News
July 2023
A new trail that is 350kms long with 5,500 metres of climbing linking the Dark Peak to the Yorkshire Dales. The starting line will be in Hebden Bridge and the start date is the May Bank holiday 2024.
For more details see the page on this website titled Yorkshire Divide.
June 2023
We have a new partner and its HebTroCo based up in Mythompryd. Ed Oxley is on the digeridoo and brant is fixing the CDT FB page. What will the future hold!
May 2023
Over 9.5 days at the end of May 2023 I rode the HT550, a long distance off-road route through the Scottish Highlands. It has been a long term goal of mine to ride this iconic route. Part of the story of the CDT is tied into the HT550 because I had hoped to ride the HT550 in May 2022 and so went out on longer rides up and down the Calder Valley in the Winter of 2021 and Spring of 2022.
As the months went by I began to devise a long distance circular route that traced the watershed of the River Calder. Then, as detailed elsewhere, I came across the ‘Rivers’ map by Robert Szucs and my riding buddy Will Norman passed away.
By keeping my promise to ‘do a ride for Will’, the CDT was born.
April 2023
Here's two riders who are always happy to be out on the trails. On the left is Jaimi Wilson and on the right is Steve Bate.
They both rode on the 'Mills n Moors Series' back in March which was a taster of the trails used on the Calder Divide Trail. Jaimi loved the 30 mile route so much she came back to do the full 150 mile route in one go setting a new FKT (Fastest Known Time) of 16 hours and 24 minutes. Epic riding for sure.
Steve Bate is going to ride the 150 mile route that Jaimi threw herself round but he's riding it with Ed Oxley of HebTroCo so there won't be a KFT just a REL time (ride, eat, laugh).
Respect to Jaimi Wilson and Nicky Shaw who have the physical and mental strength to set new records on such tough rides but I'm thinking most folk on the September bikepacking event will be aiming for a REL!
January - April 2023
We hold the ‘Mills n Moors Series’, four Sunday rides that explore trails in the Upper Calder Valley. Each ride starts from outside a train station with 20% of the funds going to support the tree planting work of Forus Tree.
September 2022
The CDT event was set up with the aim of raising enough money to fund one day in the life of the hospice that cared for our riding buddy Will Norman. The target was £2,000. In the photo is Liz Norman her two children and Adrian Wright handing over the ‘cheque’ to Wendy, a rep from Overgate Hospice.
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
15 minute film about the CDT posted on YouTube. A reviewer from Ruff Stuff Fellowship, the oldest off-road biking group in the UK, commented: “This is one of the best videos that I have ever seen of trails and bikepacking in the UK”.
May 2022
Poster printed and put out across West Yorkshire.
April 2022
Early draft of the poster which would eventually go up in local bike shops.
March 2022
First draft of the map which laid out the route.
