Finding routes

[mr brightside]

Hi all
I'm looking for new routes for training on but finding it hard to find information on where to go.
I'm based in Whitby North Yorkshire so I'm looking for new routes either in the north York moors, yorkshire dales, penine way or Lake District.
I'm not too concerned about distance and steeper the better.
Ive tried searching for routes but struggle to find hardly any. I'm maybe looking in the wrong places.

Any help would be greatly appeciated.

Thanks in advance

Hey Jonathan, if you check out my training thread 'mr b's comeback' in the training forum, there are a lot of Dales routes in there for you if you have the map reading skill. It's a bit far for you to go though.

[sbrt]

Now thats plain cheatin! Same as using anything other than Walsh products!!

Walshes, GPS, map & compass. When GB was a lad, all they had were cave drawings. If you were lucky, the Shaman would cast a few runes.

[Jez Hellewell]

Buy map
Learn how to use it
Explore!

What he said! My best runs are new routes I've created myself from an OS map.

[DrPatrickBarry]

https://www.ldwa.org.uk/ldp/members/search_by_path.php

[Jonathan]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.
Looks like I'm getting a map and compass.
It might have seemed like a stupid question but to me it's not. As a beginner with no map reading skills whatsoever I thought that there might be somewhere I could just pick the best routes based on what other people have done before. Plus I'd prefer to just run rather than navigate but If figuring it out for myself with a map is the best way then that's what I'll do.
Cleavland way is on my doorstep and I use and enjoy it often. As it's local I've never needed a map.
Thanks again for all the replies

[anthonykay]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.
Looks like I'm getting a map and compass.
It might have seemed like a stupid question but to me it's not. As a beginner with no map reading skills whatsoever I thought that there might be somewhere I could just pick the best routes based on what other people have done before. Plus I'd prefer to just run rather than navigate but If figuring it out for myself with a map is the best way then that's what I'll do.
Cleavland way is on my doorstep and I use and enjoy it often. As it's local I've never needed a map.
Thanks again for all the replies

The other alternative would be to emigrate to somewhere like Germany or Switzerland, where footpaths through the countryside often have signposts at every path junction with distances and/or estimated times to destinations.

But in this country, yes, you do need a map; and you may even find that you start enjoying planning your routes on the map and then following them.

[Jez Hellewell]

I always photocopy the OS map area location that I'm wanting to run, then highlight my route. Half the fun is figuring it out, for me anyway. Who wants linear?

[Wheeze]

Jonathan, it was a not a stupid question at all. You've now added important context...You are a beginner with no map reading skills at all who'd rather just run than navigate. So, of course, there are plenty of ways of doing this as you already know by using the Cleveland Way. And the local members of the Trail Running Association can probably point you in the direction of plenty of great trail-based runs. The extra dimension offered by fell running is getting off the trails into wilder country. Its a bit like the difference between on-piste and off-piste ski-ing. The latter is a whole different ball game and to get the best out of it, you need to commit to learning new skills and tricks.
So, yes, why not think about becoming handy with a map and compass if off-trail running appeals to you. There would be no better place to go than to one of the FRA nav courses. Good luck and enjoy!

[Bob]

Jonathan.

Not sure of your age but I got taught map reading at school as part of Geography which was mandatory though I think setting the map, etc. might have been done in the scouts (it's over 40 years ago so memory is just a little hazy). It's not that hard but can look like a black art to begin with - a bit like riding a bike, impossible until you can do it when it's easy!

Best to start somewhere you know well then you can relate the map to what's on the ground rather than the other way round. I.e. here's a church with a spire and it's marked as a cross with black circle attached on the map Vs. what's this circle with cross mean? Simplistic example but you get what I mean. Things like looking at the contour lines and figuring out how they relate to the shape of the land takes longer but is very useful if there's two paths, one down a ridge and one down a valley and you need one or the other.

[Jonathan]

I'm 30 and we didn't get taught map reading skills at school and didn't go to scouts.

Anyway I've ordered the os map that covers my local area so I can use that to learn how to plot routes as suggested.

I'll definitely look at the trail running association too.
Thanks