Starting in Upper Mill this is a particularly hilly ride, initially heading north, across the viaduct over the M62, and up into Yorkshire.
7,194ft climbing
The ride skirted continued north, skirting Hebden Bridge and joining the A6033 big climb out part way up, heading to Oxenhope. A cafe stop at a craft centre near to Colne for beans on toast was a welcome break before heading off to more hills climbing over Widdup moor.
Dropping back into Hebden Bridge and down to Mytholmroyd brought us to the foot of Cragg Vale, the longest continuous climb in England.
The weather was glorious, although there was a stiff breeze which was hard enough to make riding into it challenging.
At the top of Cragg Vale it was a fast descent to Hollingworth Lake, looking ever more skanky these days, for a quick coffee and then back up to Upper Mill.
Plenty of climbing including a mix of everything – short, sharp ascents and long grinds. My legs felt great and at the end I felt relatively fresh – and Anthony was climbing really well too. Big ride this coming Sunday so this was good preparation.
Ride stats : 72.67 miles in 5hrs 19m @ 13.6mph. 7,194ft of climbing, average HR 138bpm and 3,992kcals used.
