Fanylion Mountain Bike Team
Official site of the Fanylion Mountain Bike Team. Includes mountain bike ride guides, gear reviews, bike maintenance, team reports and rider profiles of the Fanylion Racing Team.
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Harewood Loop
This is my training route. It is 15 miles long and encompasses varied terrain, from the technical, rock infested woods of Meanwood to the open rolling fast bridleways of the Harewood Estate. In winter there is a lot of mud about, but in summer the ground is baked hard and you can get up to road race speeds. There are numerous variations of this route, different directions to be ridden in and additional loops that can be added, but this is the version I ride most often.
Start in Meanwood Valley Park car park, located here. Once you are saddled up, turn left out of the car park and bear right of the children’s play area, heading on singletrack climb across field. Enter woods on cobbles and take first right, up steep semi-technical climb, onto footpath at top. Turn left and after 20yards turn right at next T, then immediately left, short rocky downhill (look out for people walking dogs), bear left at bottom then turn right up hop up ledge and straight on to large bombhole ahead.
You can now spend some time scaring yourself to death on the numerous lines and drops into the big bombhole. When you have had enough, head right (from direction you arrived at bombhole) and follow indistinct trail to tabletop jump and boundary fence. At fence, take steep technical descent left along fence line and down to paved footpath at bottom. Turn left.
Take first right down steps and drop to wide dirt path at bottom. (If you get lost at any point in the woods simply head downhill; this path runs at the bottom of the valley). Turn right and follow stream to main road. Turn left.
After farm entrance on right turn right (before Ring Road) and follow gravel track under Outer Ring Road via culvert, up steps and through large rock stile, bear left and through another rock stile. Follow mud and rock trail through trees and take first available left after approx 300 yards, technical climb leading to a higher level trail. After 20yards take next left, very technical climb (can you clear it?) and follow trail over super-technical rocks to flat wide path at top, turning right by fence. Ahead will be large viaduct: look to your right and you will see a 3-4ft drop over a wall. Huck off these if you want, then return to path. Follow trail down left side of viaduct, dropping fast alongside arches and bear left into narrow track in trees (care of pedestrians/other bikers/horses coming other way).
Now navigation gets tricky. Head straight on as trail opens, up technical rocky climb, ignoring numerous small paths either side. Arriving at a fire road, head straight over, dropping down then up alongside steep stone steps to a rickety wooden deck bridge over a lagoon. Turn immediately right and take technical rocky muddy climb through holly trees, again ignoring smaller tracks either side. Keep following major trail, ignoring first track right and climbing gently all the time. Trail then climbs slightly steeper and you pop out of more holly trees into a clearing with picnic benches at Adel Crag. Turn left and head for tarmac road, passing TWOCers car dumping place on your right.
Cross over tarmac road and take sandy climb up through trees (note jump park to your right) and come to wooden gate. Through gate and turn right along pure singletrack along edge of field, through anoter gate and alongside golf course to main road. Turn left. Follow tarmac road to next cross roads and turn hard right, signed Eccup Moor Road. Pass dog homes and get your roadie head on and pump it down the hill.
After left signed Village Road, take next bridleway left. There is a new café here; check it out and let me know what you think, I haven’t ever stopped here. Follow bridleway snaking between fields, down fast rocky descent and sharp right at bottom, 100 yards to a T junction with another bridleway; turn left.
Straight on (notice Emmerdale village to your right) to cross croads. Go straight over down technical descent, over rocks and hard right at T junction after 20 yards, descending on fast rutted fire road, looking for gully washed out left leading down another washed out gully to a gate. Through gate at farm and along gravel road, bearing left at end and through another gate. Gentle climb up to concrete road, turn left then fast road descent, bering left to another gate. Straight on past offices to right and farmyard to left, up to cattlegrid and stright on, following road to another bridleway. Follow tarmac road right and up hill steeply, over another cattle grid past crest and follow to Harewood village and main A61.
At A61 turn right, through traffic lights and climb hill. At next junction go through big iron gates on your right and re-enter Harewood Estate. Note view of Harewood House to your right. Also keep a look out for Red Kites soaring overhead. Follow gravel road down fast descent, through gate at bottom and over bridge. Turn left and follow bridleway gravel road back to cross roads by Emmerdale. Turn left, past Emmerdale (now on your left) and go straight on up short hill. Follow trail to another gate and tarmac road. Turn right and follow road back to dog kennels, then simply retrace your tyre tracks back to the car, remembering that each of those technical little uphills is now a rocky little downhill: enjoy.
Variations include the adding the Eccup Reservoir loop on your return to the dog kennels, however this extra loop is flat and rather unrewarding as views to the reservoir are through a chain link fence.
Take care with navigation in the woods, though if you do get lost you will probably find even more technical, rocky trails to enjoy.
rspKt,
Team Hodgson.
Fany fact
Pain is temporary, glory is forever, scars are permanent but you can always spend £200 on repairing your broken bike.