Bank Holiday Weekend Rides from Settle

The August bank holiday is the last big weekend of the summer, and if the forecast plays ball, there’s every reason to make the most of it. Whether you’re heading out with the family, chasing a big day in the saddle, or eyeing up a gravel/MTB loop, here are three rides from the shop to think about.

For a Ride With the Kids: Settle to Stainforth Force

This is a good one for a morning out with the kids because it stays on quiet lanes for pretty much the whole way, and there’s a waterfall at the far end to make the whole thing feel like an adventure rather than just a bike ride.

Head out of Settle and cross the bridge over the Ribble, taking the first right onto Stackhouse Lane. You’re now on the west side of the valley, which is a quiet back lane rather than the busier road running up the east side towards Horton. Roll past Stackhouse and continue on towards Little Stainforth with the river down to your right and Pen-y-Ghent showing itself in the distance.

At Little Stainforth you’ll cross the old packhorse bridge, and from there it’s a short walk down to Stainforth Force itself. Lock the bikes up, wander down to the falls, and if the weather’s on your side, the pool at the bottom is fair game for a dip or paddle. Salmon leap the falls in the autumn if you happen to time a ride right, though it’s a bit early for that in August.

The ride home retraces the outward route, and the whole thing comes in at around six miles. Quiet enough for kids who are still getting confident on the road, short enough that nobody ends up complaining, and interesting enough that they might even ask to do it again.

There’s also an ice cream option at The Knight’s Table just above Stainforth Force.

For a Big Day Out: The Fleet Moss Loop

For anyone with a full day to give it and the legs to match, this is one of the best big loops going from Settle, with some tough climbs.

Head north out of the shop through Stainforth and pick up the road to Halton Gill. The climb rears up almost immediately and doesn’t let up for a while, so it’s not the section for chatting. The reward comes at the top, where the landscape opens up, before it tips over and drops you down into Halton Gill at the head of Littondale.

The ride down Littondale is one of the most scenic stretches of road anywhere in the Dales. The valley narrows and widens as you follow the river past Arncliffe, and on towards Kilnsey and into Kettlewell, which is about as picture-book a Dales village as you’ll find anywhere and a good excuse for a coffee stop before things get serious again.

From Kettlewell you swing north and start heading up Wharfedale, following the river past Buckden and Hubberholme before turning west into Langstrothdale. The valley here is quieter and more remote than anything you’ve ridden through so far, with the road hugging the river on one side and open fell rising on the other, it’s one of the more atmospheric stretches of any ride from Settle.

The peace doesn’t last, though. Langstrothdale delivers you to the foot of Fleet Moss, and you’ll be climbing it from the south this time, which in our opinion is the brutal side. The final kilometre is where the real work happens, kicking up hard enough to have you questioning a number of recent life choices.

Hawes is at the bottom of the long descent, and it’s the right place to stop for a decent length of time rather than a quick five minutes. There are plenty of cafés and pubs to pick from, and after everything the legs have just been through, sitting down properly for lunch is more or less non-negotiable before the ride home.

When you’re ready to move again, head back over Newby Head, drop down to Ribblehead, and follow the road south through Horton back to Settle. You’re looking at around 70 miles with a serious amount of climbing packed into them, and you’ll almost certainly be talking about it for days afterwards.

For the Gravel Bike or MTB: The Extended Settle Loop

For anyone with a gravel bike or an MTB in the shed, an extended version of the Settle Loop taking in Malham Tarn and Mastiles Lane is about as good a day out as you’ll find from the shop without loading the car up.

Head out clockwise on the Settle Loop, climbing up out of town and onto the high ground above Attermire Scar. The loop takes you across some genuinely wild-feeling country for something that starts a mile from the shop, and after a few miles you branch off north-east towards Malham Tarn. The tarn itself is a decent detour on its own, sitting up on the moor at over 1,200 feet.

From the tarn, pick up Mastiles Lane heading east. This is the old drovers’ road running across the moor towards Kilnsey, and one of the classic bits of gravel riding in the area. You won’t be on it for the full length though. Peel off south over the Weets, which is a rougher section of track climbing over the fell before dropping you down towards Calton on the other side.

From Calton it’s back on tarmac for a stretch, following the road round to Malham village. Start up the Cove road out of Malham, then rejoin the Settle Loop where it crosses your path and take it back to Settle via Stockdale Lane to finish. About 25 miles all told on a proper mix of surfaces, and a great day out on two wheels.

A Few Practical Bits

The Buck Inn in Malham does a good lunch if that’s the direction you’re heading. Anyone on the Fleet Moss loop should know that the Crown Hotel in Horton is a solid end-of-day stop for chips and a pint before the last few miles back into Settle, and Hawes has enough options between its cafés and pubs that you’ll almost always find somewhere with a free table.

Weather in the Dales this time of year can still be genuinely brilliant, but it also has a habit of turning without much warning, so a jacket rolled up in the back pocket rarely goes to waste. And bear in mind that evenings are already noticeably shorter than they were even a month ago, so building a bit of daylight buffer into a longer ride is a sensible move rather than an over-cautious one.

Come and Say Hello

If you’re passing through Settle at any point over the weekend, pop into the shop. The workshop’s open, the café’s running as usual, and there’s almost always someone around who can help with a route suggestion, dig out an emergency tube, or pour you a decent coffee.

Have a good weekend out there.