APRIL 2025
54°23'5.2"N 1°55'48.8"W
Swaledale has been a favourite mountain biking destination since we were huddling in tents hiding from gales at some of the original Polaris events in the 90s. Nowadays the Dales Bike Centre where we’re starting this ride from makes for a much more pleasant place to stay, load up on coffee and cake or hire a bike.
While strong winds and steep climbs are still a signature of this stunning landscape we’ve also curated this loop to minimise unnecessary suffering. Instead we’re maximising top quality singletrack, especially at the start and finish of the ride. We’ve bracketed the big backcountry centre section with marvellous local pubs at either end to keep you motivated / lubricated too.
Plus if you don’t fancy the full 42km then it’s really easy to shortcut at several points and still have a superb ride with some great trails and views.
POLARIS SWALEDALE SINGLETRACK
42.1KM, 1,296M VERTICAL
Start and finish point - Dales Bike Centre is 24 km west of the A1/A66 junction at Scotch Corner or a similar distance from Catterick on the A1 if you’re coming from the south. The nearest train station is at Northallerton 41km away while Teeside airport is 50km away for jet setters.
In terms of navigation the GPX file for the route and a Strava Fly Through animation for a visual rep are on this page to make navigation as easy as possible, but make sure you watch Guy’s video below to get an idea of the terrain and a preview of the incredible scenery waiting for you. Guy Kesteven’s ride preview was shot with Anna ‘on the bike’ Cipullo who we’ll be interviewing shortly.
Stops & shops
Starting from the Dales Bike Centre gives you a fantastic cafe, accommodation, toilets, bike shop and conventional MTB and E-MTB hire as well as local guru guiding advice.
There are more pub, cafe and accommodation options less than a km away in Grinton and Reeth too.
Richmond is the nearest large town with supermarkets etc at 17km to the east.
En route there’s a tiny pub with snacks and sandwiches in Langthwaite at 7km and then another pub and tearooms in Gunnerside at 24km.
Be sure to check opening times before hanging your whole fuelling strategy round them though as hungry soon turns to hangry on the long climbs round here.
Watch out for
As the most northerly of the great Dales, Swaledale deserves it’s reputation as the most ruthless when it comes to weather. We had a serious headwind that somehow lasted 80% of the route and that also means weather can come in fast and hard. This makes taking extra warm / protective layers an absolute must even in ‘summer’ months. A survival bag is a smart add to your gear in colder / wetter weather too and be careful when riding alone.
As for the actual riding there are several climbs that’ll test your legs but only a couple of properly technical descents. Bunton Hush at 16km is a loose bouldery beast while Pipeline at 36km is a steep singletrack with sniper rocks so be careful with your lines and tyres on both.
While you could ride the whole route on a gravel bike if you were brave / skilled / both these two sections plus a couple of the steeper climbs mean you’ll definitely have an easier time on a mountain bike.
Route information
Dales Bike Centre to Langthwaite 0-7km
After stocking up on Claire’s cakes at Dales Bike Centre you’ve got a few hundred meters up the road towards Reeth before turning up to High Fremington. Even though we’re only doing the first bit of the potential monster pull up to Fremington Edge it’s still not a polite introduction. Especially if you do the second steep section on the loose rock short cut to get yourself into the spirit of Swaledale early.
Once you’ve regained your breath though the next few km are a less brutal, gradually climbing singletrack roller coaster with views over Reeth to the later part of the ride. When you drop back to Arkle Beck at 2.6km be careful to follow the less distinct bridleway steeper up the hill above the trees than the more obvious footpath below. Once you’re locked onto the line above the wall though just follow your nose along the narrow gated single track. This weaves and waves along over occasional rock and root challenges and a couple of steep digs to really test your legs and your traction control before dropping back down to the river. More gates will get you past Storthwaite Hall and through the ford still flanked by rocky debris from the huge floods that ripped the area apart a few years ago. Then it’s a short concrete kicker up and over before dropping through the woods below Booze before you’re at the Red Lion boozer itself in Langthwaite.
Langthwaite to Old Gang mine 7-13km
Topping up your motivation in the tiny front room of the pub might not be a bad idea either, as the next ten km is mostly for the tempo climbers not the thrill seekers. Head south on the road back to Reeth, climbing gradually until you go over the cattle grid. Turn right off road onto the moor here and climb gradually on the rocky double track before it dips down again to the road and ford at Fore Gill. If it turns out you’ve left your legs at home then the top of the moor here is a good point to retreat from with two different bridleway options back into Reeth.
