East to West ride of C2C – 9 to13 June 2003
Maggie Thompson of Stourbridge and Steve Glennie-Smith from Ledbury give an
account of riding the C2C the ‘wrong’ way – from Tynemouth to Whitehaven.


Monday, 9 June 2003 – 44 miles
The tradition at the start of the C2C is to dip the bike wheels into the sea and then set off and we were no exception. At first we had difficulty locating the route and the Sustrans signposts and rode along the Tyne estuary. We soon came to Fish Quay, which was marked on the route map – didn’t it pong!

We took a lift to the foot tunnel under the Tyne to Jarrow and the door kept shutting as we tried to fit the bikes and ourselves inside – a tandem would have been impossible! The tunnel was a tube and just like the London underground. As we rode along leafy paths on the other side overlooking the River Tyne we could see cranes, ships and businesses associated with shipbuilding.

At one point we could see the lights above the Stadium of Light, however the path turned away from it. Soon we arrived at Gateshead with the series of bridges over the River Tyne. We made our way to the Millennium Bridge, which we found so impressive we stopped here for lunch and took photographs whilst sitting in the sunshine. To our right was the huge Baltic Mill building – an art exhibition centre on similar lines to Tate Modern in London – See www.balticmill.com.

Currently it was housing the Anthony Gormley collection and there was a huge iron sculpture at its entrance. We took it in turns to look inside where there were sculptures, including the room full of metal matchstick people called ‘Domain Field’. Visitors were allowed to walk amongst the stick ‘people’ which felt extremely moving and emotive – it was like walking in a room full of ghosts and one had an overwhelming awareness of the fragility of Man.



We continued our journey to Blaydon and followed C2C signs to the Derwent Walk, which was a disused railway line where quite suddenly we found ourselves out of the urban sprawl riding in quiet, rolling countryside. The terrain became hillier as we approached Consett. From here we strayed off the C2C route in order to reach Edmundbyers youth hostel.




Tuesday, 10 June 2003 – 43 miles
We took a detour off the C2C route to visit the village of Blanchland, which was well worthwhile.

There was a climb out of Blanchland of about 4 miles to resume our C2C route that took us over Edmundbyers Common – it seemed to rise in 4 stages along a gated road with superb views despite rain clouds closing in and the inevitable headwind. At the top of the hill we had to decide whether to go the long way round via Stanhope ‘on road’ or our original plan to go ‘off road’ to Rookhope along a disused railway line. There was no question of continuing ‘on road’ as the strong gusts of wind made that option too dangerous.

The track followed the contours in a wide arc around remote Stanhope Common. Then the track veered more to the left and we could see some ruined buildings nestling in what looked like a cutting. We stopped by the ruins (possibly from some kind of mining enterprise) and took some photographs. The path then started to fall quite steeply down towards Rookhope and civilisation with breathtaking views.

After Rookhope we rode onto a gated road, which climbed steadily over Wolfcleugh Common. More stunning views but with a very strong headwind – 4 mph was as fast as we could safely ride. Half way up we passed old spoil heaps and the ramshackled ruins of a disused mine. It seemed to take forever to reach Rookhope Head and at last we began the descent into Allenheads.

We enjoyed another brief respite from the wind in the valley at Allenheads and then along another gated road for the longest and hardest climb of the day. Not only was it a strong headwind but also very blustery and it soon became clear it was not safe to continue riding. At one point we thought we had reached the summit at Coalcleugh only to find there was a substantial descent around a corner followed by a final climb to 609m – the highest point on the C2C – to the top of Black Hill.

At last we descended through forestry plantations to Nenthead where we needed to collect another stamp for our cards and, as luck had it, we stopped at the Miners Arms for a meal and they were also the official stamp point. Feeling refreshed, we set off on the last 5 miles along the short, direct route to Alston youth hostel. The wind had miraculously eased, which made the last few miles most enjoyable. We even took photos of the sunset towards Alston and Whitley Common.


Wednesday, 11 June 2003 – 24 miles

After looking around picturesque Alston we set off out of our way to visit Garrigill – we should have ridden through this village to Alston yesterday but ran out of time. There was a short, steep climb out of the village to Leadgate where we turned sharp left to meet the A686. Just before we joined the main road, there were several clumps of wild orchids at the roadside.


It took us an hour to reach the summit of Hartside and the view to the west was a tremendous surprise – we could see the whole of the Lakeland peaks. That view alone made it worth riding the C2C the wrong way despite the incessant headwind. After a lunch stop at the café, we started the descent of the scarp side of Hartside, which swooped around a hairpin bend in a most exciting manner. It would have been so exhilarating to just let rip all the way down but we had to ease up so we didn’t miss our right-hand turn off the A686 to a place called Busk. The lane we turned onto was a delight and became even better when a short section of it became ‘off road’. Periodically, we looked back towards Hartside and could understand why it provokes fear in those riders who tackle the climb from west to east!


