Coast to Coast advice

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T4tomo

Legendary Member
We’re all set to ride our Coast to Coast challenge, this coming weekend…..just as the weather breaks 🤷‍♂️🙄 Should still be good fun though.

Enjoy, hopefully mainly sunshine and showers. keep us posted.
 
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gavgav

gavgav

Legendary Member
Good luck gavgav. It's a right of passage for a cyclist to do C2C your next target will be lejog. Which C2C are you doing.
As to comments on Skedaddle I've used them and never had an issue, I've also used Pedalpower and still use who i believe may have been involved with Skedaddle in the past. Glorious gravel are also worth trying, again never had a problem with them. As to Greenhow hills infamous reputation, I'd say a lot of the accidents caused by lack of skill. There was a bit of poor road surface a few yrs ago caused by water run off that you needed to go around just on the bend by the barn. Only ever done it on rim brakes and never had an issue, mates with disc brakes have ended up with cooked pads or at the very least very hot discs.

Whitehaven to Tynemouth for us. I’m on rim brakes and I agree that during my hilly training I’ve found them better than my disc brakes on the Genesis.
 

Lookrider

Über Member
I'm localish to Tynemouth and was curious if you plan to ride the Tyne on north side from Newcastle as expected
If so don't miss the opportunity to use the cycle tunnel and use the new glass gondalos under the Tyne at Howden area
You can then visit the old st Paul's church were the venerable st Bede studied
Have a coffee in the great cafe there
Continue ride along the river on track adjacent to td along to the ferry at South Shields and back to north Shields to rejoin the C2C
No extra distance wise and you get to experience couple of other things in last couple of mile

If you need any other queries just post and I try to advise
Ride safe and enjoy it
 
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gavgav

gavgav

Legendary Member
We're back home from an absolutely amazing weekend completing the C2C. Despite mixed weather, it was a brilliant experience, fantastic cycling, scenery and the company of 4 great people (3 cycling and 1 our support crew).

Day 1 - Whitehaven to Greystoke (46.99 miles and 3996ft of climbing)
After a pleasant overnight stay at the Chase Hotel, we set off at approx 09:30 for the short journey down to the official start point, to take the obligatory photo with our wheels dipped in the sea. From there it was a slightly convoluted route out of Whitehaven, via estate roads and cycle paths, before joining the old railway path to Rowrah. Not far from the start @Rickshaw Phil was having gear selection problems and identified the issue as a fraying gear cable. Not the start we wanted! But a call to Pete, our support driver, to ask him to meet us at our planned coffee top in High Lorton was made, which would allow Phil to carry out the necessary repair.

The old railway path was pleasant enough, bar the multitude of tree roots lifting the tarmac. At Rowrah, there was a short track section, with loose and boggy gravel, not ideal for the road tyres and so a short walk was needed through that, before we joined pleasant quiet roads to Lamplugh and Loweswater, where the lovely Lake District views were abundant. From there we turned through Thackthwaite and onto High Lorton and the VIllage Shot/Cafe. A nice Hot Chocolate and piece of Carrot Cake was consumed for me and Phil replaced his gear cable, that was only held together by 3 strands!!

We set back off and immediately turned onto the first big climb of the journey, Whinlatter Pass. This began on a quite lane, steadily climbing up and then onto the busier main road, up to the summit. The climb was steep in a couple of places, but nothing too taxing overall. The fast descent was exhilarating, before an easily missable right turn was taken at Braithwaite, onto lanes through Ullock, past Derwent Wate and into Keswick. Paul's brother was holidaying up in Cumbria and had journeyed to Keswick in the hope of seeing us, so we walked the bikes up the main street and met them for another cafe stop, which was nice. Baklava and Hot Chocolate for me. We didn't hang around for too long, as there was a weather front following us from the West and due to deposit rain about 2PM there, so we wanted to try and stay ahead of it.

We joined the old railway path out of Keswick, to the A66, a very pleasant section over the newly restored bridges after Storm Desmond did its worst a while back. The cycle path next to the A66 is not the most enjoyable, but it quickly turns onto lanes through Threlkeld, then back down to the A66 again, before turning onto lanes at Scales. The next section along a gated road to Mungrisdale is through stunning scenery and a few sharp climbs to negotiate. At Mungrisdale, we had a lovely tailwind for a short section, before turning into the strengthening wind and the londg climb up ot Berrier. The rain also caught up with us here, fairly light though at this stage and so it was nice to reach the summit and then descend down to Greystoke, for our overnight stop at the Boot and Shoe, where check in was smooth and a couple of beers and nice food was enjoyed.

Day 2 - Greystoke to Allenheads (40.59 miles and 5066 ft of climbing)
We woke to a showery morning, enjoyed a hearty breakfast and got on the road at 10:00 for a day ahead that slightly daunted us all, due to the amount of climbing we knew was ahead.

The first few miles were great fun, with a very strong tailwind blowing us along lanes to Little Blencow, Newton Reigny and then through an almost dystopian feeling old hospital site, under the M6 and into Penrith. The weather had dried up and so we all stopped to remove the waterproof jackets. Whilst there we were approached by an old boy on a motorised invalid carriage, who warned us about a dangerous road ahead to Langwathby and to be careful due to cyclists being killed along there...

