Sticks Pass and Raise on Skis

The snow was slow coming this winter but when it came there was only one thing to do! Grab the skis and head for the place where we were guaranteed a ski- Raise! We parked at the end of St Johns in the vale at Legburthwaite and were surprised to see others with skis and enthusiastic looks when we arrived!

The walk up to Sticks Pass is steep and in snow was very slippery. We headed for the sheepfolds to eventually put on the skis and skin all the way over to Raise and the ski area.

The weather was not set to be that great but the views were still stunning over Thirlmere. Soon the skis were on and the climbing became alot less steep. We met some kite skiers looking for some wind which was very light at this time. Onward and upward we skinned up into the cloud.

We reached Sticks Pass and headed South towards Raise. We soon reached the ski area that had many hardened skiers and snowboarders braving the flat light conditions to enjoy the only piste the Lake District has to offer.

After a few runs down we decided to have a well earned hot chocolate from our trusty flask before heading back down to the pass. The Kite skiers were making the most of the strengthening wind on the pass and we watched with excitement before braving the ski back to the sheepfolds.

The skiing was interesting with little time to relax with the ever changing terrain! Soon we arrived back at the sheepfolds where skis were put away and the steep descent began. The walk down was very slippery as the snow had already began to melt. After a few difficult moments on the steep descent we were soon back down in the valley heading for The Lodge in the Vale for a well earned cuppa. This place is lovely and well worth a visit. A great winters day on the hill, praying for more snow!

The Best of the Lakes Part 2

The second day at the Great Langdale campsite saw us leave the bikes and pick up the ice axe for a walk exploring Crinkle Crags at the head of the valley. It dawned on us as we looked at the view and the weather forecast that the view maybe not as great from the top but still conditions were good!

The walk in was flat and felt like you were in an amphitheater of snow capped lakeland fells! Our route took us across Oxendale beck and around Great Knott and onto explore the crinkles! Slippery under foot meant concentration was required at all times but that was difficult with such a stunning panorama!

It was not long before we were in the cloud and relied on bearings and our navigation to traverse Crinkle Crags. Visibility varied along the route and it was easy to see how people get lost and in trouble in this environment!

Playing for the camera!! 

After lunch it was time to find our exit before Bowfell and head back to the campsite! Luckily our catching feature was Bowfell itself as the path was not going to be easy to find in these conditions even though it was by the 3 tarns! So as we started to ascend we realised we had found Bowfell!! Re- tracing our footsteps we soon found the path and were already discussing the much needed cup of tea!

The walk back to the valley was down what they call The Band descending to Stool End. The route dropped us onto our original path and it was not long before the kettle was on and we were discussing enthusiastically how great the weekend had been and how lucky we were to have all this on our door step!

The Best of the Lakes Part 1

After a tough winter week of work there is nothing better than planning the weekends adventures! With so much to choose from we decided to head to Great Langdale for the weekend. Instead of travelling in each day we decided to base ourselves at the National Trust Campsite.

The campsite was quiet and had a spectacular view in every direction. The splattering of snow also helped the winter feeling in the Lakes. The plan was to have a lakeland blast on the bikes and then walk Crinkle Crags the next day.






A short typical lakeland ride would take us on a bridleway from Great Langdale over to Elterwater. The route was quite busy for this time of year with walkers who walked smugly past as we fixed a rare puncture!

The bridleway has plenty to keep you interested and the views at this time of year were stunning. Once at Elterwater we headed for Loughrigg Fell. Unfortunately like many of the paths in the Lakes this has been sanitised and what once was a challenging climb is now quite easy to spin up! However with views like you get off the fell and a cracking descent to Ambleside we should not really complain!

The descent to Ambleside has everything and is one that always puts a smile on your face when you reach the tarmac road. Turning left at the bottom we headed back around to take in the views down to Rydal water from Loughrigg terrace. We were not disappointed.

The ride back to Great Langdale was a short spin along the road. For an afternoon winter blast this was a cracking ride with some of the best views the lakes have to offer! It was soon time to crank up the gas fire and thaw out the feet!

The Quantocks MTB

As tradition at Christmas we visited family down south. We decided to accompany Dad even further south to visit his sister. Another tradition was followed to ensure that we had our bikes with us to make the journey to Somerset worth while!



We arrived at the Rose and Crown pub in Nether Stowey to have a cup of tea with Aunty Barbara and Granny who was staying there for Christmas and then it was off to explore the great trails of the Quantocks!


The route we followed took us from Nether Stowey climbing towards Over Stowey heading for the dead womens ditch car park.

We were trying to piece together a route from different routes we had found exploring little bits of singletrack that we could follow. This inevitably led to a bit of getting lost and the odd mechanical!!

We took the main ridge past Hurley beacon and on to find the descent to Holford via Lady's edge. The descent was great with quite steep fast singletrack with great scenery to match.

We decided to turn and head up Hodders combe topping out on Black ball hill back onto the main ridge. The climb was interesting and not too long. We were starting to lose the light so we decided to head back to dead womens ditch car park and experience the descent of Rams Combe back to Nether Stowey.

The descent was great fun even though there was alot of water on the ground! We arrived back just before darkness to shower and have a great traditional pub meal to satisfy the appetite we had worked up! We will certainly be back to the Quantocks to explore more, it was certainly a great riding experience. I would highly recommend the pub also, a trip to stay and ride will certainly be on the cards in the future!