Great Fryup Dale from Yorkshire Cycle Hub

The route

Start from The Yorkshire Cycle Hub in the Esk Valley and head south into Great Fryup Dale. The route runs 25.6km, dropping through the dale before climbing onto the moorland ridges that divide Great and Little Fryup, then working back to Danby. It is a route of two characters: the intimate, farmed dale bottom and the open, exposed moor above, each with its own feel underfoot.

The moor

The high ground is classic North York Moors: heather as far as you can see, sandy and peaty track, and the long views that come with a flat-topped moor. Danby Rigg and the ridge between the two Fryup dales carry the route across this ground, past old boundary stones and cairns. In August the heather turns the whole plateau purple, which is the moor at its best, though the same ground is bleak and wind-scoured when the weather is in.

Why it works

This is a substantial loop that shows off the range of the Moors without needing a summit. The dale sections are green and sheltered with good path; the moor sections are open and can be boggy and rough after rain, with some navigation needed where tracks branch on the tops. It suits a long steady run or a hard training day, and the Esk Valley setting makes it feel remote despite the railway threading the valley below. Save the exposed ridges for a clear day, carry proper kit for the moor, and check the forecast, as this ground offers little shelter. The lower estate sections make a good family outing on their own if you want a shorter day, with the show cave and the nature trail giving younger legs a reason to keep moving. Danby, with the National Park centre, makes a good base. Come in late summer for the heather and the loop is at its best, with the added bonus of the railway making a car-free day genuinely easy.