Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of The Eastern Dales Featuring Highlights Of The Beryl Burton Cycle Route

Welcome to this part of my site featuring pictures taken from my return to cycling in the Yorkshire Dales based on the eastern part of the Dales around Nidderdale, lower Wensleydale and now the recently approved Sustrans route 67 that runs southeast of Harrogate to the lower Wharfedale town of Wetherby. Pictures in the order of 1 to 10 are special features of a link cycle route between Harrogate to Knaresborough. It is a spur of national cycle route 67 developed by the Sustrans in 1987 in memory of Beryl Burton OBE who was 7 times world cycling champion who sadly passed away at the age of 58. It is also a good introduction to cycling the Yorkshire Dales from Harrogate and as this path is mostly traffic free, It is suitable for families with young children. The Route from Knaresborough Joins an excellent cycle route that can be followed from the Midlands to North West Scotland. It is known as the National Byway and is Britain's Heritage Cycle Route consisting of roads that use light traffic and rural lanes, Making a good link route to the Dales. Pictures in the order of 10 to 14 feature the Ancient market town of Knaresborough and it may be worth taking a day or so off the road to explore this town as there is so much to see and do. Knaresborough's main tourist attraction on the south side of the Gorge is the historic Mother Shipton's Cave with its Dropping Well and cascading waterfalls. Other tourist attractions of Knaresborough is the Castle with its 14th Century Courthouse and is now a museum. Taking a walk into its picturesque market square there are some buildings of interest such as the oldest chemist shop in England, The Town Hall and Blind Jacks Public House. The short stretch of  the A6055 Boroughbridge road that links the National Byway out of Knaresborough can be very busy at peak times and care must be exercised at all times. You can at the expense of a short detour avoid the most hazardous section between High Bridge and Bond End traffic lights. I hope to try print a map explaining this route in the near future. Pictures in the order of 14 to 24 feature my day tour of the Nidderdale and lower Wensleydale section of the Yorkshire Dales as follows. Pictures 15 and 16 feature the historic site of Brimham Rocks, A well known beauty spot located about 4 miles east of the Market Town of Pateley Bridge and is easily accessible by taking a detour off the Byway at Markington, Following through the villages of Bishop Thornton, Shaw Mills and Burnt Yates. The Rocks themselves consist of Millstone Grit dating from the Upper Carboniferous period of some 200 million years ago and as these rocks are about 227 feet above sea level they are some splendid views looking across the whole Plain Of York. Picture 17 features the historic dales town of Pateley Bridge and is a good rest stop for tired and thirsty travellers. Pateley Bridge was once a Lead Mining town and stone querying was one of the main industries of this area. Other tourist attractions of this town is the Nidderdale Museum and the Nidderdale Agricultural Show, Held annually every year towards the end of September. Picture 19 is looking from the bridlepath towards the south east side of Gouthwaite reservoir and you can get some grand views over Heathfield Moor. Gouthwaite reservoir is owned by the Yorkshire water authority and supplies most of the water to the Dales villages and surrounding areas. It is also a sanctuary for rear bird species and provides home for a rich variety of plants. Pictures in the order of 20 to 23 feature the isolated countryside of Nidderdale and the lovely villages of Ramsgill and Lofthouse, Where the Dale starts to get really wild particularly during the Winter season and this part of my route is a mixture of bridleways and on road. A word of warning about the bridleway sections if planning to attempt this route. They are only really suitable for mountain bikes as there are many rough surfaces and should the worst happen such as a puncture or a fall you should have a full survival kit for these kind of routes. Along with other spares, You need a puncture outfit and spare tube. Do not even think of attempting the bridletrack routes in very wet or icy weather conditions. Picture 22 is my departure from Nidderdale and after a well earned steep climb lasting about half an hour, The views are very rewarding towards Masham and Kirkby Malzeard Moor. This is one of the highest roads in the Yorkshire Dales reaching about 429 feet above sea level. The last three quarter of an hour ride to Masham is very pleasant and mostly downhill into the rolling hill countryside of Wensleydale. Masham featured in picture 23 is a pleasant little Market town with plenty of cafes and pubs and is also the home of Theakston's Brewery. The route from Masham rejoins The National Byway where you can retrace your steps to The World Heritage Site Of Fountains Abbey and there is a loop to The Historic Cathedral City Of Ripon if time permits before returning back to Knaresborough. Pictures in the order of 24 to 27 are on the same route of The National Byway except they where taken on a Summer Sunday afternoon ride out to Fountains Abbey and Ripon. Picture 24 features the small City Of Ripon located on the River Ure at the foot of Wensleydale and like Knaresborough it is a lovely tourist town and one of England's smallest cities. Ripon's main tourist attractions is its beautiful Minster Cathedral Church, Ripon Spa Gardens and The Prison and Police Museum. Pictures 25 and 26 feature The Historic Ruin of Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Gardens. Fountains Abbey is the worlds most Heritage site and the nearby Studley Royal Gardens are beautiful with flowers in there full bloom during the