Crew: El Pres, Dunc, Slim, 3 Sheds, Butty, Stunt
Route: Bolly Viaduct, Middlewood way, West Parkgate, cheeky RHS mini loop, the Knott, the Cage, Red Lane, Green Lane, Mudhurst Lane, Bowstones, Dale Top, Moorside Lane, Pott Shrigley, Poachers
Conditions: Mild and dry, uber boggy
Notes:
First ride of British Summer Time, and with Lyme park now open until 8pm a long overdue visit is planned by Butty.
Keeping it simple, a fast traverse along the middlewood (checking out the slippy rooty stuff on the LHS just beyond the viaduct) then back up the road under the canal and in at West Parkgate.
Urban manchester stylee barbed wire on the top of the gate on the track – yet not on the pedestrian gate?
Butty convinces us to cut right and then double back down some singletrack – which is slippier than a slippy thing and possibly not worth the effort! Safely at the bottom we spy the Nancies following in our tracks, and have a brief chat at the car park by the Knot. They head up and right, we skirt left leaving the group of stags on the top to enjoy the view in peace.
One of the Lyme team is buzzing about in a little orange buggy, but we can’t see what he’s up to, he gave us a friendly wave on the way up so we decide all is good and head up the most direct route to the cage.
Blue skies, the main herd of red deer grazing below us, a moon high up, and 3 sundials to ponder.
Camera fetishes satisfied, we descend diagonally down on fast grass to the corner of the reservoir, ford the stream (some more successfully than others), and out onto Red Lane.
Climbing gently we leave the smart houses and barn conversions behind, turn onto green lane, and head up to meet the main road. Lights needed by the time we are at the top, time is ticking and by Bowstones we have splintered into a group of four, with Pete having a brake rub and Chris staying with him.
A chill in the air, and a serious amount of water in the ground as we start across the moor. There are hay bales across from the gritstone towards the wall path, and it’s ankle deep swamp almost whichever way you go until the stile and “non” gate. Traction on the double track is slim, not helped by tractor tracks having churned the main sections. Heading onto the grass at the side is the least worst option, we arrive at Dale Top tired of the draggy suction, and head straight down by the wall to Moorside lane, and route one to the pub.
Pete and Chris opt for the gristone and down bakestonedale road, and arriving about 20 mins later report having to push some parts before cresting near the 1975 stone.
All is good with food orders, Pete leads a charge to catch up (and overtake) on the pints count. A very delicious sweet toffee stout follows the Citra, and plently of gentle merriment.
There is time for some Glenmorangie to finish, and we (mostly) avoid the showery rain that was forecast 11-Midnight on the way home.