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Just been down the 3 rivers dh in kentmere tonight to find its been opened up into a 2 metre wide packed down track..where are they going to stop ruining nice bridleway, that route is so popular with local kids learning to ride and building confidence to go on to harder terrain.
The whole thing?
Looks like there definitely going up to the first river by the old barn, not sure if they will go further, I hope not.
wouldn't like to be someone walking or riding up it now, that bottom section was fast enough as it was.
No Esme, 3 rivers is a lovely wee descent off stavely head fell, nothing super long or techy, just a nice bit of trail.
Seen the pics not happy 🙁
No money to fix potholes on public roads but plenty to smooth out bridleways.
The one last week wasn't really a loss, it was basically an un-metalled road anyway but 3 rivers is a lovely wee bit of trail, it isn't busy, and it doesn't really go anywhere. Quite an odd one to give the armour treatment to.




Awful lot of "activities" in The Lakes recently 🙁
Cheers!
I.
🙁
That was one of my favourites. Who are these people?
APF
What a mess. Can't see any way in which this can be justified, unlike the Kentmere Hall track repairs by the farmer.
Rich needs to organise a mass 'skidz for kidz' session down that during his weekend do, before it has a chance to settle. Get some ruts in, let mother nature do the rest this winter...
Just another reason to cheeky and high.
Rode Sticks Pass off Helvellyn few weeks ago and that looks to be going the same way, as is devil’s staircase down to Kinlochleven😔
Just another reason to cheeky and high.
True. Or cheeky and low, frankly.
Just another reason to cheeky and high.
Do we need another reason Dave? 🙂
That's a real shame, always finished a ride round there with a decent down 3 Rivers.
Seems an odd trail to repair, I can't believe it gets much footfall compared to other tourist hotspots?
Is it just an attempt to discourage mountain biking down there?
There is a whole industry behind this wave of sanitisation, do the landowners get grants for this? who is paying the path builders? the guys invoved in this industry are always moving on to the next job, look at what has happened to the trails in somewhere like the Cairngorms which is supposed to be a NP, totaly over engineered armoured highways everywhere, totaly unsympathetic to the natural landscape.
This industry needs to be held to account. for what they are doing to wild places, Not just seen as a means of generating work in the short term for these guys.
Seems an odd trail to repair, I can’t believe it gets much footfall compared to other tourist hotspots?
Is it just an attempt to discourage mountain biking down there?
Absolutely this.
I'm not one for a conspiracy, I tend to think we give business/governments too much credit with that type of thing, but tbh it looks as if there are certain trails being targetted in the national park. As you rightly say, this really is an odd one, I've never seen a walker on it, and have rode it loads of times. Whenever I'm in the area I'll include it on the ride as it's a real nice trail for not much effort to get to.
I can see the thinking behind the likes of Helvellyn etc, so bloody busy, but this is in no way anywhere near in the same category....
I honestly just think it is just job creation, it is happening everywhere.
I think its the national park who is doing it, apparently repairing the damage from storm Desmond. Don't think that bottom half of that track has changed much in 25 years of riding it, why now?
Really sad, this made an excellent climb as well as a descent which I always tried to include on rides in the valley.
Storm Desmond had minimal impact on this BW. Lower down it was a loose, rubble gully before as it was afterwards. It seems the NP has had an influx of cash to fix SD issues but it is using this for a wider agenda in the lakes. There are still a number of FPs with significant issues following SD which are still awaiting genuine work.
it is increasingly frustrating to see one trail after another being ‘improved’.
Doesn't look like that surface will last long!
Sad to see this as it's one of my favourite bits of tracks in that area, wonder what Wheelbase will make (or have made) of this as they use this as part of their loops during the Big Demo Weekend.
They have also started to make "improvements" on Maiden Moor too, granted it's a footpath but still seems out of place and doesn't fit with the natural area around it.
Trouble is that this sort of surface just erodes out in one winter and it’s worse than before. Quite often from a surface that might been uneven, but stable. More badly engineered repairs...
Where is this particular trail pretty please? Streetmap link!
Hope that 'they' leave HP plantation alone...
Thanks for the link - I've only done a couple of rides round that area and missed out that bit.
Is that not the highest time to start bombarding NP with complaints about such "marvalous improvements"? Maybe they will start taking notice? Involve local press or maybe MP?
Cheers!
I.
I wonder if a call to Tim Farron would be in order? He knows the area well, and might be able to help shed some light as to why bridleways in the lakes are receiving such treatment.
It wouldn’t surprise me if HP was next, as that has recently taken a real beating from the weather. If HP doesn’t get treatment I suspect that something fishy has gone on regarding the resurfacing of 3 rivers!
Makes me so angry. Trail work here was unneccessary. Anyone seen how bad Stake pass switchbacks are into Langstrath. Huge work done a few years ago n very rubbish to ride by bike or horse...5
Makes me so angry. Trail work here was unneccessary. Anyone seen how bad Stake pass switchbacks are into Langstrath. Huge work done a few years ago n very rubbish to ride by bike or horse...