late spring to early summer season. It also gets very busy during the high summer season so I would suggest you pay a visit very early and make a whole day of it. Picture 27 features the pretty village of Burton Leonard situated on the route between Bishop Monkton and Knaresborough. Picture 30 is a steam railway scene in Starbeck, Not far from the link route to Bilton and has been included because steam was the order of the day on all these old railway paths until the early to mid 1960s when they where out ruled by modern diesel engines. This particular train is The Scarborough Spa Express and used to run every summer until they recently found problems with various sections of the Harrogate to Leeds Line. There is an on road cycle route map of this route in picture 31 that has been compiled using Microsoft auto route and as you can only compile road sections using this software I will describe the following maps that are suitable for this route. If you wish to use the bridletrack sections of this route you need the Ordnance Survey series as follows. For the northern section you will need Northallerton and Ripon 99 Landranger with 1:50 000 scale and for the southern section you will need the Leeds and Bradford 104 Landranger series which covers the Harrogate and Knaresborough sections. If you wish to only do the on road section of this route then Ordnance Survey Road 4 Travel Map titled, Northern England should be suitable for this route. Regular visitors of this page should now know that sections of this cycle route through the dales, now forms the new Sustrans Coast to Coast cycle route titled The Way Of The Roses. It links the Lancashire seaside resort of Morecambe to the East Yorkshire seaside resort of Bridlington and stretches a total of 170 miles. Harrogate and Knaresborough are now linked to this route due to the resent completion of the Nidderdale Greenway and more about this route can be read by visiting the following link Pictures From My Cycle Trail Of The Nidderdale Greenway. Pictures 28 to 29 are also the newly open Bilton stretch of the Nidderdale Greenway. Meanwhile if you intend cycling the route from Knaresborough, The National Byway links with this route at Bishop Monkton with access in both directions. Please also visit my other companion site which has information on the western section of the dales by clicking the following link Pictures From Cycle Tour Of The Western Dales . Pictures in the order of 32 to 41 are pictures of the southeast section of Sustrans route 67, Harrogate to the lower Wharfedale town of Wetherby and the new off road cycle route of Wetherby to Bramham. The southeast section of the Sustrans national cycle network out of Harrogate has only been recently been approved prier to opening a permissive path through Harrogate's Great Yorkshire Show Ground and as a result this avoids the Busy A661 Harrogate to Wetherby Road. To give you an idea, Picture 42 is the onroad route of Wetherby to York. This particular route uses a short hazardous and difficult section of the A661 out of Spofforth village with no pavement and also a short section of the Busy B1224 out of Wetherby has to be used if you intend following the York section, so unless you are experienced with this route it is better to stick with the Wetherby Railway path as it is a traffic free cycle path between Spofforth to Wetherby which I will mention briefly. Picture 43 is the recommended Sustrans cycle route between Spofforth and Wetherby and is an entirely traffic free railway cycle path, suitable for family cycling with young children. There is also a short section that continues to Thorpe Arch Trading Estate in which you can from there follow the miner roads to The City Of York. Just one note regarding this section of the route at Thorpe Arch Trading Estate. The Thorpe Arch to York Section of Sustrans route 66 is not yet approved and involves cycling through the estate and approach roads from Walton and Tadcaster may be very busy during peak times and at weekends. Other then this issue mentioned, the route is very pleasant. The area southeast of Harrogate to Wetherby is not really Yorkshire Dales country with such high fells like Whernside or Ingleborough. It is in fact more low lying and gets more flatter once you get east of Wetherby and is referred to being known as The Vale Of York which is rich in agricultural farming. Never the less, it is still pleasant cycling country steeped in history with many beautiful villages. The area between Harrogate to Spofforth on route 67 is known as the low Crimple Valley which is really a small river or more regarded as a Beck that begins its journey from a small Gill situated on Stainburn Moor which lies about 4 miles west of Harrogate and 4 miles east of Fewston Reservoir. As you start your Journey of this cycle route through the Yorkshire Show Ground, there are grand views of the picturesque Crimple viaduct which still carries the Harrogate to Leeds Railway and you will see the viaduct that used to carry the Harrogate to Wetherby Railway which became a victim of closure in 1964. Like the new Nidderdale Greenway cycle route this particular line could have also been made into a cycleway which would have made a grand traffic free cycle route between Harrogate to Thorpe Arch but instead farmers and landowners jumped in first and purchased part of the land long before such a cycle route could be considered which is a real sad state of affairs. The villages of Follifoot and Spofforth mentioned in the picture text are certainly worth exploring while venturing out on this route and both villages are very well served with pubs and small stores for refreshing your energy. Picture 38 is a view of the lower Wharfedale town of Wetherby and has for century's been a staging post on the A1 Great North Road. It is also situated between London and Edinburgh. This