Luke took the honours this morning to plan the route and boy…was it a hilly one!!  The plan was to take us out around the reservoirs to the west of Harrogate.

We headed out up through Beckwithshaw and past Little Almscliff Crag, before turning left towards Norwood and Otley.  We took the quiet side lane, Jack Hill Lane, to bring us out at the bottom of Norwood Edge.  From there it was a fairly quick descent into Otley (except for a couple of climbs).  We were hoping to grab a coffee in Otley, but obviously no-one had set their alarm clocks to enable them to open their cafes (apart from one greasy spoon packed full of bikers).

From Otley, we headed out to Askwith before climbing up onto Askwith Moor.  From the top it was down to Blubberhouses and then around West End and Thruscross going over two 20%+ hills to give the legs a real workout.  We were then hoping to get a coffee at Mackenzies Smokehouse – but they don’t open on Sunday’s as we found out.

So it was back to Harrogate for a late coffee at the Smiths Arms in Beckwithshaw…but guess what….they were also shut.  Obviously no-one wanted to take our money today.

A really nice ride with some stunning views.

View the route: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/48686195