[Closed] Nan Bield Route; how long?

10kms trail centre ..

Not for you then matey the full loop from Stavley round Kentmere Sandgil , Gatesgarth and up is around 38km and 1038 metres of climbing , around 4 hours give or take, the slog up from Sandgil is enough to warrant cakes stops

stevedoc - Thank You for your reply BUT try reading my post again 8)

4 to 6 hours and add a bit more for the ride to/from wherever you actually start from.

Bit of a waste of time that route as the descent down Gatescarth is essentially just a landrover track.

I'd do this one, which has a bit of cheeky in it but is superior. I was up there on my own on a day with some navigational difficulties and it was about 4 hours.

https://www.strava.com/activities/269189608

There's some big bugger climbs in there, I reckon Simon1975 is about right - always better to err on the side of caution.

What Munrobiker says.

Start at Bottom of Dubbs, straight up Garburn and carry on up and over the tops to thornthwaite, then descend to top of Nan bield pass. On a clear day, you'll struggle to beat the views.

down nan bield, into Kentmere - add on 3 rivers descent if you have the legs - then over high borrans back to car.

Peach of a day.

OP, I did this route last year, but starting (and finishing) in Staveley which makes it 31km. Strava tells me I was riding for 3hr 23m and total elapsed time (with sandwich and photo stops) was 4hr 47m. Plenty of hike-a-bike. You'll still be doing the hardest half so draw your own conclusions 🙂

this website is useful for downloading strava routes as GPX

https://mapstogpx.com/strava/

you don't need to be a premium member or friends with the owner of the activity to export the GPX.

Being a bit thick here slackboy, what the hell is a bookmarklet? 😆

slackboy that's genius; I just robbed some people's routes for an Isle of Man trip I'm planning 🙂

Perfect - Thanks for all the input guys.

We're going to be doing the Nan Bield route on Saturday 6th May - keep your fingers crossed for some good weather 😆

Enjoy...and take your lightest bike. You will be carrying or pushing it more than once 😉

[url= https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7689/26805090522_77fccd80bb.jp g" target="_blank">https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7689/26805090522_77fccd80bb.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/GQF6x9 ]Lakeland hike-a-bike May 2016[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/ ]stilltortoise[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7653/26898460815_321cbc5e4c.jp g" target="_blank">https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7653/26898460815_321cbc5e4c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/GYVDgM ]Lakeland hike-a-bike May 2016[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/ ]stilltortoise[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/albums/72157665735139103 ]More photos[/url]

I'd start in Stile End go over to Longsleddale, head up Gatesgarth and instead of dropping down turn left and go over the fell that takes you on the red line on the mbr route east, turning right at the cairn and down to the top of Nan Bield pass, and then down to where you started. = 2 hours if you crack on, 3 if you take it easy and 4 if have mechanicals.

Unless you're confident on steep and rocky remote off-piste mountain terrain, I'd recommend your mbr over the other alternatives offered. Allow 4-6 hrs. As local I often meet visiting riders looking harrowed, pushing/walking down Harter Fell, Ullock Pike and other off-piste classics who've been recommended them online. OTOH if you happily ride Munro's, Lakes passes etc then ignore my doom-mongering.

Doing it w/e after you op,first timer here too,was going to reccy bh monday but weather forcast changed plans.I'm sure I will moan and groan all the way, but secretly enjoy myself 😉
Good weather vibes for you too

thekettle; thanks for your local advice. I am going to stick with the MBR route.

sparkyrhino; have a great ride 😀

Just aim for the ice cream van at the top of Nan Bield pass, it will keep you going up the hike bike

Sorry Jag , bad eyes 🙂

i enjopy the route like Nobeers, did it last weekend
https://www.strava.com/activities/943234604
a few bits of the descent from III bell to froswick are unrideable for me and also a couple of short bits dropping down to nan beild. the bits down to nan beild shouldn't be but my bottle always goes on them for some reason.
cut that ride short and went straight back to staveley on the road after repairs half way down nan beild when my mech took out a few spokes after hitting a rock.

Garburn, Sadgill, Nan bield, Broken, Weather was ok Saturday, strong headwind on the slog up/down Nan Bield, Done never again! Hope op faired better

Hi Sparkyrhino.....

Weather was good when we did Nanbield but I/we didn't think it was worth the hype or the effort afterwards. I think I'm in the same place as you - done but I wouldn't bother again.