We headed towards Voil Moor but decided to make a detour off the C2C route to Glassonby. We rode passed Marion Lodge to reach the Neolithic henge of Long Meg and her Daughters. Long Meg was a tall sandstone megalith and the daughters were granite boulders forming the circle.
We finished our day a few miles further on at Langwathby.


Thursday, 12 June 2003 – 30 miles
Riding out of Langwathby over the River Eden we visited the village of Eden Hall before joining the A686. Almost immediately we turned right and up Beacon Hill. It was a long drag but as we climbed we had spectacular views of the Lakeland peaks with the sprawl of Penrith in the foreground. We descended into the town to Penrith castle, which was a sandstone ruin.

The weather had improved sufficiently for us to feel confident about riding the Old Coach Road, which would be an ‘off road’ section a few miles further on. We needed to decide at Greystoke as the ‘road’ and ‘off road’ sections divert here. We crossed the busy A66 and towards Thackthwaite where we rode through the saddle between Great Mell Fell and Little Mell Fell. All this time the scenery was becoming more mountainous. As we passed Brownings Farm there was a strange creature in a field – it was a Llama! Soon afterwards there was a very steep climb up to Bank House Farm. The road then became a track for about a mile until we turned left onto a lane that was in the process of being resurfaced and was very gritty.

At High Row we turned right and through a gate onto a track with a pine forest to our right. This was it – the Old Coach Road! Within a ½-mile the forest came to an abrupt end and there was Blencathra. It was the kind of view that makes you gasp! The surface of the track wasn’t too rocky and followed the contour line. In fact it was an easier ride than the section to Rookhope. There was the occasional puddle of water but nothing of any consequence until we had to cross the ford over Mosedale Beck.

It was such a wild and peaceful experience riding along this track and we stopped many times to take photographs and just to savour the scenery changes as more peaks came into view. A group of C2C cyclists came by in the opposite direction. More than once we glanced back to see the views that would greet riders travelling the traditional way. We may be riding the ‘wrong’ way into the wind but we felt we had the benefit of riding into the more dramatic scenery.

As we started to descend, the weather began to change and dark, foreboding clouds hugged the tops of the peak, and in their own way, they created a different dramatic scene. The final, steep descent - possibly a gradient of 1:4 or 1:3 in places - to St.John’s in the Vale was so full of loose rocks and boulders that we walked down. After meandering through some lanes we reached Castlerigg stone circle – another Neolithic henge in a dramatic setting, surrounded by mountains. We finished our day’s ride in Keswick.


Friday, 13 June 2003 – 38 miles
We rode into Keswick to get our cards stamped at a shop and then headed to see the view from Friars Crag across Derwentwater towards Borrowdale. We then set off back through Keswick to Portinscale to ride over Whinlatter Pass. Stopping at the Visitor Centre near the top – we watched a video recording of a nearby nesting Osprey family.

As we continued our journey and began to descend Whinlatter towards Lorton Vale we kept meeting other cyclists in the early stages of riding the C2C form west to east. At one point we could even see mountain peaks in the distance that were, in fact, in Scotland across the Solway Firth!

We chose to go off the C2C route and go down a gated road to Hopebeck and the views of Mosser Fell were well worth the detour, despite the road being a real roller coaster. A thin line of trees obscured Loweswater Lake as we rode passed and the road continued to undulate around Burnbeck Fell to Lamplugh. Again we veered off the C2C route to take a short cut to Rowrah where at last we found the disused railway track, which was on flatter terrain and going slightly downhill – but still into the headwind! We reached Cleater Moor and got our cards stamped and then continued along the old railway track, passing unusual iron sculptures along the way.

At last, the outskirts of Whitehaven loomed into view. There was much excitement and activity in the town as they were preparing for the Marine Festival due to take place over the weekend. In the harbour were a tall ship and a small warship in addition to a marina of yachts. It had very much a carnival atmosphere, which was quite infectious. Along the pier was a peculiar ‘dome’-shaped look out – part of a millennium project. Passing it was a model scale battle cruiser (remote controlled) with a scruffy looking dog proudly sitting at the helm!!

We dipped our wheels ceremoniously in the sea by the steel C2C sign.

Mission accomplished!

Maggie and Steve also raised £117 for the British Heart Foundation before, during and after the ride