particular riverside view of Wetherby Bridge used to be the main A1 route through the town until it was bypassed during the 1950s. Wetherby is well served with plenty of pubs and restaurants and if you are into Fish And Chips, The Wetherby Whaler situated at the southern end of the town does the best quality Fish and Chips in the entire Yorkshire Reign. I will first give you the bad news, if you intend following the route up the dale towards the Market Towns of Otley and Ilkley. The A659 that runs parallel to the south bank of the Wharfe between Collingham and Otley is a very busy and fast commuter road carrying very heavy traffic virtually all hours of the day and all cyclists must at all costs avoid it. It also has some very narrow sections and the most hazardous sections are the A61 Harewood junction which forms part of the Leeds to Harrogate road. The A658 at Pool Bank which forms part of the Harrogate to Bradford road is completely a no go road for cyclists. I will in the later future hope to feature a route that is possible from Wetherby to the Dales if you intend to avoid Harrogate, But this still involves some busy short sections of A Road. There is some good news for cyclists intending to visit the nearby villages of Boston Spa and Bramham that lie about 4 miles south of Wetherby. Due to the resent upgrade of the A1 dual carriageway into Motorway standard on the stretch that lies between Wetherby to Ferrybridge, They have took the courtesy to construct a traffic free path that runs in parallel with the old Great North Road and the new Motorway section. Picture 39 describes this trail which I like to name as the Wetherby to Bramham cycle trail and is well signposted. Bramham is also a very pleasant village with a local store and 2 Pubs. Like nearby Wetherby, It used to be part of the busy Great North Road and the nearby Bramham Park is a country house named after the village. It is also a private residence allowing visitors by appointment in party groups. Bramham Park is also the setting for the Annual Summer horse trail and the Leeds Music Festival. Pictures in the order of 44 to 46 feature the proposed Knaresborough Strand of The coast to coast Morecambe to Bridlington cycle route, The Way Of The Roses. This is another section of the route that is not yet strictly Sustrans approved and now that the Nidderdale Greenway is complete it is hoped that this section will be worked upon next. The route out of Knaresborough needs the most care which I will briefly describe. The B6164 Wetherby Road that lies between Knaresborough to St James's Retail Park is very busy but there is good news and bad news regarding this section of the route. If you have followed the river bank road that runs between the Mothershipton Bridge and the B6164 Wetherby road, There is at least a section of cycle path until you get to the junction of the A658 Knaresborough bypass and the B6164. This is a very hazardous roundabout with no cycle or pedestrian crossing and the most riskiest of the entire route. The B6164 Knaresborough to Wetherby road is reasonably quite after peak traffic times although some sections have some nasty hairpin bends, Particularly as you approach Little Ribston so great care is still needed. This road can also be very busy on some occasions such as when roadwork's are in progress on the nearby A1, It becomes an A1 diversion road. About 1 mile southeast of Little Ribston village you turn left onto a miner road and it is at this point that you begin to realise the rolling Nidd valley disappears into the flat Plain Of York. Despite the flat countryside this route takes you through the lovely villages of Tockwith, Long Marston and Askham Richard. The area around Long Marston is Known as Marston Moor where the 1644 Battle took place during the first English Civil War of 1642-1646. The route into York city centre follows mostly on cycle paths and miner roads and with common sense it posses less of a hazard then the Knaresborough section of this route. The City Of York is one of the most cycle friendly cities in the Country and has very good rail and other cycle links to the City making it a handy touring base. It is also worth spending a day or two exploring this beautiful City before venturing up to the Dales. To see more pictures of York please check out the following link Pictures From My Tours And Travels Around Yorkshire. Picture 47 features the historic Market Town of Boroughbridge and like Wetherby it is the 2nd Market town situated on the A1 between London and Edinburgh. It is also well served with Teashops and Pubs and is also the halfway stop between Morecambe and Bridlington on the Way of The Roses Cycle Route. There is now some new video footage of my resent cycle trails around Nidderdale in a 6 part series and the links can be located by scrawling to the bottom of this page, Including the new open Nidderdale Greenway- Bilton To Ripley. Pictures in the order of 48 to 52 are newly added pictures from my footage of the extension of National Cycle Route 67 south of Bramham village and feature the historic village of  Aberford and the nearby country house and gardens known as The Lotherton Hall Estate. This part of the route needs about the same care as the Wetherby section but as Bramham Crossroads is a very busy Motorway junction you must take great care at its toucan crossing and I regret to say that this section is not suitable for young children or inexperienced cyclists. This route is also useful for cyclists intending to travel southbound to South Yorkshire or The Derbyshire Peak District which like The Yorkshire Dales it has many similarities and also links with The Transpennine Trail which is a link route to Derby and The North Midlands. It also links the southern section of the Pennine Cycleway which is National Cycle Route 68.                                   

