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Description:-
This is one description of a lap of this circuit, but there are many other options open to you here, as there are various other paths dotted around the place, offering other little loops or short cuts to the route I've described.
The route starts off on a Forestry Commission road, climbing steadily for about a mile, before branching off to the right onto some singletrack through the trees.
A couple of hunded yards into the trees on the singletrack go straight ahead at the junction where there is an option to turn right, and emerge from the trees back onto the FC road, and turn right.
Climb climb climb on the FC road to the 2 mile mark, where you get a brief downhill. Keep right where the road splits at the start of the downhill section. You start to climb again, but at 2.5 miles in, on a lefthand hairpin on the FC road, turn off the road to the right where there are two little bridges side by side leading on to the singletrack.
The next 1.2 miles of singletrack vary from hard packed dirt / mud, bedrock, & little sections of northshore, all mixed in with short climbs & descents. There are a couple of places where there are options to turn off the main route, but the main loop is usually always obvious.
You emerge from the trees at about 3.7 miles, where the trail turns off to the right along a wider section of path. There is another path from your left running down the hill at this point that joins in with the route you are following.
Follow this track for roughly half a mile. Once it takes a hard left and you start a gentle climb, keep looking for the little gap in the trees to your right where the singletrack turns off. It is easliy missed ! It is sometimes marked with some tape, or reflectors in the trees to the right, but not always, so keep your eyes peeled !
Take the singletrack to your right, and climb to a small rise, and head for the hilltop in front of you with the wooded bench on top. Good view from here.
Turn right at the bench, and follow the descent through the gorse to a hardpacked roadway. Turn right onto the road, and follow it for about 150 yards, before veering off to the right where the hardcore path climbs away from the road, as the road turns left.
At the top of this hill you have a short downhill with 3 drainage ditches across the path to negotiate. With the speed you get from the downhill they are all perfectly 'bunny-hoppable', but they take no prisoners so don't get them wrong ! Alternatively you can roll the first two on the right just off the path, and roll the 'gap' in the centre of the third one. Brakes on after the third one, and look for the junction in the path to your left, it's marked by two rocks on the path as well.
Take this left and follow the singletrack to the last climb of the circuit, where there is a viewpoint on a rock just off the trail to your right at the summit.
The downhill starts off through the trees, and opens up on a right hand bend that gets tighter the further you are into it, and it's off camber as well for some extra fun ! After this there are no surprises from the trail, a good high speed run downhill. Look out for dog walkers though !
You'll cross a muddy ( usually ) FC road before you're back on the singletrack, to emerge onto an FC road again. Turn left, and go left again after about 50 yds, turning off the FC road just before it meets the junction with the other FC road.
You're now back into the trees for the final singletrack run downhill, which can be very muddy / slippy, before emerging onto the FC road at the bottom of the hill, near the car park.