Exploring old railway lines on mountain bike

A 62 Miles ride along old railway lines in County Durham UK

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[Applause] Good morning everybody. Good morning and welcome welcome to a nice day. It’s really nice. Well, it’s going to be nice, I should say. It’s warm at the moment. It’s only half past 10 in the morning. I’ve set off early. Um it’s already about 15 16° and it’s going to get about 21 22 today. So, it should be good. Should be good. And I’m going on a fairly long ride today on the mountain bike, which is why I’ve set up a bit early. Um, I was going to go on the road bike today, actually, but supposed to be pretty windy today. And already the wind is starting to pick up. Trees are blowing a bit. So, I thought, yeah, give the give the road bike a mist. Way too windy for that. I was mostly know when the weather’s uh good. I like to be up on the road bike and the weather is good, but like not wind. No, there must be like 18 19 m now winds um later on. So I thought yeah I’ll give that a miss. Hope they got right be I’ll be annoyed if they haven’t come on the mountain bike when it’s uh it’s going to be calm but as you can see it’s pretty cloudy at the moment. We say hey here look it’s pretty cloudy but it’s supposed to be dry all day. So fingers crossed it’ll be all right. Just seen a tandem fallen bike back there. That was the weirdest thing I think I’ve ever seen. foam bike tandem. That looks mad. I think it’s the first one I’ve ever seen one of them. Pretty cool. Very unusual. Very strange looking. Um, so today I’m doing a new route. Um, I’m heading up to Conway first, which I quite often, which I’ve done many times as you know, and then I’m heading down to Swatwell. Now, we’ve done this before. Um, but not like including this part. So, that’s why it’s a new route. But, I have done it once before with Katy. We did on the phone bikes. It was last year, the year before, first time we did it. So, this time just me on the mountain bike and I’m heading up like I say to concert first and then down to Swallwell. So, altogether I think I’m estimating and just estimate cuz I’m not 100% sure how far it is down to Swell. I think it’s about 11 miles from concert. 11 miles down, 11 miles back. So I think the whole ride will be about 62 63 miles thereabouts. So I think it is something like that. So fairly long ride on the mountain bike on the lines on the tracks. So hopefully they know me which you’re not supposed to. And I see I’ve set off early give myself plenty of time to be back for Katy to go to work tonight because it’s a Saturday and as I’ve shown many times before I’m quite often late back for Katie going to work. So, uh, hopefully I’ll get the back in time time tonight. So, give myself plenty of time. So, should be good. Should be good. I’m also hoping today I don’t get eaten by bugs. I’ve got like six bites on me back the last time I was out. Unbelievable. I’m so prone to getting bit by little critters. Every time I come out, I do use some uh bug sprayer. I’ve actually got some very good bug spray. Actually, I know you weren’t thinking cuz I’ve been bit by crickets, but bear with us. Um, it’s Avon skin so soft. I know it sounds a bit weird. It’s actually a skin softening stove, but it’s brilliant for keeping the bugs off, but obviously you put it on one area and the bugs find a different area, which is why I’ve been bitten cuz I got bit on me back and I didn’t have any bug spray on me back. So everywhere else was covered and they found somewhere where there was no bug sprayer. So yeah, see I probably have to take a bath in there or something shower in it. But I’ve tried to put a little bit on my me back today. So fingers crossed fingers crossed I don’t get bitten again. Heat. [Music] Heat. [Music] Got a bit of sweat on, guys. Bit of sweat on. They’re right about the wind, though. They look Hey, look. It’s definitely getting windier. So, they’re right about that. It’s never getting sunny yet neither. It’s clouded over, but it’s warm, as you can see by me sweat. Yeah, it’s very warm, very humid. Um 17 degrees I’ve seen on the crew here on the computer. Uh feels about probably 17 maybe 18. It’s quite humid as well. Very nice. Very nice. So at the half I’m at the um you said halfway point there. No halfway point. Could be halfway. Anyway, um 20 mi I’ve done 20 miles. No, that’s not halfway, is it? Of course it’s not. Ignore me. Just talking gibberish. I’m at the point where I’ve normally turned around and go back and I come a concert way here. I normally go through that tunnel just to me right here and go like a loop round and head back round and back down again. That’s about 40 miles. Um, but today I’m heading the same way up that way through the tunnel, but I’m going across the road and then down the the new part of the route. As I say, I’ve done it once before with Katie. Never done it on the mountain bike. Um, so I’m not 100% sure with some parts actually. There’s some parts where you go through a village where I have to try and remember which way I had to go cuz I know me and Katie got a bit confused cuz there’s no signs, very little signage. Um, so yeah, hopefully be all right. So I’m going 5 minutes rest here and then I’m going to head down there. So yeah, when me and Katie came, we parked back there by and then we started the ride this way along this path. But today obviously I’ve done the the 20 mi first before I’ve gotten here from home. So, we’re going to go straight across here. When normally I would turn right and go up the hill towards concert. Today, I’m going straight ahead. So, I’m on the new part of the course now, the new part of the route. And I’ve just noticed one little problem. The direction of the wind. The wind’s come behind us. So, wind’s come behind us going downhill and it’s going to be in face coming back uphill. That’s not good. Yeah. I’d ra the other way around. Eh, that’ll