7. Draughton Moor, Kildwick, Farnhill, Cononley, Elslack, Broughton, Gargrave, Hetton, Cracoe, Burnsall, Appletreewick, Bolton Abbey

38.2 miles, 7670 feet of ascent (61.5 km, 1092 metres of ascent)

A ride with many possible pub and cafe stops over Draughton Moor to Kildwick and Cononley, then over Carleton Moor to Elslack, Broughton and Gargrave, continuing through Hetton and Cracoe to cross back into Wharfedale north of Burnsall before dropping down the Wharfe valley through Burnsall, Appletreewick and Bolton Abbey back to Addingham.

Ride up the village and then take Moor Lane to cross over the bypass to the Roman Road. Cycle all the way up the Roman Road until it becomes a bridleway. For 3/4 of a mile uphill the bridleway  is suitable for mountain and hybrid bikes but will be very rough for touring or road bikes. Pass through 4 gates arriving at the Draughton to Silsden Road, making a left to follow this road downhill and then turn right onto Jowett's Lane. At the T-junction turn right onto Walker's Lane, follow this and just past the entrance to Stake Hill Fishery on the right take a left and then immediately a right to go down New Lane. At the T-junction turn right and follow the road past Kildwick Hall on the right and through Farnhill to the junction with the A629.  Very carefully cross the busy A629 and continue into Cononley.

In Cononley there are 2 pubs, The Railway Inn and the New Inn, both on the right. Just past the Cononley Village Institute turn left up Netherghyll Lane. Climb up the hill to the T-junction with Stockshott Lane and then turn left sign posted Lothersdale. Follow this road to a crossroads and take the right turn up the hill. Continue to the top of the hill and down the other side to another crossroads and go straight across following the road down a steep hill to Elslack. Just before entering Elslack take a right turn over a stream bridge and then follow this road all the way to Broughton and the junction with the A59.

 Turn right onto the very busy A59 and travel for about 400 yards before turning left signposted to Gargrave and Malham. Cycle on this road all the way into Gargrave crossing the railway line as you enter the village, and then the Masons Arms pub on the left, before arriving at the A65 junction. Here turn right and then immediately left (with the Dalesman Cafe Tea Rooms on the corner), following the road round past the Village Hall on the right to then fork left at a public car park taking the road up and over the Leeds/Liverpool canal where there is a lock for the narrow boats to navigate. Just past the canal turn right along Chew Lane. At the T-junction turn left on Eshton Road to exit Gargrave.

Continue along Eshton Road to a right fork in the road signposted to Flasby. Take this road and follow it all the way through Hetton (where on the left you will find the Michelin Starred Angel pub and restaurant), and continue to meet up with the B6265 just outside Cracoe.   Turn left to cycle through Cracoe past the Devonshire Arms on the right, and at the far end of the village where the B6265 bends sharp left take the right fork to Thorpe. Follow this road through Thorpe to a T-junction where a right turn will bring you down into Burnsall.

In Burnsall you will find two cafes Wharfe View Cafe and Riverbank and the Red Lion pub. At the Red Lion fork left over the River Wharfe bridge signposted to Appletreewick. Continue to Appletreewick where you will find two more pubs the Craven Arms and the New Inn. Cycling uphill through Appletreewick drop down the hill outside the village and at the bottom of the hill turn right signposted Barden and Bolton Abbey.

Continue on this road until you find a left turn signposted to Storiths just before dropping down the hill to Barden (Please note that there are road closed signs here saying that there has been a landslip, however bikes and walkers can get through fine). Follow the road towards Storiths until you reach a gate on the right where you can see the Cavendish Pavilion at the other side of a bridge over the River Wharfe. Go through the gate and over the bridge turning left to follow the road back to the main Burnsall to Bolton Abbey road.

 Turn left at the T-junction and follow the road through Bolton Abbey. Here there is the priory itself, walking by the River Wharfe and tea shops. Continue on the road past the Devonshire Hotel on the left, and then immediately turn left before the bridge over the river. Cross the old bridge over the river and then take a right through a gate onto a bridleway which goes under the new bridge and parallels the A59 road to Harrogate (if you don't want to cycle the bridleway instead of taking the right through the gate continue straight on to meet the  A59). Then take the first right signposted to Beamsley and in about 3 miles take a footpath signposted to Addingham. About 200 yards down this road, just before the farm buildings, take the footpath to the right. Dismount from your bike and take the footpath over a small bridge and then follow the footpath all the way to the swing bridge. Cross the river on the swing bridge and climb up the footpath to Bark Lane to turn right and head back into Addingham.

To display a larger map and see the option to download the gpx file please click on the GPX Track link above.