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At 4 kilometers, this is in the top 25 percentile for length within the 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs (filter for distance on 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs PJAMM Home Page). At 7.2% for a full 4 kilometers, this is a challenging climb. There is a gradual run into the climb for 500 meters and it then ramps up to 12.4% for the next kilometer (9.8% average for 2.3 kilometers). The final 1.2 kilometers are a breeze at 2.8%.
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Climb begins in Pateley Bridge (2011 pop. 2,210) . . . home to . . .
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. . . the World’s Oldest Sweetshop (est. 1827)
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Steepest segment is starts at 500 meters.
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The roadway surface is excellent although there is a fair amount of traffic on this route. This is a very popular climb for cyclists (over 18,000 attempts on Strava as of September, 2018).
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Warning on the way down.
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Steepest ½ kilometer begins at 600 meters (13.8%)
#52 of Simon Warren's 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs in Great Britain, this climb is in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is just a few hundred meters south of Pateley Bridge:
“Situated in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales, in North Yorkshire, Nidderdale AONB is one of 46 AONBs in the UK. Between them they cover 18% of the UK’s finest countryside and are special places, worthy of protection.
It has the oldest sweet shop in England. Established in 1827, it is housed in one of the earliest buildings in Pateley Bridge, dating from 1661. Pateley Bridge is also the home of the Nidderdale Museum.
The last Dales agricultural show of the year, the Nidderdale Show, is held annually on the showground by the River Nidd. The show attracts over 14,000 visitors each year.
History - In the early Middle Ages the site of Pateley lay in lands of the Archbishop of York, which came to be known as Bishopside. In the 12th century the principal settlement in Bishopside was at Wilsill, rather than Pateley. Pateley was first recorded in 1175 (though the document survives in a later copy), as Patleiagate, with 14th century forms including Patheleybrig(ge). The final elements are clear, deriving from Old Norse gata ('street') and the northern dialect form brig ('bridge') respectively. There is more debate about the Pateley section of the name: the usual explanation is Old English pæþ ('path') in the genitive plural form paða + lēah ('open ground, clearing in a forest'); paða lēah would mean "woodland clearing of the paths", referring to paths up Nidderdale and from Ripon to Craven, which intersected here. However, the Pateley name forms competed in the Middle Ages with forms like Padlewath (1227) and Patheslayewathe which could be from Middle English *padil ('a shallow place in water') + Old Norse vath ('ford') and it could be that they owe something to this name. The local story that the name comes from 'Pate', an old Yorkshire dialect word for 'Badger', is incorrect.
In 1320 the Archbishop of York granted a charter for a market and fair at Pateley. From the 14th century until the early part of the 20th century, Scotgate Ash Quarry despatched hard-wearing sandstone from its site on the northern flank above Pateley Bridge..” Wikipedia - Pateley Bridge
CyclingUphill.com:
“Greenhow hill is one of my personal favourites. I’ve ridden it many times as it is quite close to my parents house in Menston. Nidderdale is also a beautiful part of the world and there are plenty of hills in this area. The only downside of Greenhow hill is that it is a fairly main B road with traffic from Pateley Bridge towards Grassington and Skipton. However, it is not too busy and won’t spoil your climb.
Although the average gradient is 7%, it feels a lot steeper, especially on the first half. As you leave Pateley Bridge, you are immediately hit by the first steep section of 15-16%. You then get a brief respite before the next 15% section The hill is like this – there are three really steep sections, interspersed with some flat sections for recovery. Towards the top, the climb becomes more gentle as it winds its way to the top of the moor. Here it offers stunning views over the Nidderdale valley to your right.” https://cyclinguphill.com/greenhow-hill/
Things to do in Pateley Bridge.
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