be better. But, yeah, it’s the way it goes, isn’t it? Scarlet looks on this paint pen as well, doesn’t it? Look at that. Very stormy. I remember looking at the sculpture last time we came. This is pretty cool. Look at this. Very, very cool. It’s to commemorate obviously all the um the steel works and the mining luxures around here. But you can see here. Pretty cool, isn’t it? Look at that. Cuz there’s a big big steel works around here. country steel works. Pretty cool. Yeah. And I’ll go that way. Now, this path’s been improved since I was last here. This was all gravel and now it’s all been tarmac. Look. So, that’s an improvement straight away. Whoa, look at this. Kitty Kitty would be impressed. When me and Kitty came down here, it was all grally and ruty and bumpy and horrible. So, they’ve obviously been spending some pennies. Very nice. Yep. Nice little bit of tarmac. Look at this. Now, I can remember down here just where this junction is here. Me and Katie got lost cuz there was no sign telling where it where to go. I had no idea where to go. That’s what we saw. You can see the sign up there. Look at Lchester, which is the way I’ve just come from up that way. And then nothing. Nothing at all. We weren’t sure whether to go across there, down the hill or where. It actually turns out you go up there and cross where them traffic lights are. No signs of nothing. We had no idea. I say I’ve got an idea today cuz I’ve done it before. But not then I didn’t. Yeah. So not very good plan, I don’t think. At least I had crossing back there though. That was all right. So here we are. D Walk. That’s where we’re heading down. I say I’ve only been down this once before with Katie a couple of years ago, but I remember it was a lovely route. I do remember that. It’s absolutely stoning route. Really is. I think you go through a few old stations and things, you know, where they’re still there, the stations and stuff cuz obviously this was the old railway line. But yeah, now I’m just kind of gradually going downhill all the way just a slight sort of downhill slope all the way back all all the way down to um Swallwell. Swallwell. Yeah, Swallwell. Um it’s amazing really that they engineer this, isn’t it? because you know Con’s quite a a decent height up from um Swallwell and down that way gates area you know it’s downhill all the way but you know you just get this gradual slope like this look amazing now I’m hoping I said before I’ve got the wind behind us come down here which is not ideal been better for being the other way you know blow us back up the hill but as you can see it’s all really overgrown like you know like um sheltered with trees and stuff so hopefully I won’t have too much wind in me I think there’s a station I think just down here somewhere. I go through a station fairly early on if I remember right. Here we go. I knew there was a station soon. Look at this. Still got the platform. Look how cool is that? Pretty cool, isn’t it? Thought I should be making train sounds coming past there. And there’s some information about it there. Look. So, yeah. Rollins Gill 6 milesi. That’s the first place we come to. First little village that we come to and six miles down here. Look at that. Isn’t that absolutely beautiful view? Stunn him. You say how high up you are. So I’m heading I’ve come from that kind of direction up the hill and I’m heading down that direction down the valley. But yeah, what a view. Be a nice place to have a house up here, wouldn’t it? Imagine having a house up here. It’ be fantastic. It’s absolutely gorgeous. Quite windy. Like as you can see trees. Tell you what, mine. I’m pleased I didn’t got me road bike today. I made the right decision there. The weather forecast was spot on. They said it was going to get windy and it’s going to get windier and windier as the day goes on. It’s going to be about 19 20 mph winds later. So yeah. Yeah. So we’re definitely definitely the right decision. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] I mean, look at this, guys. How beautiful is this down here? Absolutely stunning. Beautiful. Definitely a good route. I forgot how be beautiful it is actually. Forgot how pretty it is. I mean the views just come out there. Look. Look at that. You go along and you just suddenly come out in a clearing and just views right across the valley. Beautiful. Stunning. Here’s the bridge, guys. Look at this. No view. No butter. No pot at all. And on that side. That’s a pretty good view. Pretty impressive view, eh? All right. Not with the best views, guys. Not with the best. Oh, another bridge. Look, another bridge. I completely forgotten about all these bridges again. Amazing engineering. Amazing engineering. Look at this. Oh, nice and smooth looking service too. Yeah, another little bridge. A bit smaller this one. Still a good view. And then then down here we soon be hitting a village. Bigish village. That’s not that big I don’t think. If I remember right, we’ll go up the side of the village and then join the track at the other side again if I’m ever right. Here’s another station. Look at this one. It’s even got stairs coming down still. Look. How cool is that? Pretty cool, isn’t it? Seems still got the stairs coming down everything. Absolutely brilliant. How dark it is here because we’re under cover. Look at this. Yeah, it’s really really dark back there. And that bit of wood in the back there. Next time we turn the lights out. So, we should be soon coming to the village I mentioned before. There’s a village down here called uh Roland’s Gill. I’m going through there and out the other side. So, I’m in Roland’s Gill now. I’ve just come out over there. There’s a little path there comes out the woods, crossed over the road, and I’m going side path now. Um, which I carry on round, stay on the path thankfully, and then jump back up with the track again further up. These crossing places here like cuz they got like speed restrictions