River Aire Source Tarn Foot, Malham Mouth River Ouse, Airmyn Length 92 miles Towns Skipton, Keighley, Shipley, Leeds, Castleford, Knottingley The fourth of my Rivers Rides was a splendid two-day, 100-mile trip from Yorkshire’s one-lake Lake District to its three-power-station powerhouse along the River Aire. Day 1 featured England’s highest lake, a disappearing river, stunning…
Author: Rob Ainsley
Cottingley: Fairy story
The suburban village of Cottingley, a few miles northwest of Bradford, is one of those placenames you can’t help mentally auto-completing. Ilkley Moor… Baht ’at; Piltdown… Man; Loch Ness… Monster. And, thanks to capers by the stream in the back garden of this house (pic) in Main St, Cottingley… Fairies. Because in the 1920s, after…
Nun Monkton: Lighter moments
I’d wanted to ride the new Nun Monkton Ferry, over the Ouse about eight miles northwest of York (pic), for ages. Particularly when I found they welcome bikes. In the 1800s, Yorkshire’s (and England’s) rivers were plied with tiny boat crossings. There apparently were seven between Aldwark Bridge and Nun Monkton alone. Now there are…
Edinburgh 2: ‘Town centre’
Cycle route research in Edinburgh town centre…
Edinburgh 1: View from the Seat
Cycle route research round Edinburgh, one of my favourite Scottish capitals.
Wharfe 2: Bolton Abbey to Cawood
Day 2 of the River Wharfe ride featured a cyclists’ favourite back lane, the inadvisability of no headgear, a beer town’s strange tendency for unfinished bridges, and the unscenic dénouement of this most scenic of rivers in a field. As I was camping last night, I had the bike fully loaded — front and back…
Wharfe 1: Beckermonds to Bolton Abbey
River Wharfe Source Oughtershaw Beck, Beckermonds Mouth River Ouse, Cawood Length 65 miles Towns Ilkley, Otley, Wetherby, Tadcaster The third of my Rivers Rides was a beautiful two-day, 102-mile trip from Dales highlands to York flatlands along the River Wharfe. Day 1 featured England’s most awesome viaduct, a Roman road, thrilling scenery, beer for dogs,…
Exeter: Maths rivers
Finished my route research in Dartmoor, so I had a spare morning to explore Exeter, and one of my favourite ‘maths rivers’, the Exe. Hmm: Dee, Exe, Wye; there could be a promising ‘Differential Trail’ consisting of Dee-Exe over Dee-Wye.
Dartmoor 3: Thatcher era, satnav age
Final day of route research in lovely Dartmoor.
Dartmoor 2: Fair weather cycling
Another lovely day researching cycle routes round southern Dartmoor. I did pop in to Widecombe, notorious for its folksong (‘…Old Uncle Tom Cobleigh and all’, etc) but didn’t see any examples of eight drunken locals all trying to ride on the same borrowed bike.