A Short Eskape – Day 2

By Andrew on October 12, 2025 • ( 1 Comment )

What a ride! Everything seemed to come together in perfect linemen’s for this first ride of my short break in Eskdale. The campsite is magnificent, the weather almost perfect for mid-October (no rain, no wind and, if not hot, certainly not cold), the route – Jack Thurston’s ‘Still Glides The Stream’, cycle number 2 in his highly recommended Lost Lanes North book – a mixture of challenging climbs and gentle valley saunters, and the landscape… well, this in the Lake District but even the high bar of Cumbria can seldom be surpassed more than by this remote south-western corner of the National Park.

Following a figure of eight pattern, I started my journey (a little ‘delayed’ after attending the Muncaster Castle ParkRun – I came 14th out of 70!) in Eskdale by climbing over the Birker Fell before dropping down to Ulpha, following the valley east and then climbing again towards Broughton on the smaller of the two loops. After a snack, I headed back north on the other sides of the two loops. The views from start to finish were sublime, the Dunnerdale Valley leading towards the foot of the Hard Knott pass being the jewel in this route’s crown.

The Hard Knott Pass itself was brief but steep. Very steep – 30% in many places – but I scaled it in just 20 minutes, with a couple of pauses but no pushing (as I had done earlier in the day climbing out from Ulpha…). Alpine climbs are shallow but long. British climbs tend to be steep but short. They both have their charms.

The only disappointment of the day was the pub at the foot of the descent back into Eskdale. The Woolpack Inn didn’t receive many ticks on my checklist. Even the one hand-pulled beer on offer came from Scotland. The place was frequented by loud people, their loud dogs, loud children and cigarettes. I escaped after my celebratory pint and headed back ‘home’ to the campsite.

A very good day of cycling. One of the best yet!

The Strava route is here.

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