Photo credit: Forestry England.

Meet Old Bob – the new Green MTB trail in the Forest of Dean. The perfect bridge from the Family Cycle Trail to the Blue Verderers Trail and beyond:

The Story

Our motto at Pedalabikeaway has always been ‘Cycling for everyone’ – so we are delighted to finally have the missing piece in the jigsaw, the new Green MTB trail, “Old Bob”.

The original “Old Bob” was the pumping engine at Cannop Colliery, ensuring the mine shafts didn’t get flooded as far back as 1880, and the new Green Trail name is a nod to our Cycle Centre’s industrial heritage.

Since 2011, we have had the blue Verderers trail, green Family cycle trail (now called the “Colliers Trail”), red Freeminers route and several downhill lines.

Old Bobs is the final piece in the puzzle!

We feel it now makes the Forest of Dean the most complete trail centre in the UK!

What to expect?

It is a 2km flowy green trail, with 3 skills areas that you can session and lap. Expect a small climb, lots of berms and flow and a whole heap of fun!

Starting a sort distance from the Cycle Centre along the link trail, Old Bob starts with a gentle gradient climb. After a few hundred metres you’ll find the first of 3 skills areas, this one with a range of different corners to help you build up your confidence…

A little more climbing gets you to the ‘top’ of the trail, where you’ll find the 2nd skills area to practice on! After honing your skills once more, you can start your journey down the hill, and here the real fun begins…

The whole trail is suitable to lap time and time again, building up your confidence and skills, and tiring out little legs as you go.

All of this is no more than a hop, skip and a jump back to the Pedalabikeaway Café, and a much needed hot chocolate and refuel!

Check out all the info on the trail on the Forestry England Website here

Plan your next visit

With half term just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to enjoy the Forest of Dean’s autumnal glory and check out the new trail!

Need to hire a bike? Not a problem. Just head over to our website to book here

See you out on Old Bob soon!

Photo credit: Forestry England

Redbull recently highlighted the Forest of Dean as one of the best places in the UK to spend a ‘dirty’ weekend, and it’s not hard to see why!

The FOD, as it’s known locally, is a bit of a mecca for off road cycling.

Starting with the Family Cycle Trail, a 10 mile circular route that starts and finishes here at Pedalabikeaway, it’s perfect for all levels! The gradients are gentle, and it’s a very scenic amble around some historic parts of the forest.

If you don’t fancy the whole loop or have young children cycling, you can do the shorter length Hicksters loop, which is under half the distance and fully way-marked too.

To extend it, then why not take the short diversion down to the beautiful Mallards Pike Lake?  It’s the perfect place for a picnic, and there is even an amazing cafe on site as well! The below shot was from the mini freeze we had this time last winter!

You also have the option of accessing the Family Cycle Trail via the Lydbrook,  Coleford and Parkend links so you can ride to and from your accommodation!

Talking of accommodation, there is a massive amount of choice in the Forest for your stay.  The Wye Dean tourism site is a great place to start, but a personal favourite is the Fountain Inn run by Alan, who helps dig and maintain the trails here in the FOD, while Broadstone Farm is a fantastic little campsite with great homemade cider and superb access to the Forest!

If you are a little more adventurous, then the mountain biking on offer is almost limitless.   All the way-marked trails start and finish here from the centre, including the blue-graded Verderers trail, the red-graded Freeminers trail and several downhill tracks. There is also a pump track and advanced skills area with jumps and drops, and a huge amount of off-piste tracks to explore!

You can get an idea of what some of them are like, by checking out our You tube site

To maximise your riding time, you could hire an e-bike (check out our previous blog on the Whyte Bikes E-150 ) or book on to one of Wye MTB’s uplift assisted trips to explore the beautiful Wye Valley. They also offer trips further afield into the beautiful Welsh Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons, which are less than 45 minutes away.

You’ll have loads to do for the little ones as well. There is a Go-Ape Mini’s site just a 10 minute walk from the centre, Puzzlewood – the enchanted forest (where some of Star Wars was filmed), Canoeing on the River Wye, Clearwell Caves or why not try Battlesports?

When you are all done, then don’t forget to call back into the cafe! We pride ourselves on serving the best coffee and cake in the forest. Perfect for that caffeine hit to keep you awake on the drive home!