I collect mail from LDNPA and I had a chat with a person there and they have had no complaints about the work fix the fells do, and they would really like some feedback on their work they will get back to you apparently !! So Singletrackworld work your magic
email hq@lakedistrict.gov.uk
[url= https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1884/43206247555_3ae3d7301b_b.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1884/43206247555_3ae3d7301b_b.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/28PZj7F ]39568563_10156753714746474_5417478001199677440_o[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/ ]Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
Rich
Nice one rich, just emailed them with my opinion on it all.
Is it FtF though? There was suggestion on the Facebook link that it was possibly separate LDNP works.
It also doesn't have a collection of odd-shaped quarried rocks arranged in annoying steps and random wheeltrapping water bars, so I don't see how it could be FtF.
I can understand doing this to sections of trails which turn into a bog fest, but rocky trails which have nothing wrong with them such as 3 rivers makes no sense to me
It doesn't even benefit Walkers - They are capable of getting over far more technical terrain than us - So don't know why a Walker would want this ?
To me I find walking boring unless the terrain is extremely severe
Screw ‘em. If you know of a good trail ride it, whatever. Someone will either be along to sanitise it, buy it and fence it off or flog it for houses.
There won’t be a wild space left on these islands in fifty years, everything will be fenced off or tarmacced over.
The fences really annoy me, when you have to lift a bike over a fence to ride a section of trail it really does spoil things, a lot. If a good section of trail gets a fence put through it, that alone puts me off riding it.
I have an unwritten rule I set myself when I plan a route: 3 Gates/Styles to lift the bike over is the MAX on any ride in a day.
This was most apparent on my last ride, I had already reached my maximum of 3 and was getting near the end, the shortest route back involved 2 styles, but I choose the longer route with more climbing (even tho I didn't feel like it) because I'd already done my 3 maximum carries...
Would anyone say the number of decent trails is on the rise or the decline these days ??
Are Mountain Bike routes in decline ? Are the top routes getting worse ? There seems to be more sanitisation than ever before, and the number of Gates and Styles being implemented into Trails which used to flow well throughout, has been on the up, during the 4 years I've been doing it.
Thank God we've got trail centres to fall back on, but really don't like restricting myself to just these. There are so many good rides that aren't at Trail Centres and they don't all involve as much Driving to get there.
It appears that Mountain Biking is discouraged in England (outside the Trail Centres).
Everywhere else is just there for the grumpy walkers really.
3 gates? Jeez, you'd never make it past 2 miles in the lakes!. 🤣
Would anyone say the number of decent trails is on the rise or the decline these days ??
Even if you discounted trail centres, there are far more good trails now than there was when I started biking 15 years ago, no doubt about it.
The fences really annoy me, when you have to lift a bike over a fence to ride a section of trail it really does spoil things, a lot. If a good section of trail gets a fence put through it, that alone puts me off riding it.
I have an unwritten rule I set myself when I plan a route: 3 Gates/Styles to lift the bike over is the MAX on any ride in a day.
This was most apparent on my last ride, I had already reached my maximum of 3 and was getting near the end, the shortest route back involved 2 styles, but I choose the longer route with more climbing (even tho I didn’t feel like it) because I’d already done my 3 maximum carries…
Would anyone say the number of decent trails is on the rise or the decline these days ??
Are Mountain Bike routes in decline ? Are the top routes getting worse ? There seems to be more sanitisation than ever before, and the number of Gates and Styles being implemented into Trails which used to flow well throughout, has been on the up, during the 4 years I’ve been doing it.
Thank God we’ve got trail centres to fall back on, but really don’t like restricting myself to just these. There are so many good rides that aren’t at Trail Centres and they don’t all involve as much Driving to get there.

Not sure if serious....
Some more bad news...
Friend of mine was riding in Tilberthwaite and at the the bottom there is a sign with proposed works extent and time frame of 3 months!!!
Cheers!
I.
I was at the Lakes Bike Festival this weekend and was heading down the 3 Rivers descent and at the top of the sanitised section there were a couple of walkers so I stopped to have a chat. Those two weren't happy at the "improvements" either - the increased speed of bikers would mean greater risk of conflict. They, and those of us riding, didn't think the surface would last the winter and thought it a waste of time and money.
Friend of mine was riding in Tilberthwaite and at the the bottom there is a sign with proposed works extent and time frame of 3 months!!!
Whereabouts? They've already sanitised/flattened parts of the byway between High Tilberthwaite and Little Langdale.
from what i've heard they are doing more work on the same one.
Don't quite understand this. Rode it after the first set of 'works' and it is now easy and pretty untechnical up from High Tilberthwaite, certainly no problem for a quad or a landy. They have also filled a couple of the the deeper runnels higher up on the LL side. The justification for the works was that the farmer at HT was having trouble getting to his stock because of the 4x4 damage.
The bedrock section lower down on the LL side has always been like that.
probably going to flatten the bedrock sections, won't be worth riding then. we didn't tend to ride it much anyway though as a way to get back to little langdale we usually would carry on then go up by a big old quarry and descend down the cathedral path.