional turnout for one of my rides) to Langthwaite for the start at 11.00am B.S.T. The clocks moving forward an hour hadn’t bothered Alistair and Derek, they set off early so keen to tackle the horrendous climb up to Low Moor.

Alan’s strict training programme for the Nepal trip started gently a few weeks earlier with one of those easy peasy road rides but with one week to go a real test of stamina was required, so what better than a ride out with the “mountain bikers”. The mountain biking section continues to attract prospective new members, the latest being Judith. That leaves one other, Paul of course, the sole member of the Dave Neesam’s Mountain Bike Rides Appreciation Society, he never misses, strange lad that Paul.

We couldn’t wait an extra hour for anybody forgetting the hour change so off we headed in hot pursuit of Derek and Alistair. To be honest the climb up towards Booze is an evil way to start a ride but I do have a reputation to keep. As we turned onto the bridleway that heads north up Scotty Hill, the phrase “Beam me up Scottie” sprung to mind. At this point we could hear heavy wheezing in the distance as the chasing pack started to close the gap on the leading two.

As we turned east to head over Low Moor our climbing for the day was complete. We now faced one of my favourite off-road sections, this being the fast meandering track through the mining spoil heaps. Then it was the long gradual descent along Moresdale Road to School Master Pasture. After a short break to re-group and admire the scenery, we headed south through Washfold to Hurst. Here we found a lovely warm spot to have our lunch. We could have laid here sunbathing all day but we had to press on as Alistair had to be back to do a spot of gardening.

We now headed west along the bridleway above Fremington Edge admiring the views as we trundled along. Our next “technical bit” was the very enjoyable stony track that weaves its way down to Storthwaite Hall. As always we had a ford to negotiate but on this occasion everyone “forded” successfully. The final stretch took us through the wood and along the side of Arkle Beck, trying not to collide with too many walkers as we headed back to Langthwaite. Final completion of the ride was delayed as the Red Lion beckoned.

Well thanks to everyone for turning up, hopefully I haven’t put Judith off joining our merry band, in fact everyone seemed to enjoy the ride, so as word spreads I’m sure there will be a record turnout for my next ride.

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