Start of the link route to Harrogate and Starbeck. This location is at the site of the old Bilton level crossing and now The Nidderdale Greenway.

New signposting of The Beryl Burton Cycleway as you approach it from The Nidderdale Greenway at Bilton Lane Junction.

The Gardeners Arms Pub. Located in Bilton, On the spur to Knaresborough of national cycle route 67 and handy for a good pint after a day out cycling.

The Beryl Burton cycle route. This peaceful location is on the old Bilton track between Bilton Hall and The Caravan Site.

The Start of the Beryl Burton cycle track and this locaton is at the entrance of Bilton Hall.

A taste of family cycling. This location is on The Beryl Burton cycle track between Bilton Hall and Knaresborough.

The Beryl Burton Cycle track. This scene is looking across the Nidd Valley over towards Scotton.

The long decend towards Knaresborough where you start to get grand views of the Castle and you need good brakes for this section as it is quite steep.

The Beryl Burton Memorial Stone. This Location is in Knaresborough, Just by the Nidd bank towards the end of this trail.

Complete new signposting of the Beryl Burton Cycle Route as you approach The Worlds End in Knaresborough.

Knaresborough Nidd Gorge. This is looking towards its impressive Mother Shipton viaduct and is still part of the Harrogate to York railway line.

Knaresborough Nidd Gorge. This scene is looking south east towards the Castle Ruins and the riverside cafe, Where you can refresh for a snack.

Knaresborough. This scene is looking into the Market Place and Knaresborough also forms part of the National Byway, Britain's Heritage Cycle route.

Knaresborough. This is in the Parish Church grounds looking across towards the railway station and the recent refurbished Mitre Hotel.

Knaresborough. This is looking from the Parish Church Grounds, Over the north west end of the waterside with grand views of Bilton Hall.

Brimham Rocks. A first taste of The Yorkshire Dales and there are impressive views from this location of York Minster and The North York Moors.

Brimham Rocks. This scene dispite the poor visability is looking south towards Menwith Hill Camp.

Pateley Bridge. The capital town of Nidderdale and there are plenty of good bridletrack routes for mountain bikes located near this location.

This scene is in Nidderdale, On the bridleway looking over towards Gouthwaite Reservoir, With splended views over Heathfield Moor.

The lovely Nidderdale village of Ramsgill, Where you can rejoin the bridlepath to Lofthouse and where you start to get the taste of real Nidderdale.

The Bridlepath and Nidderdale Way near Lofthouse and this is where you start to get the most scenic views of this dale which always stays in memory.

Lofthouse. This is looking back into the Nidderdale village of lofthouse and is part of the long steep climb up to Masham Moor.

The last sight of Nidderdale. This is looking from High Lofthouse and was taken on the long steep road to Masham.

This scene is the climb from Lofthouse Moor on my approach to Masham and there are grand views of Roundhill Reservoir

The lovely small Wensleydale town of Masham and is located on The National Byway. It is also a good cycle touring route to the Dales.

The Historic Cathedral City Of Ripon. Located at the foot of Wensleydale on a loop of The National Byway.

The World Heritage Site of Fountains Abbey. Located on the Eastern Dales Route of The National Byway, A great day out to remember of a cycle tour.

Studley Royal Gardens. Located on the east side of the Fountains Abbey estate and this scene is looking across to The Moon Pond.

Burton Leonard. One of the many pretty villages on The National Byway, Located between Knaresborough and Ripon.

The start of the new Nidderdale Greenway cycle route at Bilton Lane. This used to be Bilton Junction during the Harrogate to Ripon Railway days.