Otherwise it’s up and over again on the road. Don’t drop all the way down on the road though as you want to take the bridleway mining track on your right before the bridge. You’re right in the heart of Industrial Swaledale now with mine workings and other scars clearly visible on the otherwise heather covered hills opposite. The toxic by products of the smelting processes at the Old Gang Mill mean either side of the stream is still stripped raw too. Be sure to stop for a quick - but careful - explore of the old mill ruins too, as the old stone furnaces and their long chimney tunnels up the hillside are still very clear to see. The shelter they provide makes them a good picnic spot too as you’re not going to get much weather protection at all for the next 5km.
Old Gang mine to Gunnerside Gill 13-17km
While the rocky surface is good going the gradient gradually steepens as you wind your way up to the barren moonscape of Melbecks Moor. Here the big rusty rock eater still sits on it’s dented wheels a century as a reminder of the incongruous industrial past of what’s now a wild and windswept landscape with views far into the western Dales and the Lake District beyond. Even if visibility is good - which is often isn’t TBH - you’ll need to keep your eyes carefully peeled for the stone cairns that mark the descent into Bunton Hush. Keep following the small stone piles as they peel you off the obvious double track onto a snaking singletrack that soon tips you off the ridge into a grassy gully.
This is where the hardcore highlight of Bunton Hush begins. Be prepared to surf the skittering rocks and dodge the ever growing sharp edged boulders left by the miners who used dammed water to scour the minerals out of the hillside. Be sure to snatch some glances upwards as you edge your way down as the rocky amphitheatre ahead of you makes this as stunning as a scenic spot as it is legendary as a ride highlight.
Gunnerside Gill to Gunnerside 17-24km
From the deserted mine and mill buildings follow the bridleway signpost over the stream before climbing again on the grassy singletrack that winds up past another superbly preserved dry stone beehive smelting hearth before you swing open the gate onto the Wintering Pastures.
You’re back into the rural landscape that’s not changed for centuries now. Skimming down the grassy track past sheep whose ancestors have been grazing these hills since the evocative hand laid dry stone walls were built in possible prehistoric times. The layout of contouring enclosures with individual field barns for feed and shelter has certainly been a signature of the area since the Vikings gave many of the settlements here their names.
Keep high as grass track turns to gravel double track past Whin Hall and then Barf End. Then drop down through the gate at around 21.4km to meet the track that doubles you back west and into Gunnerside village itself. Here the pub and cafe are hopefully ready and waiting if you’ve got your hours right. Otherwise make use of the shelter and benches to snack up ready for the coffin road before the even more deadly final climb of the day.
Gunnerside to Apedale 24-32km
Roll out of Gunnerside down to the bridge over the Swale and then turn sharp left at the top of the little leg burner on the road. Look for the gate on your left that marks the start of the Swale Trail, a new multi user path that runs all the way back along the valley floor. This same track also used to be the ‘Coffin road’ that mourners used to carry bodies from Keld, Muker and other settlements at the west end of the dale down to the church at Grinton which was the nearest burial ground. With meadows and field barns on the right and the meandering Swale on the left it doesn’t feel remotely mournful now though. Especially if the curlews are calling and the skylarks singing as loudly as they were when we rolled along it. If you want to stay pleasant and pastoral you can follow the Swale Trail all the way back to Grinton too.
If you want to experience one of the best bits of singletrack in the Dales though, the smallholding at Low Houses around 28.3km is where you need to get ready for one last two part grunt upwards. The recent re surfacing means it’s a relatively mindless winch rather than the proper tech traction challenge it used to be, but either way you’re chewing through 120m of vertical before you meet the road. You’ll add another 50m of height on the road but at a much gentler rate, but the final push is pretty much straight up the towering hillside of Whitaside Moor. On the plus side it’s well surfaced, all weather shooting track. If your legs have really have enough you can also ‘accidentally’ turn onto the shooting track that turns left and flattens out a lot earlier than the official bridleway alignment near the summit. If you make the effort and manage to spot the trail it’s a lovely bit of singletrack reward to start your final furlong home.
Apedale to Dales Bike Centre 32-40km
Whatever point you decide to pull the pin on the climb, the next couple of km are a fast section of shooting track with a mostly downward trend. Even the kick back up to High Harker Hill at 36km should be welcomed too. That’s because it’s the start of the local’s favourite ‘Pipeline’ descent which is a proper technical treat. Don’t be fooled by the flat and mild opening section either as when it pitches off the edge of the hill it’s a proper ride the rut dive between sniper rocks that still stays fast and fun as it levels off in the second km.
Then it’s one last 50m grunt up shooting track and grassy singletrack before a final pump and pedal contour charge to the ‘four legged’ rock outcrop of ‘John Moss’s chair’. Then it’s all downhill back down the grass into Grinton, obviously taking care to close every gate behind you, just as you should all round the route. Now it’s back over the Swale bridge to the Dales Bike Centre for well earned tea and cake.
