Great Whernside

[Stolly]

Blimey.... I like this race but these are seriously big accolades guys!! Is there really notthing better in the Dales..?

I think Great Whernside's descent is liked because so much of it is on almost a perfectly banked sheep grazed lawn. It is fantastic fun to run down - a bit tricky near the top but super fast nearer the bottom. I'm not sure what constitutes a 'great descent' anyway and presumably everyone prefers different things. I personally think that the best descent I've been down in the Dales (that actually appears in a fell race) is the Pen Y Ghent fell race route descent where, having come off the main bit of the hill you then whiz down through the grass on a fairly slick trod all the way to Hull Pot.

If you're talking about non-fell race descents, then there are frigging loads of good 'uns: Gragareth trig down to Yorda's Cave in Kingsdale, Park Fell into Ribblesdale, Firth Fell down to Buckden, Whernside trig down into Kingsdale (albeit a bit short), Whernside trig down to Ribblehead (the reverse of the 3P ascent and an absolute humdinger), the monks path just above Yew Cougar Scar down into Arncliffe, Weets Top down to Calton, Kirkby Fell down to Malham, Moughton down to Helwith Bridge (on the grassy slope between the quarries) and...well the list could go on.

Don't you diss the Dales Fellhound