I will be returning to ride more in the Lake District just not the Nanbield Pass 😆

... Well, each to their own, I guess.
It would be pretty boring if we all liked the same.

Nan Bield is a sensible/reasonable introduction to Lakes riding. It has a bit of something for everyone but nothing particularly silly.

Hope you find something more to your liking. There's plenty more to go at 😀

You do Nan Bield once on a bike imo!!That bit spoils a good day out!!

This thread is making me want to ride it again.

Absolutely deserves its classic status IMO, though maybe you have to be feeling "on it" to really get the most out of it.

Last time I did it me and my mate were racing down on short travel 29ers, which seemed the perfect tools for the job.

To the naysayers what were you expecting, is it the hike a bike, or the descent too technical for you to ride?

is it the hike a bike, or the descent too technical for you to ride?

IMO the descent off NB to the south is best if attacked at speed, as there really isn't anything you can't go at, and you can carry speed all the way down it.

Like Chaka above, this makes me want to go ride it again!.

I'm not sure what it was; I rode all of the descent from the pass itself but I didn't think it was so good that I had to go and hike-a-bike all the way back up to do it again. Returns Vs Effort ratio???

On reflection that actually only applies to the first 500 metres of steep, loose and rocky stuff. After that the incline reduced a bit and I found it was a lot more enjoyable.

If I was more 'awsumz' I'm sure I'd be looking to go back 🙄

Hi fergal , The descents are fine, and don`t mind a bit of hike with a bit of hard climbing but from memory it was hike hike and hike some more,much prefer to bury myself pedaling for 30 seconds, have a breather then go again and again to eventually top out.

The first 500m is the best section IMO, as said above, wouldn't do if we were all the same!.

The descent from the Nan Bield Pass.....

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We had fantastic weather for it 8)

That you did fella. The views from the ridge running from Garburn all the way north onto High St are some of the best in the country IMO.

That classic image really sums it up for me, the trail that just keeps on giving, aesthetics, flow, have done it three times now, as has been said it gets better every time.

^^ Might go back after seeing the JAG pic thats worth a bit of hike a bike 😳

To the naysayers what were you expecting?

Simple. I expected to enjoy it more than I did. The weather was awesome, I was with mates, I was feeling fit(ish). For me it was Gatesgarth that turned a previously enjoyable ride into something that didn't live up to expectations. Whilst I enjoy the challenge of climbing, that just went on for too long. I then didn't ride the descent down to Haweswater very well, which pissed me off more. *Then* came the true hike-a-bike. By the time I got to the top of Nan Bield, I felt a bit cheated. In fact half way up Nan Bield I was wondering if I'd be having more fun on the Fred Whitton which was being ridden that same day.

By the time I came to the main descent, the psychological damage had already been done 🙂

Thats probably where you failed, attacking the Gatesgarth climb!

First rule of hikey bike club, to save energy for the descents later in the day. When the gradient really kicks in and it would be easier to walk, do that.

It's a classic mistake thinking these climbs can be ridden by all and sundry, if they are only by mythical riding gods*.

* XC racing whippets with something to prove.

Thats probably where you failed, attacking the Gatesgarth climb!

I gave up trying to ride it quite early on 🙂

[url= https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7653/26898460815_321cbc5e4c.jp g" target="_blank">https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7653/26898460815_321cbc5e4c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/GYVDgM ]Lakeland hike-a-bike May 2016[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/stilltortoise/ ]stilltortoise[/url], on Flickr

Fair enough, sometimes you just have days like that. Tbh, though I have never done it, The Gatescarth up and over seems to be a lot of wasted effort for what it is. Listening to the usual in-the-know lakeland suspects on here, I know it's not one I'll probably ever bother with.

I enjoyed Nan bield. I'd been eyeing it for years, so it was nice to tick it off the bucket list.

We came up from Sadgill and Gatesgarth, which is a nice test of the legs, then over Harterfell via the cheek. Dropping to the top of the pass was a good technical challenge, and the top of Nan bield with the switchbacks and rocky chunder was fun, but it's over quickly, and the rest is a pretty average high moorland descent. Great in the dry, a miserable, leg sapping mush in the wet.

I enjoy the likes of Birkside, the back of Fleetwith Pike and Styhead Ghyll more though.

On reflection today, a bit of missing mojo,tired legs and mind for the decent , have ridden decents,as steep and techy and longer, and loved them,Just first time on a hardtail.
Could be tempted at the more direct route, if challenged to on a boozy nite out(just quit drinking) 😉