Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
Lakes Loop Overnighter
Distance
97 Mi.
(156 KM)Days
2
% Unpaved
50%
% Singletrack
10%
% Rideable (time)
90%
Total Ascent
5,995'
(1,827 M)High Point
1,438'
(438 M)Difficulty (1-10)
5?
- 4Climbing Scale Fair62 FT/MI (12 M/KM)
- 5Technical Difficulty Moderate
- 5Physical Demand Moderate
- 2Resupply & Logistics Easy
Contributed By
Emily Wormald
Guest Contributor
Em grew up in the flat lands of Norfolk before moving up to the Lake District for university. In 2021, Em founded the Lakes Gravel Gang, now a community of over 400 women and non-binary folks riding off-road. She works as a cycling guide and an Editor at Cycle Sprog, a website for all things family cycling. Follow Emily on Instagram @emwormald and learn more about the Lakes Gravel Gang here.
Starting at Kendal, the gateway town of the Lake District and on the main London and Manchester train line, the route heads north through the Lake District National Park, covering some of the region’s most scenic paths and high passes.
The journey begins with a climb over Shap, known for being the highest motorway point in the UK. The trail actually offers a remote and wild experience. Riders will traverse historic roads before tackling the second significant hill over Askham Fell, where they encounter Bronze Age landmarks and some of the more bumpy terrain of the ride with stunning views of Ullswater and the Helvellyn mountain range.
The adventure continues with a climb up the Old Coach Road, an ancient trail offering stunning vistas of Blencathra and Skiddaw. This section is ideal for wild camping, or riders can opt for the amenities in Keswick and be proud that the biggest hills and more technical terrain are behind them.
The following morning features pristine forest trails alongside Thirlmere, leading to Grasmere, home to famous Grasmere Gingerbread and incredible coffee, cakes, and sausage rolls of Lucia’s Coffee + Bakehouse. The route then merges with the central lakes cycle network, providing smooth gravel trails along Grasmere, Rydal Water, and Windermere. A highlight is the Windermere Car Ferry, which makes any bike ride feel like an adventure!
Route Difficulty
As with all UK “gravel” riding, the route takes in a mixture of roads, doubletracks, grassy bridleways, pristine gravel, and everything in between. It has been designed with a drop-bar gravel bike in mind, but expect some sections of bumpier terrain where short amounts of walking might be preferred for all but the bumpy gravel pros. This route offers plenty of resupply options, so there’s a chance to travel fairly light, with inside accommodation available in Keswick if that’s how you like to travel. Train and road bailouts/shortcuts are possible, and the route can easily be ridden over more days if shorter days are preferred. For riders of average fitness, this will feel like two big days, as there are some decent hills, but the hills are linked with efficient sections that help get the miles ticked off.
Route Development: Em originally designed this route for a local bikepacking weekend for the women’s gravel cycling community she runs called Lakes Gravel Gang. Inspiration to publish the route with BIKEPACKING.com came after conversations with friends who wanted a gravel-bike-friendly alternative to the Lakeland 200 to explore the Lake District.
This route is part of the Local Overnighter Project, which was created to expand our growing list of worldwide bikepacking routes—the first and largest of its kind—and create an independent map and catalog of great bikepacking overnighters, curated by you, from your own backyard. Our goal is to have accessible routes from every town and city in the world. Learn More
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Highlights
Must Know
Camping
Food/H2O
Trail Notes
- Straight out of Kendal, you are climbing up and over Shap. While this is probably the worst part of the route—think grassy uphill that can be muddy in winter—you are travelling on what used to be the main connection north to Scotland until 1970, when the nearby M6 motorway was completed.
- Askham Fell is a historic area of common land, and the route passes a Bronze Age Crossroad and stone circle before dropping down a descent with the most incredible views of Ullswater. The descent off Askham fell, down to Howtown is probably one of the best views of the ride. Take your time; the terrain is bumpy, but the views are worth it!
- Old Coach Road is an access trail that dates back to the Iron Ages; there are old coach ruins next to the stunning gravel trail alongside views over Blencathra and Skiddaw.
- The market town of Keswick is a tourist paradise for a reason. There are loads of options for accommodation, a brilliant Youth Hostel, and burgers at The Round are so good!
- Thirlmere: The village of Thirlmere was flooded in the 19th century to provide drinking water for the growing Manchester population. The valley now feels wild and remote, riding within forestry overlooking the reservoir, and the scenery is so different from the other valleys you have ridden through so far.
- Lucias’s Coffee + Bakehouse in Grasmere: A delightful cafe with the best coffee, sausage rolls, and cinnamon buns.
