Sheffield to Huddersfield

April 22, 2022 to April 27, 2022

chilly and hilly

My younger brother has had the bike I won on eBay a couple of years ago stored at his place and he brings it down to Dave's soon after my transfer from Ruby's. There are various things to fit to get it in touring mode and a new rear rack, handlebar grips, bar-ends, mirror, SPD pedals, kickstand, seat, saddlebag support, handlebar bag and a saddlebag get attached. It's all straightforward, but when I get on to try it out, the front gear cable snaps.

It's a case of going to bike shop in Lincoln and buying a replacement, but once the cable is fitted, the shifter won't engage and after fiddling about without any luck, I resort to looking at YouTube videos to see how to fix the problem. The recommended method is to spray WD40 into the shifter, as if they're not used for a while, the grease inside solidifies and prevents the sprawl mechanism working. This sucker gets a lot of WD40 over a couple of days, but refuses to engage, so it's back to the bike shops to try and get a replacement.

The two shops both ask me to bring the bike in and leave it for a few days, which seems ridiculous. It's now been four weeks since I landed and I just want to get away and ride around parts of Yorkshire ASAP. In a pique of frustration, I decide that's just what I'll do.

After looking at Google Maps for bike shops in Sheffield, where my trip within a trip starts, one pops up at the train station. Hopefully they can sort the problem out, as without a working front gear changer, the chain is trapped on the little ring and the bike is a non-starter.

Sorting out my 2020 eBay purchase at Dave's house near Lincoln

Dave drives me and the bike the 5km into Lincoln and we call in at the bike shop one last time just in case the guy will oblige: no luck. Dave thinks it's crazy to just head off on the train to Sheffield and he likely thinks that I'll be back later in the day with my tail between my legs. We'll see.

The train journey is over an hour and it's nearly noon when it pulls into Sheffield. The bike shop is right outside on the station's concourse, as Google Maps said, and the guy behind the counter pulls out a second-hand Shimano brake/gear lever and tells me it's 15 quid inc' the two cables and I could kiss him. I fit the part in next to no time and borrow the guy's cable snips before pedalling away in search of coffee. This show is finally on the road.

Outside the bike shop at Sheffield Train Station - it saved the day

This short tour goes northwest from Sheffield to Huddersfield, then Leeds and...

Back in the 1980s, I lived and worked in Sheffield and opt to ride past the downtown apartment I used to own. It's always a strange feeling revisiting a place that has so many memories, as the current reality merges with them and creates a confusing kaleidoscopic montage. My head swirls.

My route takes me past the nearby Arts Tower, a 1960s monolithic structure that towers over the university complex, and I stop at the uni's cafe across the road for a sandwich and much needed coffee. Then its a continual climb for a while as I escape the urban environs of the city, heading northwest.

Malin Bridge is on the outskirts of the city and by the time I get there my energy levels are already low. I previously stopped to ease the tension on the SPDs as they were proving dangerously hard to clip out of, and I pull over to adjust the derailleur cable, as it's not quite right. My seat seems too low, so that gets raised and when I look around I spot some local has decided to casually spray-paint 'Fuck off' on a wooden fence, so that's what I do.

Progress is slow and it must be around 4:00 because high school children are walking home from school as I ride through Worrall, after which it is unadulterated countryside.

This is the eastern periphery of the Peak District. It's hilly and chilly, with the temperature being only 10°C, and not really shorts weather, but climbing keeps me fairly warm. It's when the incline eases that the chill bites and my jacket comes back on.

My 7" tablet is loaded with edited screenshots and it comes out at junctions - I spent a bit of time plotting the route, but that was a couple of years ago now and I've forgotten it all. The detailed Ordnance Survey maps show tight contours and the lanes have chevrons on them denoting where the incline is particularly steep: I have to push the bike up these sections and my legs tell me they're simply not prepared for this kind of exertion.

I seriously regret not buying any snacks or getting a bottle of drink while in Sheffield. There's nothing on offer around here and I go through wonderfully named hamlets such as Wigtwizzle without seeing a soul.

During the planning stage, a website that marks all listed buildings had shown me a 'Take off' stone located before a place called Midhopstones. As I walk up the hill my eyes are peeled and it's just as well that I'm literally going at a pedestrian pace as it's hard to spot. Around a foot (30cm) tall and tucked into the hedgerow, the carved letters on the tablet of York stone told a coachman that this is place to releases a horse that had assisted in hauling a carriage up the steep hill. My guess is it must be a few hundred years old. It's one of the few snaps I bother taking during the day.

Passing an old guide pillar on Kirk Edge Road, heading northwest from Sheffield

Tight contours & chevrons (= steep) on the lanes - a screenshot with my route marked in red

Bypassing the village of High Bradfield, just to the south

'Take off' stones marked where to unhitch a horse that had helped pull a coach up a hill

From the crest it's a fast cruise down to Penistone. I'm famished and thirsty and the small town has a Coop and I go in and enjoy the immediate warmth. As I stand with my drink and sandwich inside the small store I must look the worse for wear as the twentysomething female clerk comes over and asks if I need a seat. I do, but decline as it'd be really hard to get back up again.

I ask her about trains to Huddersfield and she says there's one in about 15 minutes, so off I dash down the rest of the hill and get to the station well in time to catch the 6:20 departure.

Chilled to the bone on the 6:20 train from Penistone to Huddersfield

Sir Harold Wilson - former Prime Minister - outside Huddersfield's grand train station

Huddersfield Train Station is a Grade 1 listed building. It's superb - like some Greek library with tall columns. Outside on a plaza is a statue of locally born politician Sir Harold Wilson, who became the UK's Prime Minister in the mid 1970s. My late uncle - Sir Harold Finch - worked for him as under-secretary of State at the Welsh Office between 1964 to 1966, so I take a quick snap before heading off in search of a warm room.

The first hotel (Travelodge) I try is full and once I find the Premier Inn, they ask for nearly £90 for a single room without breakfast, so I head back into town feeling increasingly peeved.

While the neighborhood looks a bit dodgy, the Cambridge Hotel turns out to be a decent place and for a reasonable £66 my room is nice and my bike gets locked safely in a ground floor space. It's just a relief to lay on the bed and thaw out.

Cambridge Hotel - £66 with a buffet breakfast

Today's ride: 30 km (19 miles)
Total: 120 km (75 miles)

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Suzanne GibsonGreat to see you back on the grid and to enoy your inspiring photography! I was worried that you weren't going to post your trip although I had insider information that all was well with you.
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2 years ago

Graham FinchYes, I was just preoccupied while in the UK and the plan was always to do journal once back in Taiwan, when I'd have more time and my computer to work with.
I'm still at home alone under strict quarantine, but hope to escape outside this weekend.
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2 years ago