Dark matter: York to Bridlington night ride

‘Night riding has a strange fascination of its own,’ opined a recent Cycling Plus article. ‘It’s not about the views, for obvious reasons. The landscapes you explore here are purely psychological. Spookily empty ‘main’ roads. Unpeopled, echoing town centres. Glimpsed nocturnal creatures. Starlit skies (or perhaps inky drizzle). Owls. Somewhere, someone’s on-bike sound system plays. You and companions, in this together.

*Full moon over another empty B-road. (Hedgehogs not illustrated.)*

‘The annual midsummer ‘Dunwich Dynamo’, from London to the coast, is the most famous (and popular). But the South West has its own brilliant alternative: the Exmouth Exodus…’

*The 2am picnic at the Rudston Monolith: Quite spooky, especially as it’s in a graveyard.*

I agree with every word of this. Especially as I wrote it. And last night I did a tryout for a Yorkshire equivalent, albeit by myself: a full-moon ride from York to Bridlington. Minster to beach, across the Wolds, past manor houses and mysterious monoliths, with sweeping views you can’t see. And all on elevated, open, exhilarating B-roads with more hedgehogs than cars. (See the route map below.)

*Sunrise at Flamborough Head. No worries about my breakfast sushi going off. It was freezing cold.*

*Flamborough Lighthouse. The adjacent cafe was closed – it was 4am – so no chance of a plate of chips and a keg lager.*

So, you can finish with a dip in the famously warm North Sea, enjoy a hot drink and ready access to emergency services at Adam’s Harbour Cafe (which opens at 6am), and get a train home from Brid station. It’s 50 miles to Flamborough, 57 miles with the stuff at the end.

*Inconvenient bike parking spot in Flamborough village*

Brid prom, and the end of the 170-mile Way of the Roses. By coincidence I was at the WoR’s start, at Morecambe, last Wednesday. Obviously I hadn’t ridden it, though 170 miles in six days would be my sort of pace.

Anyway, I very much enjoyed my trial run last night. Could this be a sociable group ride for next year, York’s own Night Ride? Time, and the weather in midsummer 2023, will tell…

*Bridlington prom looking very sunny this morning*

*The view behind at 6am was even better. Because it’s Adam’s Harbour Cafe, conveniently open from then.*

MAP