there, so you can get across the road. All right, so I’ve come through the village up the side of the path back there and then here we are back on the track again and that’s the route there. Um, so we are not we only me here. Uh me and you of course um I’m there. Look. So I’ve just come from up the top there. Concert come from up there. Came through the village down. And then I’m going to head down that way. Now I think I’ve just missed my turn off to go down to a like a park. There’s like a park that mean Katy went when we came down this way. I think it’s down there. And I think I’ve missed the turn off. There’s like a turnoff heads down that way. It’s very easy to miss the turn off, but I think that’s what I’ve done. So, I’m going to carry on down this way instead and see where we end up. So, now I’m in a completely new route, which I’ve never done before. It’s all new today, folks. All new. I’d like to thank today’s sponsor, Cadence, the cycling app that can replace an expensive cycle computer. Available for Android and Apple devices. Cadence is your go-to app for tracking runs, rides, and indoor workouts, and gives you over 100 stats. Cadence uses GPS, barometer, pedometer, Apple Watch, and Bluetooth sensors to map and track your activities, which you can customize however you like. It’s got built-in turnbyturn navigation, and you can easily import routes or create your own. You can even share your live location or compete on Straa segments right in the app. It’s all private, all powerful, and it’s all in your pocket. So, I think I’m at the end. I think this is the end of the track. I think nearly. Yeah, except housing status of me down here. Yeah, there’s the road there. Down there’s gates head. So, I’m not bother about going down to the gates or anything like that. I don’t want to hit the busy roads or anything like that. I’ve the end of the track as you can see here. There I am. There’s the road. So, now I’m going to start heading back up back up the valley towards back up the concert again. So yeah, I’ve gone a bit further than I meant to, but that’s all right. That’s all right. It’s always good to find new places, isn’t it? So now we’ll climb back up. So there’s the map. I’m down here now. As I say, you can head further down. Gets more builder berry down there. So I’m going to turn around and head back up the down walk again and head back up to the top. According to me, crew. And you see what that red line is there? That’s where the path must have been to go down to the the cafe area where I was going to go. It should be just up here somewhere. Ah, there it is. Look, there it is. I went straight past it. That’s the way to go. I think there’s a sign on the other side. No, she didn’t see it. Didn’t see it. Never mind. It was a few miles of something new. A bit extra. Just look how long and straight this section is, guys. Look at this. How peaceful and quiet is here as well. Look at that. It’s so quiet as well. Very, very quiet. Apart from me, of course. Little lot of walkers around here as well. Horse rides, walkers. Don’t blame them. Kraken walk. I’m a bit off the beaten track here, folks. I’ve come off the track and I’ve come to main road now. Hopefully going to go back to the middle of town. I think I think I’ve come around this way to where just a little not a shortcut but to get back onto the line’s a different way cuz the way I came down there it’s like some big sort of drop offs to go over. So I thought I’ll just come this way. So I’m coming up the side of the road here. My little cycle path. Yeah, they’ve got like a a board across the the track. You have to kind of lift your bike over. I thought a I’m going to just miss that out. I’m going to come around this way instead. I wasn’t I wasn’t sure this is the right way to come, but I recognize now cuz down here on the right is where I normally cross over. Just seen some uh lads and motorbikes back there. Obviously being on here on the lines here on the track. The other day I I came around here actually. I wasn’t recording or anything, but I came around and there was a lad came along on a like a road bike like like a kind of a touring road bike. Wasn’t even like a scrambler bike or anything, but at the moment it’s crazy at the moment with with kids with uh motorbikes on the on the tracks. They always got bacas on so you can see who they are of course and quite often literally motorbikes these days and they some of them just fly. Absolutely fly. I mean ironically some of them are really polite. I seen some the other day and dead polite like oh sorry mate sorry you know trying to say about the turbine the winds up pretty strong now on the way back down from ced back down the track and I’ve got some party boys here thankfully Katie had the sense the common sense to uh make it take some boats cuz I never I never actually thought about it I was going to just set off and she went well you’re doing about 60 mi you need to take some with you something to eat don’t you absolutely right D you’re right I do I just need to uh remember these things. Yeah. But yeah. Yeah. Which keeps us right. So I’m going to have these and then head on down the track. How cute was that porn? Yeah. Amazing. So nearly back home. I haven’t recorded the last 20 mi because uh me battery is very low on me camera. So you might just disappear or I might just disappear. But I’ve done 58 miles so far. By the time we get back, it’s going to be approaches over 60, maybe 61, 62 thereabouts. Been a good ride. Been very good ride. Nice new route. Well, like this and that’s the new route. But of course, like I said before, I had done the other part with Katie. But then I did do a little bit extra on the end though, which I hadn’t done before. Hope you can hear us cuz it’s getting windier and windier. So, as always, thank you very much for joining us. Take care of yourselves out then. I’ll see you all later. See you later. Bye-bye.