Ten Great Peak District MTB Trails –
Slippery Stones Family MTB Adventure (12 miles/20 km)
Ever since my children have been old enough to sit upright in a chair I have been cycling with them around this lovely route. If you give this ride a go on a weekend it is also car-free. The ride starts and finishes at Fairholmes Visitor Centre where there is a bike hire centre which will cheaply cater for all your family’s needs including a buggy that you can tow your toddlers around in. Adults could manage this 12 mile circuit comfortably in one and a half hours. With children in tow and a picnic at Slippery Stones, you could easily make this into a four or five hour adventure.
Route details
Start at the Fairholmes Visitor centre and head northwards in a clockwise loop, always keeping the reservoirs on your right. Really, you can’t go wrong … Ride in this direction also because this way you will have good tarmac for most of the way to Slippery Stones which will make the uphill easier for all. On the return journey you will enjoy great off road cycling the whole way with super views down the valley. And since it’s practically down hill the whole way back it’ll be whops of yahoo all the way!
General Information
Start / Finish Location – Fairholmes Visitor Centre, Bamford, Hope Valley S33 0AQ
Distance: 12 miles / 18 km
Height gain: 326m
Time required: 3 – 5 hours (with kids)
How tough? With plenty of time on your hands, this is the perfect Peak District ride to take on with your children!
How technical? Nothing more technical than a bit of gravel to contend with from time to time, but still has a bit woo-hoo downhill factor included
Nearest bike hire: Derwent Bike Hire – Derwent / Ladybower Reservoirs
Local pubs we would recommend: The Yorkshire Bridge Inn, S33 0AZ
(There are two pubs local to this ride, this is the pub, we would recommend, by far!)
What bike for this ride?
For all these routes I ride an On One Scandal hard-tail. Really, for 95% of mountain biking in the Peak District, a decent hard-tail will see you right. On this ride specifically though, pretty much any bike will work!
Mountain bike hire in the Peak District
We’ve listed here a few places that offer higher spec mountain bikes for hire. Typically you can expect to pay around £35 per day for hiring a decent bike from these places. For families looking to do a circuit of the reservoirs, lower spec bicycles will be perfect and cost closer to £20 for the day.
- The Bike Garage – Bamford/Hope Valley
- Derwent Bike Hire – Derwent / Ladybower Reservoirs
- Peak eBikes – Hassop Station (near Bakewell) on the Monsal Trail
- Carsington Water Bike Hire (southern most White Peak)
Further reading / information
- 10 of the Best Peak District Mountain Biking Trails
- Peak District Accommodation
- Mountain Biking Skills Courses
- 10 Ways to Be Better at Map Reading for Mountain Bikers
- Ten GREAT Peak District walks to do
- The Tongue In Cheek History Of The Peak District
- Vertebrate Publishing – mountain biking guidebooks
- Peak District MTB – voluntary organisation that aims to preserve, improve and promote mountain biking within the Peak District National Park
