Tag: bardsey

Thorner Circular Ride

Lovely 25 mile ride today. Sunny but with a nippy wind.

Ride from Adel St. Johns Church up to five lane ends bear slight right onto lane to Eccup Resevoir. Carry on past the reservoir, when you reach the main Harrogate Road cross over and carry on up a cycleway (bit muddy) which take you past the back of the Leeds Grammar school, down Manor lane and wow are there some Manors there. You reach Wigton Lane and more millionaire houses. Turn left, eventually meeting a T junction by the Dextor pub. Turn left and take the first right onto Tarn Lane. These lanes are usually quite quiet. At the cross roads go straight on and at the next cross roads do the same. You go through Scarcroft village and meet the Wetherby road where you go straight over again into Thorner Lane. Eventually you meet a triangle in the road, bear right onto Milner Lane, which takes you to Thorner village where you take a left onto Bramham Road. At the t junction turn left onto Thorner Road. At the T-junction turn left onto Thorne Lane eventually bearing right onto Holme Farm Lane and keep left to take you to the A58. Go left for a few hundred yards and take a right to Bardsey. Carry on up Church Lane ( some very interesting history in Bardsey is on my list) look out for Spear Fir on the right and turn down here. At the end turn left onto Wike Lane. This road takes you back to the Dexter pub where you turn right and follow Wigton and Alwoodley Lane until you reach the junction with King Lane where you turn left and first right down Staircase Lane, past Adel Woods, up the hill and turn right past York Gate Gardens until you find yourself back at Adel church where you turn left.

HAREWOOD CIRCULAR

Nice local 19 mile ride. starting the directions from Adel church ride north past the church on your right and take a right past Headingley Golf Club and past York Gate Garden then left down Staircase Lane. A nice downhill until over the bridge theres quite an ascent past Adel Woods, great for mountain biking and dog walks. At the T junction with King Lane turn left and first right onto Alwoodley Lane. Gawp at all the weird and wonderful mansions all the way along this road until you meet traffic lights at the crossroads, where you carry straight on onto Wigton Lane otherwise known as millionaires row. At the T-junction at Shadwell turn left downhill and uphill turn first right.

This is a lovely quiet country road where I saw Red Kites and a Kestral. Carry straight on across the next two junctions through Scarcroft until you meet the A58 Wetherby road and turn left, ride along here for a short while and turn left at East Rigton, or you can turn sooner and go through Bardsey, making your way to Rigton Grange. At the T-junction turn right towards East Keswick. Nice pub at Bardsey incidentally, another “oldest pub in England!” The Bingley Arms. Oh and another in East Keswick too, The Duke of Wellington. After passing this pub at a right bend turn left up a quiet country lane. This eventually joins up with the A659 from Collingham to Harewood. This is the least pleasant bit of this ride as it can be a busy and fast road. However, once you reach Harewood, you will be riding off road through the Harewood estate. So at the traffic lights, straight ahead will be the gates of the Harewood estate, but don’t go through here, turn right and then second left, Church Lane, straight on through the village and straight into the estate. Muddy Boots cafe is well worth a stop.

This ride was done on my Volt Kensington pictured above. Below that is one of the stags that roam the area. follow the road until you meet a cross roads and carry straight on, over the cattle grid bear right and follow this until you reach the gate. Here, at the village of Weardly, turn left uphill. At the top follow the road round the left bend. The next uphill is a killer. I had to stop halfway and nearly fainted when I reached the top. Some fab views – see below.

This is Red Kite country. Click on the link to find out about the reintroduction of this bird, which had been driven to extinction in this country. They have spread all over the country but are most prevalent here. They are beautiful, majestic birds and I never tire of watching them soar over the county.

From here continue on the road past the New Inn , another that’s worth a stop, and keep on going straight until you arrive back where you started.