Thursday Ride to Newby on 17 July 2025

Thursday Ride to Newby/Goat Gap on 17th July 2025

Lancaster and South Lakes Touring Club

A dozen riders met on a pleasant sunny morning at the old Halton Station on the Lune Valley Greenway for the ride to Newby.

With morning coffee & cake being at Wray, around half of the dozen decided to head straight for the cafe by going up Caton Road, while the remainder took the more undulating route of National Cycle Network route 69 ‘Way of the Roses’ on the other side of the valley. This route ascending first through Halton Park, allowing spectacular views east along the Lune Valley, then dropping through Aughton, before we omitted the village of Gressingham by cutting through Eskrigge to Loyne Bridge, then passing through Hornby to arrive at Wray.

In the fair but by now cloudier weather, we dined al fresco at Bridge House Farm. A few riders then decided to head back to Lancaster, with the draw of watching rather than pretending to be Tadej Pogacar in the Tour de France, stronger than facing the rolling hills ahead.

Suitably refreshed, the remaining riders headed out along Long Lane, Spen Brow and Aikengill Road, before turning down past the Great Stone of Fourstones (a huge rock deposited there 12,000 years ago during the last ice age). We then turned onto Mewith Lane and followed this across Keasden crossroads to Fummerber Lane/Orcaber Lane, which took us down to cross the A65 and the back route into Austwick.

Not content that enough hills had been ascended to justify lunch, our leader then took us over to Clapham and the climb to Newby Cote, then the drop down to Newby and the Goat Gap café, only to discover the café and car park deserted, and that it was closed for the day due to a power failure!

This left a difficult lunch conundrum, risk life & death on the A65 to Ingleton, climb back up from whence we came to Newby Cote at 14% on an empty stomach then head to Ingleton or Clapham, or the better suggestion of Bentham, which although it was a little further, was at least on our return journey. The later suggestion was chosen and so we took the easier cycling option of the B6480 directly to Bentham and lunch at the Black Pig café, but not before we had to do battle with a High Bentham traffic jam caused by a builders merchant’s delivery.

After our refuelling it was decided that with darkening skies and having failed to look anything like a Tour de France peloton, we should head back to Halton as directly as possible, only to find one of our bikes with a puncture (it’s always the rear tyre), with not a team car in sight!  Wanting to be home to see the business end of today’s stage, we continued along the B road through Wennington and Wray, before joining the A683 for the ‘time trial’ down to Bull Beck trying to keep up with the boys on the tandem! From there it was a pleasant and steady cycle down the Lune Valley Greenway back to Halton.

Anyone who is interested in joining us can find information about our regular club rides on Thursdays and Sundays on our website:  www.ctclancaster.org.