There was a call for something a bit different tonight, as most of the recent night rides had been out to the west of Harrogate, so Malcolm and James came up with a route around the northern villages of Harrogate.

We kicked off by heading down over Forest Moor and along the Knaresborough Riverside before heading into Scriven and on to Farnham.  The initial pace was brisk and as we headed towards Staveley, Rob and James had to floor it to get back on.  We then headed out towards Bishop Monkton, before hanging a left on the lane that took us over the Ripon road and into Markington.  The smell of steak coming from the pub in Markington was very tempting, but we resisted the urge and carried on up to the Drovers Arms crossroads and on into Shaw Mills and up to Burnt Yates.

At the top of Clint Bank we took the decision to have a dig at Church Bank in Birstwith, which was good.  Our return to Harrogate was then back through Hampsthwaite, up Hollins Lane and back through Know Mill.  It was here that Karl said that he thought that one Thursday each month, Cafe Rosso held an Italian night on a Thursday, so we thought it would be rude to see if it was tonight and have a sneaky Peroni, if it was open, alas….it was not the night!!  Oh well, back home for an early bath.

It was a really nice ride on and equally nice night.  Route details are here: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/79213372