Tour of Whernside

This route can be done from either Dent or Ingleton. The best fun to be had is from the Dent end heading south. Lots of swooping singletrack with the climbs never too brutal and nearly all rideable. Dent is a very pretty rural village and well worth a visit. There’s a cheat street return to Dent from Ingleton following the exposed but pretty Thornton lane through Deepdale. A popular paved(sort of) route for Cyclocross.

However if done from the Ingleton starting point you get the toughest climb around Tow Scar and the west side of Whernside out of the way first so you can then enjoy the descent into Dent knowing the toughest is over with. The weather can play a big part in your progress on the south to north leg of this ride. There are a heck of a lot of ruts, dips and troughs on the descent which on a dry day make for the skate park from heaven, in the wet they fill up and it’s a series of very deep puddles nearly all the way down. It may not be as high as some other routes in the area but it is a lot more weather dependent. If progress is slow then from Dent you can take the road south east alongside the river Dee, leading to Dales Way and on to the B6255 to return to  Ingleton. Along the way there’s a great view near Ribblehead Station of the Settle to Carlisle railway which carries the Statesman steam train.