Trail Mixer

by andy.geall79

Posted on Mar 14, 2016 at 10:45 AM

​Trail Mixer

The Trail Mixer Route starts and finishes at the Todmorden Bike Shop the Cycle Factory. This route gets its name for riding over the same ground twice on a certain section and cleverly linking into two different descents that are both first class and a technical challenge. This mountain bike ride also features a mass of packhorse trails and elements of the Pennine Bridleway.

From the off you leave the bike shop and head along the A646 towards Burnley, we recommend breaking off into Centre Vale Park and re-joining the main road at the other side of the park. About ½ a mile up the road up you head to the trails and climb up through heavy woodland track of Jumps Lane until you reach open moorland.

At this point you take a right and continue to climb up a stone walled bridleway to over a 1000ft above sea level. At the junction you enter packhorse world and an offering of over two miles of packhorse trail, tracks and bridleways with a mix of technical and non-technical sections before you reach Todmorden Golf Club.

From here you are on the road for a short section before linking back into the bridleway network, from the farm house take note of your surroundings as this is the first descent of two. When you reach the road you take a left and then right descending on the fast bridleways to the houses, at this point continue straight on and into the woodland bridleway. This section to the bottom is extremely technical with loose rocks and obstacles throughout to roll over; you will either love it or hate it.

Back in the valley and on the main road you follow the A646 for 1 mile towards Hebden Bridge before picking up the Pennine Bridleway that climbs up to Blackshaw Head. The first part of the climb is relatively easy until it gradually ramps up and becomes more of a challenge. As you leave the access tracks to local houses you hit a technical section of off road from a hairpin and clearing this section is more pure luck than skill and power. This climb continues to become more challenging with further technical elements and a final section of ridged paved sets that sit just far enough apart for 29er wheels unable to bridge them, making momentum difficult. Once this section is complete you can steadily tap away till you reach the road at Blackshaw Head.

Heading west the route follows a short tarmac section to the village and gradually climbs to the hill top using the local bridleway network. The route links back to the road network using the sometimes water logged Dukes Cut and connects with a fast road section downhill to familiar surroundings and ground you have already covered. At the road this time you turn right and follow until you pick up a hidden bridleway to the left. This little section is a great bit of single track and varies from being super hard packed to extremely sketchy, both of which put a smile on your face. As this section leaves the woods you link back onto terrain conquered for a short period before heading down a short track to what looks like a farmyard. At this point there is a hidden bridleway to the left that cuts through the houses, its technical and fun from the off as it zig zags down the hillside to the picnic site and car park in the bottom of the
valley.

Getting back to the start is simple, just head west on the A646 back to Cycle Factory.