Stephenson’s Bank
- Wheelygood Rating: Medium
- Length: 0.88 miles
- Avg. gradient: 10%
- Category: 4
- Strava Segment: https://www.strava.com/segments/3979081
I’m going to blame wandrer.earth for this one. In my quest to cover as much of Northumberland as I can, I plotted a Route the other week which took me around Haydon Bridge and I found this particular climb completely by accident. I suspect many others will already know of it, but it was new to me and proof that there are always new things to discover whilst out on the bike.
The climb itself comes in four major chunks; there’s a warm up ramp, the Main Event and a couple of follow-ups just to make sure it’s made its point.
As soon as you turn onto the side road, the incline makes itself known. There’s no break-in period, or gentle introduction. Oh, no. Zero pretty much straight to double digit gradient is the order of the day here. Don’t attack it too much, though, because you’ll need that energy for the next sections.
You even get a bit of a rest before the Big Ramp as you pass the first farmhouse complex on the left. Be calm and all will be well. The ramp begins by gently pitching itself up into the low teens. Find a gear that’s not too hard to turn – and stay there. The slope doesn’t relent until you reach the next set of cottages up the hillside and, just for additional entertainment, the slope increases as you get further up to a maximum of about 18%. The road surface isn’t ideal in parts and there was gravel down the centreline when I rode it, so you may need to do some picking of line to avoid the worst of it. Despite the gradient, it’s not a malicious climb – it’s just one that starts at the bottom and winds its way up past the farms and houses which it serves with the minimum amount of fuss.
Once you do reach the cottages the slope backs off considerably although it never becomes completely flat. You’ll have to contend with a bit more gravel as the road twists around the buildings, but don’t get too excited: around the final tight left-hander after the cottages, the climb begins anew.
It looks like this will go on for an eternity, but, in reality, it’s not all that long and only gets itself up to about 13%. The reason it feels bad is that the previous ramp will still be in your legs. The quality of the road on this ramp is noticeably worse than the previous one and there are potholes and patches of errant tarmac to avoid, but it’s all more than doable. Just keep with that steady pace and you’ll be fine.
More bends, more farms and cottages. And more ‘flat’. Make the most of it before the final assault. The only other thing to bear in mind is that there is sometimes traffic coming out of a side road on the right just past a farm: as it’s such a quiet road, they’re highly unlikely to be expecting someone riding slowly up the hill on a bicycle, so keep your wits about you for the day that the tractor just hauls it straight round the corner without looking…
The final ramp is a 12%-er, but it never feels that bad: if you’ve got this far, then you’ll make it to the top. The road is better than it was lower down, which helps to make the whole thing feel rather easier. Again, back to that steady pace and you’ll be fine.
The Strava segment ends at the top of this ramp, just around the corner, but that’s not the highest point. To reach _that, keep rolling down the gentle declivity and then up the next slope. It looks much worse than its 4% actuality! Once you reach the 90º left hander, then that’s the natural stopping point – you’ve earned the views!
If there are any other road climbs you’d like me to take on, the more ridiculous the better, then please send me a message on my FaceBook page https://www.facebook.com/wheelygoodcycling/ or email me on wheelygoodmail@gmail.com and let me know…
