Manchester riding

phil s

I'll be working on Manchester three days the end of this month and am taking my bike. My work is in the evening so I can ride in the morning (a Friday, Saturday and Sunday). I'm staying central (Deansgate). Is it possible/desirable to ride a 50-60 mile loop out of central Manchester and if so where? Or am I better off hopping on a train to Macclesfield and doing a loop from there and then getting the train back? Help appreciated.

Anonymous

phil s wrote:

I'll be working on Manchester three days the end of this month and am taking my bike. My work is in the evening so I can ride in the morning (a Friday, Saturday and Sunday). I'm staying central (Deansgate). Is it possible/desirable to ride a 50-60 mile loop out of central Manchester and if so where? Or am I better off hopping on a train to Macclesfield and doing a loop from there and then getting the train back? Help appreciated.

The second one if you are limited by miles. Defo.

Bhima

Manchester Wheelers! http://manchesterwheelers.co.uk/rides/list.htm

There's a dodgy alleycat race on the 25th if you're up for a bit of fun in multi-storey car parks on the Sunday night.

freehub

From the center of Manchester you can get in a decent 60 miles I reckon, maybe add an extra 10, from the center, not far from deansgate I have a 68 mile loop on bikehike I could link to, it got into the peaks up to just past the cat and fiddle onto the A54, then goes down past blaze farm and up this nice climb, and back around mac to Manchester.

phil s

Thanks for the answers so far, that link would be great Will

thetrotter

Manchester is actually quite a compact city with open countryside pretty close to hand and a good choice between flat rides (essentially Cheshire) and hills (everywhere else).

There are good loops you can do out towards Macclesfield which can take in the Cat and Fiddle and Axe Edge, but head towards Chapel and you can climb Eccles Pike, Winnats, Castle Naze etc, and there are also good climbs around Bolton (the Commonealth Games roadrace was held around Rivington in 2002), as well as some interesting loops taking in climbs like Saddleworth Moor, Holme Moss and the Snake Pass. Tatton Park (near Knutsford) is a popular destination for riders in the area and even just riding out to Wilmslow would allow you to sample the delights of Swiss Hill. Get a decent map and all sorts of possibilties will present themselves.

Linking up a local club like Manchester Wheelers, Stockport Clarion, Seamons CC etc would a short cut to getting to know some routes and meet some people at the same time. Have fun.

phil s

Thanks for the posts, fellas. It just looks slightly daunting when looking at the area on the map as there are heaps of A roads and I'm imagining them to be mega-busy. Anyone advise whether the following loop would be good or horribly busy?

Go out down the Ashton Old Road, through Ashton, Stalybridge and bear south-east down to Glossop. Left onto the B6105 skirting the southern edge of the Torside reservoir, joining the A628 in the direction of Penistone. Left onto A616 Whams Rd, then take the lanes in the direction of Holmfirth, going through Dunford Bridge. Then A635 Holmfirth Rd back in the direction of Manchester and into the city on the Ashton New Road. Approx 60 miles.

freehub

I'd go out via the A34, or you can go out to Didsbury via Oxford hell road, curry suicide mile and down wilmslow road.

Also, if you go on www.bikehike.co.uk go to course creater, find routes, where it says within 1km of.. type M4 4DW, you'll get loads of routes there, most of which I've drawn up.


www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=4976 << That's the route I do regular, it goes out via A34, back in via wilmslow road, curry suicide mile and Oxford hell road.

lfcquin

I'm with Napoleon D.

I used to live in Swinton and going any direction it was a good hour before I was on decent quiet roads. Considering I judge a good Sunday ride by how few cars I will see, this was not good. It's possible and the boys have the right info there, but not desirable if you ask me.

Take a 15 minute train ride out to Bolton or a 30 minute one to Macc if you prefer the quiet roads, you can always ride back in afterwards

phil s

Great stuff Will, thanks v. much. I'll hopefully use this not just as an opportunity to do some training but also to try and figure out where I'd like to live when the company moves us up in 2011.

ColinJ

lfcquin wrote:

Take a 15 minute train ride out to Bolton or a 30 minute one to Macc if you prefer the quiet roads, you can always ride back in afterwards

Or the Leeds train to Littleborough, Todmorden, Hebden Bridge or Mytholmroyd 30-45 minutes; loads of great hills all around and easy to get away from the valley traffic.

thetrotter

lfcquin wrote:

I used to live in Swinton and going any direction it was a good hour before I was on decent quiet roads.......

Take a 15 minute train ride out to Bolton or a 30 minute one to Macc if you prefer the quiet roads, you can always ride back in afterwards

Serves you right for living in Swinton

If you take the train then go to Horwich Parkway rather than Bolton (it's nearer Rivington and avoids riding out of Bolton town centre). Macc station is at the foot of the Cat and Fiddle so littel town riding involved and also think about taking the train to New Mills, Whaley Bridge, Chapel or Buxton if wou want to ride some of the bigger climbs in the Peak District.