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We are at Whinfell next week with the in-laws. The wife is happy for me to dissapear of on my bike for a bit. I want to go up Great Dun Fell (weather depending) so ideally want to head out from the South East of the site. Where can I get out without using the main entrance onto the A66? Cheers
There's a minor road on the east of the site which, if you head south goes to Cliburn. Head north and you can get under the A66 to Newbiggin and onto Knock.
Sorry, no idea. But it made me think of this.
They really don’t make it easy, it’s pretty secure. I have a memory or finding my way to a gate that you could get by on a bike that led to a back road somewhere near the place where they do the archery and things like that. Looking in the OS map, I think it must be the road going through salter wood. It was a long time ago though so could be anywhere. Take wire cutters? Dig yourself a great escape style jump?
Best me to it Rich_s
There’s no escape…
I’m pretty sure I tried to escape Whinfell CP years ago on my road bike and found all the ‘tradesman’s entrances’ to Salter Wood road gated. There is a footpath to the north east of the site that I’m pretty sure you could escape on, not sure how bike friendly it is though.
This might help - it shows how to access the rear entrance at Centre-parcs.
https://www.strava.com/activities/6958543396
Are you not meant to leave the site on a bike then? Just asking as we went to the longleat centre parcs over the new year and we just rode straight out of the front gate on two occasions to go to Windhill.
No one seemed to care on the gates.
Front gate goes straight onto the A66 unfortunately which doesn’t seem the best road to cycle along and doesn’t look like there is a cycle path along it. They just seem to want to limit access to the main gate.
You can get out of the back gate just fine - need to lift the bike over a gate but nothing more than that.
I can send you the coordinates if you want.
Check the OS map - there are two (at least) public footpaths leaving the site. One south to Cliburn Moss (as on the strata link above) and one along the NE edge of the site which reaches the back road I mentioned earlier. Or, leave at the main entrance, turning right and turn left onto back roads after 500m.
It's really not that hard, though I've never had the pleasure of being incarcerated there - a day in the pool complex was enough.
Look at the Strava link I posted above - it’s a route out, escaping from the site via the back entrance and onto nice quiet roads then a loop.
Yep got it - thanks all.
If you go out the main entrance and turn right, it’s only a short hop (100-200m) to a lane on the left which lets you escape the A66. There’s an underpass a little further along where you can cross back under the main road and head into the lanes behind CP if you want to head into the lakes. Or turn left away from the underpass to head toward Great Dun Fell. I went last year and rode out and back to Hartside (nice climb), then Great Dun.
When I did this via the A66 I remember it starting ok with a narrow white lined strip of tarmac so the tracfic can pass. This disappears close to the left turn mentioned and I was subjected to a scary close pass by a lorry that wasn't going to slow down. After that I exited the site to the south via the archery shooting and the farm track via South Winfell, marked as a footpath on OS. I was never challenged and I think the guy on the main desk recommended this.
This might help – it shows how to access the rear entrance at Centre-parcs.
Massive Mumsnet-powered s****…
So I went once, it was awful, but I did find an easy way out.
There is a footpath running right through Centre parcs, so it can't be "closed". I found this and a gap in the fence on the southern boarder near a water tower that looked straight out of war of the worlds lead me out to freedom.
If you look on an OS map you should be able to see it.