The Pennine 500 is a bikepacking route through the Pennines, a range of hills and passes along the backbone of the north of England.
Pennine 500 is a circular route on tracks and lanes from Hebden Bridge in the Calder Valley to Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland and back via Tan Hill and Haworth.
Date: 29th May - 2nd June 2027
format: self-supported bikepacking rally
Event Hub: Mytholmroyd community centre
trackers: Follow my challenge
Grand depart: 8am
Duration: 5 days
entry: open
‘A new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere’. J.B. Priestley
High Cup Nick, North Pennines
Salter Fell Road, Bowland Forest
Swaledale
60% of the route is paved as we take quiet lanes like this one at Kingshead
Allen Valley, Northumberland
Nidderdale
Looking across the fell to where a track on the Pennine 500 runs on the lower slope of Wandale in the Howgills.
Calder Valley, Spencer Lane, 1km from the start line
Crimsworth Dean, 4km to the finish line at Mytholmroyd
Flanks of the Howgills on tracks between Sedbergh and Orton
Footbridge over Maize Beck below Mickle Fell
Vindolanda Roman Fort
Dent
Mike born on a farm in the Howgills, taking his two dogs to the beck for a swim
Calder Valley
David runs North Pennine Cycles in Nenthead
Kingsdale
High Greenside Farm
Forest of Bowland
The route isn’t all rough stuff tracks but at last the roads are quiet!
Around 60% of the route is on paved roads classified as ‘C’ roads and chosen as they have limited traffic
Around 25% of the paved roads are up to and down from the fells and so are very quite as they are ‘dead end’ roads
Reservoir access road - paved but dead end
Gated road that takes us up to Hadrian’s Wall - paved but limited to use by farm vehicles
Wild camping on the open moor
