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Spoke & Sea journalRides and repairs

Seven rides from the shop door

By Dan Okafor, who leads the Sunday ride7 min read

You do not need a car rack to ride somewhere good. All seven of these start on the sidewalk outside our shop in Saltburn, and every one ends near a kettle.

How we picked them

Every Sunday since we opened, someone on the shop ride has asked where else they could go. This list is the answer we give: seven loops we have ridden many times, from a flat half hour by the sea to a two-day trip down the coast.

We picked rides with a good café or a bench with a view somewhere along the way, quiet roads wherever there was a choice, and at least one easy way home if the weather turns. Distances are for the whole loop, from the shop and back.

The climbing figures are honest. The coast here goes up and down like a saw blade, so a short ride can still have one hill that makes you walk. That is fine. Everyone walks Saltburn Bank sometimes, including the people who work here.

  1. The Seafront Spin

    12 km40 m climbAll tarmac

    Down the bank, along the promenade to Redcar and back. It is flat, wide and safe, with the wind as the only hill. On a bright morning the sea is full of surfers, and the kiosk at the far end does a bacon roll that justifies the whole trip.

  2. The Valley Loop

    24 km310 m climbQuiet lanes

    Inland through the wooded valley to Skelton, round by the reservoir and back along the old railway path. One long, steady climb, then almost everything else is downhill. This is the ride we send people on for their first week on a new road bike.

    A retro poster of a rider on a road bike racing down a curving mountain road under sun rays
    The long descent after Skelton

  3. Staithes and Back

    38 km620 m climbCoast road

    The coast road south, with the sea on your left all the way. Three sharp climbs, the steepest out of Skinningrove, and a long drop into Staithes for crab sandwiches by the harbor. Save something for the way back: the hills are the same, the other way round.

  4. The Forest Trails

    18 km450 m climbOff-road

    For mountain bikes only. A road climb to the edge of the forest, then waymarked trails through the pines with roots, rocks and a few short jumps you can ride round. After rain it is muddy enough that we will hose your bike down for free when you get back.

    A retro poster of a mountain biker jumping over a ridge among tall pines, dust trailing
    The red trail's last ridge

  5. The Guisborough Café Run

    30 km380 m climbLanes and one B road

    The classic Saturday ride. Out through the farms to Guisborough, coffee and a scone on the market square, and home over the moor road with a view of the whole bay. Ten minutes on the B road is the only busy bit; ride it single file.

  6. The Long Coast, over two days

    140 km1,900 m climbTouring

    Pack two panniers and follow the coast south to Robin Hood's Bay, stay the night, and come home inland. It is our favorite way to spend a June weekend. We lend a route card and a spare tube, and will drop your bags at the B&B for a small fee.

    A retro poster of two touring bicycles with panniers on a winding coast road above the sea, a lighthouse on a far headland
    Day one, above the bay

  7. The Kids' Loop

    6 kmFlatTraffic-free

    Round the Valley Gardens, over the little bridge and along the miniature railway path. It has no roads at all, so children can ride ahead. There are swings at the halfway point and an ice cream van most weekends from Easter onwards.

No bike with you?Rent one from the shop by the hour or the day, with a helmet, a lock and the route card.

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