We negotiated the edge of Penrith, before we turned up Fell Lane and the first climb of the day to Beacon Edge, not too taxing but enough to warm the legs up for what lay ahead. There was then a nice descent to Langwathby and the short section on the main road wasn't as bad as we'd been warned earlier...! From there it was on to Little Salkend and lovely lanes to Renwick. All along here, the North Pennines were in view and got closer and closer, which meant proper climbing was ahead. We stopped in Renwick, to fuel ourselves ready and the wind was really gusting by now, 40mph plus and we almost witnessed a car crash, as 2 vehicles skidded and just avoided a head on collision.

We set back off and surely enough, around the corner, the climb up Hartside Top and onto the Pass began. It was very steep to begin with, but then relented a little to allow a rhythm to be got into, up the lane and slowly wound our way up to the junction onto the busy main road. Simon was just ahead of me there and stopped to gesture to me as to which way to turn. I signed "left" to him and he went to set off up the steep turn at the junction, promptly slipped and ended up on the floor with bike on top of him. I reached him and thankfully there was no real damage done, just a bruise to his hip. So we started the the long climb up the hairpins and eventually reached the summit at 1903 ft. My biggest ever climb (circa 1500 ft in all) and a great sense of achievement to get there. Phil and Paul were a little way behind, but soon joined us and we took pictures, etc. It was really cold up there, in a very strong wind and we could see a heavy shower approaching, so decided to descend and hopefully get out of the wind before having lunch. The Descent was VERY tricky in the 45mph crosswinds, which led to me getting a bit of a wobble on a few times, on a light bike, so I was pretty glad to turn off the main road and down the further descent into Leadgate.

Sure enough, the heavy rain arrived there and so we donned waterproofs, before finding a sort of sheltered spot under a wall to have our lunch. It was absolutely tipping it down by now and blowing a gale, so the 4 of us were sat on the verge, looking very much like what we thought reminded us of a scene out of Last of the Summer Wine :laugh:!

The rain didn't look to be disappearing anytime soon, so we braved it and carried on towards the village of Garrigill, along a very up and down section, which also brought the climb from Garrigill to Overwater into view on the other side of the valley, and it was one of those "it doesn't go up there does it?" moments....oh yes it does! Thankfully before that we reached the village and the rain had stopped, the sun had come out and cheered us all up as we prepared for the climb ahead and used the facilities at the village hall. We crossed the River South Tyne and then took the right hand turn, which was immediately straight up a 1 in 4 pull and by far the steepest section we'd encountered so far. It was pretty relentless up to the crossroads, where I paused for a breather and then continued on to the summit, which I was glad to reach. A near enough 1000 ft climb on tired legs had taken it out of me a bit. The scenery was absolute amazing though and getting more remote as we had a fast steep descent into Nenthead. We'd messaged Pete to meet us at the highly recommended Hive Cafe there, but were very disappointed to find it was closed, when we really needed it to be open due to us flagging a bit!

There was no choice other than to press on along the further big hilly section onto Black Hill, the highest point of the whole ride at just over 2000ft. Simon had pulled ahead a bit and sadly was just too far ahead when I realised we needed to take a left up the climb to that point (it was really badly signed to be fair). So I had to phone him and let him know, which led to a few swear words and his descent back down to the junction, having done a not needed extra 100ft of climbing.

Thankfully the views on the fells at Black Hill, once we'd climbed to it were just the most amazing I've ever seen from a bike. The sun was out and the Northumberland county border sign gave a perfect place to stop for the most amazing photo's and a view of the sweeping descent ahead. We had a strong tailwind which blew us down at high speed, 43mph touched, my highest speed on that bike ever, to the hilariously named Dirt Pot and then the steady climb into Allenheads and our overnight stop at the Allenheads Inn. It had been a very challenging but thoroughly enjoyable day and made all the better by good beer, food and hospitality in the very quirky Inn.

Day 3 - Allenheads to Tynemouth (51.68 miles and 2322 ft of climbing)
We were all feeling our legs a bit, as we awoke for the final day ahead, to grey skies and the threat of rain in the air. Another hearty breakfast was enjoyed and we got on the road just after 9:30am for what people on the route had been saying "it's all downhill on the last day" but having read the guide book I knew wasn't quite the case, as there were at least 3 tough climbs in the first 15 miles. This began straight away with a climb straight out of Allenheads, alongside the natural ski slope there, up the hairpins and onto the moors where we found the county sign for Durham. That got the legs warmed and loosened up, before a 3 mile descent through mining country into Rookhope. The strong crosswind was back here and around one right hand hairpin, it did its best to blow me off the road, despite taking a wide run at it! We paused at Rookhope, as the rain had started, to don waterproofs and set off towards Stanhope, missing another poorly signed left hander. Thankfully I realised pretty quickly, but Simon and Phil had got a bit ahead, so had a small climb back up to the junction.

