Whinlatter Forest — Attraction in Above Derwent

Great venue for all sorts of outdoor activities Mountain biking, running, walking, Go Ape, off road Segway riding, did I say mountain biking 🤣 This the home of the Altura Trail which is rated as a Red & is made up of two loops(North & South) other are 6 miles in length, both require you to have a good level of fitness & trail riding skills. There's lots of serious uphill pedalling with very tight switch backs to enable you to gain elevation. This is followed by many, many technical challenges along the route. The final decent on the North loop is amazingly fast with lots of high speed corners. The South loop top section has been redesignated to a Black but in all honesty the hardest part was the uphill slog! This is then followed by a fast & flowing decent to the carpark. There's a nice cafe (service was a little slow on my visit & it wasn't busy ?) Carparks are good. You pay at the many machines just before you leave & only get charged for the time you're there which seems fair. For those who fancy trying to dodge this, your number plate is scanned on the way in😉 it's free for the first 25 mins with a max of £8.50 but chances are you'll end up paying an increment of this depending on the length of your stay. Oh it also takes either cash or card. Nearly forgot, there's a bike shop plus rental facility. I think that just about covers it. I hope you found this review helpful? This is a...

Great MTB routes with something for almost everyone. Nice beginners blue route to get the young ones going but actually it's ace if you're a little bit bigger too. North a south loops techy in places and on the way down are a treat. Achievable to do both in a day with a reasonable amount of fitness. I'm no Strava king but found north and south easy enough to want to go again. Take your time there's plenty to go at. Bike hire and cafe on site both very well stocked but may be advisable to book ahead if you're wanting bikes.

Trails can get a bit congested at times and there are big groups that use trail centres so keep a keen eye out for fast riders if you're not quite up to speed. eBike are flying around too, very quickly! If you're wanting a bit more of an adventure and avoid the crowds then Yorkshire Dales is a wide open place with loads to go at and not far away. Get a map and use well tended bridal ways and you will get the sense of being on a real adventure. Trail centres can be a bit like ikea, natural riding is better in my opinion.

Gruffalo trail and Go Ape are good for the kids but expensive if you've got a family full.

Crowded in the...

Whinlatter is a great family day out! They have many trails to walk or cycle of varying difficulties. We went to do the Zog Activity trail. My daughter loves Julia Donaldson and had a great time doing The Highway Rat Activity trail when that was open. The Trail is easy for young children with fun things to do and look for on your way around. You buy a pack from the visitors centre at the start which includes a mask a pencil the activity sheets and the special eye viewer. The staff are always happy to help and full of information about the area. It was great fun! You can also walk the gruffalo trail although they no longer do the packs, but all the characters are still there to find and its well signposted. Its a longer and slightly harder trail as well, something to bare in mind for pushchairs or very young children, there are some quite steep bits. My 4 year old coped well after already completing the Zog trail. The playparks are also a massive win! My daugher especially enjoys the water feature and...