Monday 1 August 2011

Heptonstall and Colne



View Heptonstall and Colne in a larger map

I wanted to do some hill practice so I picked a toughie! I took the normal route to Hebden Bridge then set about tackling the road up to Heptonstall. Its very steep and I had to stop a couple of times as my heart rate went right over 150 bpm. It was great to stop at the Towngate tearoom in Heptonstall which give cyclists 10% discount (I had to ask, and the waitress didn't know that the owner is a keen cyclist and gives the reduction to anyone that asks)
From Heptonstall, I went up to Slack and carried on over the top to Colne. This isn't a route to tackle in poor weather as they are small roads and I have ridden through cloud cover on this road. If you ran into trouble then it would take some time for help to reach you. There are many cases where they had to look for people who had got lost and sadly some of them ended up in taking bodies away. When you get cold and wet, hyperthermia sets in and you make bad decisions which make the situation worse.
Down to Colne, and then over to Todmorden. The ride back into Hebden Bridge is great, lots of downhill and good roads.
7300 feet of climbing, 78 miles total distance.

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