Last week, the powers that be helicoptered huge black bags of stone and gravel onto the south flank of Roseberry Topping, ready for this year’s phase of its major path upgrading. I have been anxious to see the progress.
To the left of the leftmost foxglove, the bridleway, after climbing up from the Folly field, contours around the hill, off to the left. Here it has received no such attention. To the right, the way to the summit is a mere footpath and eagerly awaits its facelift.
The bridleway is quite steep and has, until now, been ignored by horse riders and cyclists alike. If it is upgraded to bridleway standard, as one imagines it must be, one wonders whether horse riders will find it safely usable. I suspect not. Mountain bikers, though, may well rise to the challenge. Many riders regard a near-vertical slope as a personal invitation to disaster and, if that proves to be the case, families striving for the summit may find themselves rather inconveniently in the way. Speed limits for mountain bikes remain, as ever, a pleasant fiction.
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