Good Route through the Peak District
JustinLeeAtkinson
Posts: 335
Can anyone suggest a good route for the peak district? Never ridden there so far, and I'd like to take in the notable climbs. Where would be the best place to drive too from Lincolnshire?
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Are you after a circular route (start/finish same place) or point-to-point? How far do you want to ride?0
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Circular route/loop. Start from and return to car. 50 - 60 miles ish would be fine.0
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There are so many notable climbs spread all over the Peak that it's difficult to narrow down to a 60 mile route. As you're coming from Lincolnshire I'd recommend a route on the East of the Peak.
You could start in Matlock:
- climb Riber, drop down the A615 back into Matlock. North on A6 to Rowsley
- Turn right off A6 at Rowsley and take first right climbing hill out of Rowsley (up Chesterfield Road), turn left at top and drop down to Beeley, nice descent.
- Head north on B6012 to Baslow and take the A623 north to turn off for Wardlow (B6465)
- Turn right down Long Lane into Monsal Dale and at bottom turn left and ride up Monsal Head.
- Drop down to Ashford-in-the-Water and turn right on A6 then first left.
- Follow climb up to Monyash, then take The Rake & Long Rake to Youlgreave
- From there, up Mawstone Lane to Elton/Winster and drop down to Darley Bridge.
- At junction with A6 (Two Dales) go straight over and up Sydnope Hill.
- Turn right at top on Jaggers Lane across to A632 and drop back down to Matlock.
- Finish with a ride up Bank Road
There a loads of other climbs over the other side of the Peak (Winnats Pass, Cat & Fiddle being the two big names) but there's plenty of climbing in the above.0 -
If you're doing it on the bank holiday weekend I'd recommend you avoid most A roads.
As for routes - well do you want to do the well known climbs on busy roads (e.g. Snake Pass, WInnats, etc.) or do you want to do lots of smaller, but not necessarily easier climbs on minor roads? If the latter then a meandering route through Strines would make for a great ride. If the latter then just look at a map and join the big climbs with an A-road.More problems but still living....0 -
Great, thanks for that. Just got to identify a free day to pop over and ride it now. Thanks again.0
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As per amaferanga, the big choice is Dark Peak or White Peak. Dark Peak has the big headline climbs like Snake, Holme Moss, Winnats etc, but many are arterial roads, so you need to be out at the crack to enjoy them. White Peak has much more in the way of quieter lanes, which I prefer.
Having said that, the best cycling road in the Peaks is the Goyt Valley just north west of Buxton.
From a Buxton start, head up Manchester Road to the top of Long Hill, turn left to descend down the incline to the reservoir at 50mph+, then turn left up the stunning Goyt valley to Derbyshire Bridge, on a road largely (or totally on summer Sundays) closed to traffic, over the moor top to Flash, then down towards Allgreave, turn right up Wildboar Clough (another great road), then either turn right up the Cat & Fiddle and Buxton (short option), or (for a longer and better option) carry straight on past Lamaload Reservoir, turning right to Jenkin Chapel and up Pym Chair, then descend past Windgather Rocks, turning right to Whaley Bridge and then a decent length climb up Long Hill and back down to Buxton.
As an unbiased observer, I can assure you that's one of the best routes going, as it has a bit of everything that's good. 8)0 -
Many thanks for that, I'll let you know if/when I've ridden it.0
