Saddleworth Mountain Bike Trails

Phila77:

Tibbort:

Saddleworth is a collection of villages on the Lancashire/Yorkshire border. The area is approximately 20 minutes from Manchester or 30 from Huddersfield by train, and ten minutes from the M62 Junctions 21 or 22. The place is hilly with cracking views into Derbyshire and Jodrell Bank in Cheshire if you find yourself in the right place. The main marked trails in Saddleworth are- the Pennine Bridleway which comes into the area at The Rams Head Pub at the top of Denshaw, passing through Castleshaw, Diggle, Uppermill and Greenfield. The trail is a mix of recently built tracks of sandstone chippings which have now bedded in, green lanes, the odd rough track and some minor roads. Later the route joins the old rail track from Diggle which comes out at the top of Greenbridge Lane in Greenfield before leaving Saddleworth towards Mossley. The best part of this trail is the descent from the Brunclough Reservoir at Standege down towards Brun Lane which is probably a red graded descent. I have never tried to ride it in the opposite direction. There can be a lot of sheep to avoid here. One disadvantage of this trail is the number of gates to open en route. The Delph Donkey- another old railway route that starts off Dobcross New Road in Delph and runs into Uppermill This would be a green graded trail as it is mostly flat but can get muddy in Winter The Huddersfield Narrow Canal towpath- this Runs from the Diggle Hotel public house through to Friezland and carries on towards Manchester. Another green graded track with the hazard of the canal running alongside. There are usually many pedestrians on this route, particularly at weekends. Dovestone reservoir- a nice scenic ride off-road, can be made longer by following the track up past Yeoman Hey to Greenfield Reservoir for a bit of solitude. It costs to park at Dovestone but you could park in the village and ride up. There are some lesser known trails of singletrack hidden away up there. Try riding straight down the grass bank of the reservoir. This is the map for the Diggle Jiggle trail (pdf), designed to start at Greenfield Station http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/PennineBridleway/uploads/Diggle%20MTB%20Route3(2).pdf Saddleworth is home to many pubs, some of which feature on this trail- The Railway at Greenfield, The Swan (or Top House as its known locally) at Dobcross, Diggle Hotel at Diggle. Other pubs worth a visit that aren't on this route are The Swan, The White Lion and the Royal Oak in Delph, The Hanging Gate and Navigation at Diggle, The Church Inn and Cross Keys in Uppermill. A couple of descents worth trying are from Lark Hill, at the Dobcross end down towards Delph, steep and loose in places and The Old Bell Inn is at the bottom, or carry on along Harrop Edge to a crossroads and turn right towards Diggle down what is known as Hunters Hill.

Many many good pubs serving real ale and food. New bike shop in Greenfield (Bikeanics) Varied terrain with good views