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.....I know I've asked this before but has anyone done this and enjoyed it / had a trauma? It's in my "could be interesting / a total trauma box" - happy to carry up and down but wondering how challenging the corridor route which appears to be the best route to take in the Styhead Gill descent on the return leg would be? Is it scramble hell or doable with the bike strapped to your back? The thought of carrying to and from the summit isn't a big concern but necky and exposed scrambles aren't my favourite things to do with a bike....... 😀
I've done it from Great Gable to Scafell Pike, via Corridor route, don't remember it being a scramble bar one tiny section. I wouldn't carry a mtb up there though it would just ruin a good walk IMO.
The top of scafell pike is just a rocky hell, I can't imagine it would make a good ride up or down plus it's cheeky. If you're prepared to do cheeky I reckon there are some better routes for a ride.
The top of scafell pike is just a rocky hell
+1
The corridor route is fine as a carry up. We descended to Esk Hause. I doubt I'd bother again: it's a carry most of the way from the summit to the back of Great End.
If you push up from Skiddaw House its not bad and drop down to Ullock Pike it gets awesome.
Why? Too rocky. Not really scrambling though.
Why? why not, seems a fine objective to tick off England's highest peaks, have always fancied the Lakes trilogy on a bicycle, walked Scafell last year via Esk hause, return via the corridor, I reckon Esk hause down to styhead tarn would be the winner, the carry over the boulder fields would be a proper ball breaker, but worth it for the tick, at the end of the day, you know when you hike with a bike you just get your head down and get on with it, classic type two fun.
Waste of time IMO. Carry it up, carry it back down.
I've walked it from Wasdale head and there are a few sections that would be good, but a lot of loose scree/boulder sections that would be rubbish, plus 2000 panting tourists per square metre.
Yes, I did it on a CX bike along with Snowdon and Ben Nevis as a mad three peaks adventure. It is shite with a bike, I carried up from Wasdale Head and then down the Corridor route, total madness. I ended up taking the wheels off to use as walking poles and strapping the frame to my Camelback. Ben Nevis was 10 times worse for the record as it was a Saturday, full of walkers and unrideable down. Snowdon, I missed the curfew so pushed down that as well.
One day I'll write it all up, it is an epic adventure, but completely and utterly futile.
Is it scramble hell or doable with the bike strapped to your back?
It would be if you did not take the bike to bits. I found it manageable but did it midweek with bugger all walkers around. Those that I did meet, just fell about laughing so did not really interrupt my progress. I would never do it again, but I am glad that I can go to my grave with at least one bloody stupid episode to my name.
[url= http://www.strava.com/activities/67153005 ]If it ain't on Strava, it didn't happen[/url]
Yep had a nightmare of a trip a lot of years ago round about 1984 ish
A group of 17 mountain bikers staying in caravans in Langdale we were supposed to follow a route called Tour of Great Gable in Jeremy Ashcrofts
book [URL= http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa46/amticoman/ashcroft.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa46/amticoman/ashcroft.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]( World bike carrying champion )
The details are a bit foggy as this is what happened up there the fog came down and we were then struggling so followed the cairns after carrying our bikes over double decker sized boulders for what seemed forever we met a couple of hikers coming down so asked them if they knew our location Yes came the reply about 200 yards from the summit of Scafell Pike .
So after taking advise from them we followed a path down which then had us forming a chain down a waterfall passing the bikes down .
When we finally dropped below the fog we found ourselves in what I can describe as the water margins then followed a struggle through these and onto a great singletrack down into Boot came out near the Phone box we were all bolloxed by this time .
I came out of the phone box to see 16 ashen faces staring with hope at me so said Some good news and some bad news
The good news is I know where we are .
The bad news is we have to ride over Hardnott and Rhynose passes to get back to the caravans .
I have a mate who still starts to twitch if I mention Rossit Ghyll .
Anyways after a few beers and bits of grilled animals we were all smiling again and ready for the next character building adventure .
side note after that week following a few of Jeremy Ashcrofts routes we burnt the damn books
Bugger I have that book and have been planning to try one of its routes for the past 15 years
Bugger I have that book and have been planning to try one of its routes for the past 15 years
After that length of build up it's doomed to disappoint.
Skiddaw is a much better ride - up to the top and then right round it.
Aye, aboot 2006 with three of my mates, me and two on Merlin Malt bikes and one on a full sus. Carried the bikes all the way up and a short section on the way doon, before we hooned it down with scant regard for self preservation.
We all enjoyed it immensely and talked of a three peeks MTB challenge for weeks, alas still to be done.
Mmmm which way are you heading up? I was up on Scafell Pike via the Corridor route on Saturday - running, not with the bike this time. Some of it would be rideable - up or down - about 30% I reckon. The rest would be hike a bike but generally ok - a few short sections of easy scrambling. Then the section above Lingmell Col to the summit is a boulder/scree fest, not much fun up or down.
But - the descent from Esk Hause all the way down to Sty Head and then Seathwaite is a classic - all super rideable. The section from Scafell Pike summit over past Broad crag isn't that rideable, so I reckon you'd have a fair bit of hike a bike that way heading to Esk Hause.
All in all a decent route here I reckon would be Stonethwaite - Langstrath - Stake Pass - Rossett Pike - Esk Hause - Sty Head - Seathwaite. And erm yes this doesn't include Scafell Pike - so depends whether you want to conquer summits or go riding 🙂
I don't get this whole carrying bikes up and down completely unridable mountains?
Sounds like an even more pointless version of extreme ironing.
Do you ride a couple of yards at the summit and get a photo?
It's a resounding 'no' from me.
Tomaso - you're thinking of Skiddaw
Corridor route would be a bore with a bike IMO, there is one tricky section where climbing down would be a phraff with a bike (has a degree of exposure where with an unfortunate slip and unlucky roll you'd kill yourself) plus a bolder field where hike a bike would be tricky followed by a steep lose bit just before the peak which would test your patience. The route used by most walkers up from the other side would be very straightforward with quite a lot of it rideable (if it wasn't a footpath). The only reason you'd take a bike up there would be to say you'd done it. Not sure there would be much fun involved.