It was straight up a really steep climb again there, Approx 600 ft, before the steep descent into Stanhope and the rain was a bit miserable for a while. We had a short section on the main road into Stanhope, passing the sign for Barnard Castle (but no one needed to test their eyesight!) so we turned left and onto Crawleyside Bank.....I'd been reading about this hill being used for the National Hill Climb Championships previously and so knew what might be ahead....I wasn't wrong!! It starts off not too badly, but then goes around a right hand bend and literally up a 1 in 4 for about a mile, which was the hardest section of the whole ride for me. I stood on the pedals and wound my way up, having to work to get traction on a section of shiny tarmac and around another bend to an even steeper bit. The sandy escape lane for out of control lorries (and buses, google a bus crash up there in the past and you will see why) should have given it away! Eventually the gradient reduced a bit and I wound my way up to the cattle grid and met Simon. Phil and Paul soon joined us and all agreed that was an absolute killer. We could see we had another 500ft or so to climb yet, but thankfully it was a steadier climb onto the moor, to Parkhead Station, where we were turning onto the Waskerley Way track.

3 of us were on road tyres and so a little wary of the gravel track, but once we got into the swing of it, enjoyed the remoteness and got on quite well at about 10 to 11mph, whilst taking care of looser sections. At least the general trend was now flat or downhill for about 35 miles!! We continued on and eventually the track turned to rough tarmac and then smoother tarmac at Consett. The rain was tipping down now and we needed a stop, which we found at the edge of a new housing estate and the lovely "Sweet Things" cafe. Very pink and flowery, but lovely friendly staff and a good toasted cheese sandwich and hot chocolate for me.

We set back off and the rain had pretty much stopped by then, so were feeling more chirpy, but that was soon tested...Leaving the north end of Consett, we approached a section popular with dog walkers and 2 ladies with 3 dogs between them parted to allow us through. That would have been fine, if 2 of them hadn't been on an unlocked retractable lead :cursing: I'd passed between them fine, but then heard the clatter of bike hitting tarmac and a shout. I turned to see Simon on the floor again. He didn't move for a minute and so I feared damage had been done, but slowly he sat up and all seemed mostly ok, other than a bruised elbow and another bruise on the same hip he'd landed on yesterday. The lady was very apologetic, but for goodness sake is it that difficult to lock the lead?!

We set back on our way, determined not to let it detract from the enjoyment and Simon was pretty stoic about it all, as we went through Hamsterley Mill, over some impressive Viaducts to Rowlands Gill and the Derwenthaugh Country Park, where we were very wary of the plentiful dog walkers about!

We soon reached the River Tyne and Gateshead, crossing it over a road bridge and zig zag ramp up onto a cycle bridge, which dropped us down onto the Scotswood Road, briefly, before joining the quayside along the Tyne into central Newcastle, pausing for a photo of the main Tyne Bridge, which was decked out in the regalia for the Great North Run that is happening next weekend. There was a bit of people dodging amongst the restaurant/bar section, before we joined some industrial estate roads and onto the Hadrians Cycleway. Signage was mostly good, but there was a confusing section that led to my GPS making us cross a dual carriageway, unnecessarily. We were all flagging by now and it felt like we were constantly gently climbing, when we probably weren't and the less than salubrious surrounding areas of North Shields didn't do much for morale. However, we started to hear seagulls and smell fish!, so knew we were approaching Tynemouth. Sure enough, we joined roads through the Town Centre and then onto the coastal path that took us around to the Spanish Battery. I'd been warned that the finish point was very difficult to find and whilst we were looking down from a vantage point, looking for it, Pete came running down the road and said follow me, which we did and he led us to the sculpture that marked the welcome sight of the end of the ride!

Photos were taken and I felt a little bit emotional stood there in the sunshine, enjoying the satisfaction of the achievement. We made our way from there into Newcastle, via car and Metro, to enjoy well earned beers and an amazing curry, to end an absolutely amazing weekend of cycling and banter.

Will post some photos below
 
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gavgav

gavgav

Legendary Member
Day 1
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albion

Guru
A great choice of route. When I used to cycle regularly to Borrowdale I usually did it via Hexham, Stublick Chimney then picking up your route at Alston. The Mungrisdale bit is fantastic and the old line to Keswick relaxing.
 

Windle

Über Member
Location
Burnthouses
Congratulations on an epic ride! Something I'd love to do if I had the time. There're a few bits of the route (County Durham & Tyneside) that I know well, though I can't say I've ever noticed the sculpture at Tynemouth. Well done on tackling Hartside the hard way as well!
 
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gavgav

gavgav

Legendary Member
Thanks for the memories of roads i'm very familiar with. Your deserted hospital is a deserted agricultural college. It’s not that many years since the CTC Birthday rides were based there.

Ah cheers! We did see some council signs but it looked very much like an old NHS site.
 

geocycle

Legendary Member
Fantastic write up! Lots of that route is very familiar to me and it is still one of the best northern England coast to coast routes. I’d say it was the hardest road route in terms of climbing. Yes that was Newton Rigg, formerly an important agricultural college that was dropped first by Uni of Cumbria then Askham Bryan College. Such a shame the finances didn’t work as it was one of the few to specialise in animals.

Well done on a great ride.
 
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