Mountain Biking at Whinlatter Trail Centre in the English Lake District

Biking at Whinlatter in the English Lake District was such a blast, we are heading back as soon as we can!

Knowing that England is full of trail centres, we took to the internet to find out where we wanted to ride. With every search, the Whinlatter Trail Centre kept popping up and after looking at photos and reading a few posts, we knew we had to hit it up.

Whinlatter is located in the English Lake District. Arriving at the Visitor Centre, we were taken aback by the beautiful forest surrounding us. We parked, changed clothes and began our ride, starting at the Visitor Centre.

Rides: Enduro
Bikes: Nicolai ION G-29

The Trails

There are 3 different trails for MTB riders. The first two, Quercus Trail and MTB Orienteering are known for their flow and moderate skill level. We however, wanted to hit up something more difficult and decided to ride the Alutra Trail. The information about the trail in the Visitor Centre was clear that a high level of fitness and advanced technique would be necessary to ride it, but we felt ready.

The Whinlatter Visitor Centre.

From the top of the trail centre, the Altura Trail falls right into a descent. Roots, stones and berms at every corner brought a smile to all of our faces, and slowly our fingers drifted away from the brakes. The signage along the trail make it easy to stay on course.

It's all about technique.

Views like this never get old.

The first three kilometres are spectacular. However, for those who like to ride down, they must also ride up. So we found ourselves pedalling along doubletrack, watching the scenery change as we climbed. The last few kilometres of the uphill follow more singletrack, which kept the climb fun. The forest had the feeling of coming out of a fairy tale and we all enjoyed the view in silence.

The trails continued after our climb into a seven kilometre descent. We followed singletrack into ever thicker forests, which astounded us after every berm.

The Alutra Trail's vertical metres.

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Rockin and rollin!

High-speed cornering and railing berms.

Burgers are the best!

What a ride! After 13 kilometres of pure fun we arrived back at the car euphoric. We only realized then that we didn’t see any other bikers while riding. The whole area still gives off the feeling of discovery, as the trails wind through the forest. Back at the car, we washed our bikes at the Visitor Centre and had something to eat there as well.

We can't wait to come back!

Impressions

The trail centre in Whinlatter is unbelievable. The scenery and top quality trails are a ton of fun to ride and the forest is truly amazing. We are definitely going to be coming back to Whinlatter to hit up more trails the next time we are in England.