This scene is the newly opened section of The Nidderdale Greenway as you approach the Grade listed 2 Nidd Viaduct.in the southerly direction to Bilton

Starbeck Railway Station. Situated not far from the link route of the Beryl Burton Cycle Route and this is a reminder of Steam Days on the old tracks

On road cycle route map of this Nidderdale cycle tour excluding the Bridleway tracks and Ordnance Survey 1:50 000 are strongly recommended

Follifoot. Situated about 2 miles south east of Harrogate. This village has a long history association with horse sports.

Spofforth Castle. 13th Century ruin located in the pleasent village of Spofforth loacted on National route 67 about 5 miles south east of Harrogate.

Spofforth. Situated in the low Cimple Valley. Spofforth was also home to the 18th Century road builder, Blind Jack Metcalf.

The Harland Way. The traffic free sustrans cycle route 67, Spofforth to Wetherby section. This location is the entrance at Spofforth.

The Harland Way Cycle path. This location is near Wetherby and used to be part of the Harrogate to Church Fenton Railway.

The Harland Way. This is the signposting located between Wetherby and Spofforth. This Railway also became a victim of closure during the 1960s.

Wetherby. Pleasent lower Wharfedale town situated about 9 miles south east of Harrogate on the Sustrans route 67 to York.

The new Wetherby to Bramham cycle route that runs parallel to the A1 M Great North Road. This scene is approaching in the direction of Wetherby.

Bramham. Pleasent old Coaching Inn village Located 4 miles south of Wetherby on the A1 Great North Road and is famous for its Summer horse trail.

Bramham. This milestone gives evidance of the original A1 Great North Road, long before it was bypassed and later became the A1 M.

Harrogate to York cycle route. This is the onroad route avoiding the Harland Way and involves short busy sections of A Road out of Spofforth

The Recommended traffic free cycle route to Wetherby and Thorpe Arch Trading estate, if you intend to go eastwards to York or the East Coast.

Askham Richard. Pleasent Conservation village located about 6 miles southwest of York and is the Knaresborough strand of The Roses Cycle Route.

The City Of York. The Capital centre of Yorkshire and this location is in the Minster Grounds, part of the new Roses coast to coast, cycle route 636.

Knaresborough to York cycle route. This is to be the proposed Sustrans route of the Roses, when the Bilton to Ripley cycle route is completed.

Boroughbridge. Historic Market Town situated on the A1 Great North Road about 7 miles south of Ripon. This is also halfway of the Roses cycle route

Aberford. Pleasent historic village Situated about 7.5 miles south of Wetherby on National Cycle Route 67. Also refered as the old Kingdom of Elmet.

Aberford. This is in the middle high street of this historic village situated on the old Great North Road between London and Edingburgh.

Lotherton Hall. Situated about 1 mile east of Aberford and like Fountains Abbey it is one of Yorkshire's most grand tourist attractions.

Lotherton Hall. This scene is entrance to the museum and art gallerie and once home to the Gascoigne family.

Lotherton Hall. This is one of the grounds loveliest landmarks known as its Walled Garden.

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 Links To My Other Cycle Touring Pages Related To The Yorkshire Dales

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Pictures From My Cycle Trail Of The Nidderdale Greenway

Pictures From Cycle Tour Of The Western Dales

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of Swaledale And The North Pennines

Links To My Cycle Touring Pages From Phil's Online Photo Site

Photographs From My Cycle Tours During The 1980s

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of East Yorkshire Featuring The Trans Pennine Trail

Pictures From My Cycle Tours Of The North York Moors And East Coast

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of Lancashire Featuring Morecambe Bay And The Forest Of Bowland

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of North Wales Via The Trans Pennine Trail

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of Scotland

Pictures From My Cycle Tour Of Cumbria Featuring The North Pennines And Lake District

Pictures From My Cycle Tours Of South East England

Links To My Video Footage Of The Beryl Burton Cycle Route And Cycling Within Nidderdale

My 2016 Bilton To Knaresborough Cycle Ride Shot With My Hero 4 Go Pro Camera - YouTube New improved video

My Pateley Bridge To Masham Cycle Trail Via Lofthouse - YouTube

My Spring Sunday Evening Cycle Ride Through Nidderdale Starting At Darley And Finishing in Bilton - YouTube


Links To My Video Footage Of The 2014 Tour De France Going Through Knaresborough

My Version Of The Tour De France Through Knaresborough Sunday 6th July 2014 - YouTube


My Bilton To Pateley Bridge Cycle Trail In Super HD Quality - YouTube New 2018 edited silent video with text of my Spring 2016 footage of my complete ride up to Pateley Bridge.

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