- Windermere gravel and ferry: The route connects up with the well-known, delightful, central lakes cycle network, which involves smooth, flowing gravel single and doubletrack along the lake shore of Windermere, where there are loads of wild swimming options. A personal highlight of the route is the Windermere Car Ferry, which makes any bike ride feel like an adventure!
- The route can be easily added to make it a longer adventure or shortened to a linear route by getting the train to Penrith and riding on quiet, mostly traffic-free trails to Askham to join the route.
- This route can be ridden year-round, but expect some muddy and wet sections if you choose to ride it between November and April. The trails will be quiet during the winter, and there are many options for inside accommodation in Keswick, so I would recommend an out-of-peak season ride. If you choose to ride it in peak Lake District season (Easter to September), expect busy trails in the central lakes and booked-up accommodation, so be friendly and prepared! Ideal months in the Lake District are March, April, May, September, and October.
- Logistics are very easy. Oxenholme is the nearest main-line train station, with regular trains from Manchester and London (and many Manchester trains continuing from Kendal). Oxenholme station is a short, downhill, ride to the start. There are lots of overnight parking options in Kendal, too. If you’d like to shorten the route, stay on the train to Penrith and ride to the route, mostly off-road, to join in Askham/Lowther Castle.
- Remember, in the UK, bridleways are shared between horse riders, walkers, and cyclists, and some of them get very busy in the summer months. Be nice, say hi, and slow down as you pass other trail users.
- There is a short section of A road north of Thirlmere. The road is wide in these points and with space to ride on the verge often. Make sure not to miss your turning onto the gravel, as the road becomes more dangerous after this point. If you’d like to avoid the gravel and hills, use the quiet west side of Thirlmere Road, not the A591.
- Descending Dunmail Raise, after Thirlmere is on an A road again, this is a very wide section of road, but take care as it’s easy to pick up a lot of speed when descending.
- Windermere Ferry: Check opening times and prices here, and they update on X if they aren’t running, which is usually only in extreme weather.
- What Bike? This route is designed with a gravel bike in mind with a minimum tire width of 37mm, but remember, it’s the Lake District! Pack a sense of adventure and some spare tubes, and be ready to walk a couple of sections (unless you love technical descents on drop bars—I do!), and you’ll have a blast! There’s a fair amount of pavement in this route, but a hardtail or rigid MTB will be great for the route, too.
- Keswick has a huge range of overnight accommodation, including hotels, bed and breakfasts, a Youth Hostel with brilliant bike storage, and loads of campsites on route.
- Wild camping isn’t officially allowed in the Lake District, but is an option along the Old Coach Road (before Keswick) if you pitch up late, leave early, and follow Leave No Trace principles.
- There are loads of cafes and pubs on route for resupply and water.
- Shops in Pooley Bridge (59km) Keswick (90km) Grasmere (115km), Bowness (137km) and Staveley (147km)
- Must visit Lucias Coffee + Bakehouse in Grasmere, for delicious coffee, cinnamon buns, sandwiches and sausage rolls.
- Visit the famous Grasmere Gingerbread shop to fuel you the last 40 kilometres!
- Kimis Gelato in Stavelely is a great place to celebrate that you’re only 10 kilometres from the end. Its some of the best gelato around, with loads of vegan options too.
- Expect a varied range of trail types each day, but day one is the hilliest and slower-going terrain (one grassy climb and a couple of more technical descents).
- Day two joins up lots of flowing, smoother terrain with more undulating hills as a reward for working hard on day one!
- About 90% of the route is ridable for an averagely fit rider. Some will be able to ride it all. There are some sections you may choose to hike-a-bike, but that’s all part of the fun and doesn’t ever last too long.
- Nearly all of the descents are ridable by an average gravel rider. There are two slightly more technical descents, down from Askham Fell to Howtown, and down off the Old Coach Road. Many gravel riders can ride these, but you may want to walk some sections.
Terms of Use: As with each bikepacking route guide published on BIKEPACKING.com, should you choose to cycle this route, do so at your own risk. Prior to setting out check current local weather, conditions, and land/road closures. While riding, obey all public and private land use restrictions and rules, carry proper safety and navigational equipment, and of course, follow the #leavenotrace guidelines. The information found herein is simply a planning resource to be used as a point of inspiration in conjunction with your own due-diligence. In spite of the fact that this route, associated GPS track (GPX and maps), and all route guidelines were prepared under diligent research by the specified contributor and/or contributors, the accuracy of such and judgement of the author is not guaranteed. BIKEPACKING.com LLC, its partners, associates, and contributors are in no way liable for personal injury, damage to personal property, or any other such situation that might happen to individual riders cycling or following this route.
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