The sun came out on my visit to the Durham Dales but that added to the fun of getting out in the fresh air doing some exercise as well as taking in great views. It was also time to take in an often overlooked valley of the Durham Dales, the beautiful Derwent Valley. And a great way to explore the area was taking a tour around Derwent Reservoir by e-Bike. Magnificent!
The Durham Dales provide a wonderful backdrop for a cycle ride. And I was especially intrigued at touring around on an e-bike. Well, I can say that these hybrid bikes are so easy to use and take all the strain completely out of a ride through the countryside. The ups of the ups and downs are exertion free. Pedal away and with the right setting you can let the bike take care of the hard work or not as you please 🙂
Off we went from a perfect place to start, Pow Hill Country Park on the South side of the reservoir. It was straight into huge views, gorgeous colourful woodland, and onto tracks tailor made to allow room for all walkers and cycle riders together. It was hard not to stop and admire the views across the water at every opportunity.
Why not, we had all the time in the world to explore. Hiring one of these e-bikes is not as expensive as you might think plus you can hire them for just an hour or take for 24 hours if you wish? Fun for all the family. The e-bikes are well equipped too with bags for your kit, helmets, locks and if needed you can take spare batteries and panniers. Take a look at the North Pennines Electric Bike Hire website for all the info on taking this journey or over the Durham Dales. You will also find on the site the two local places to hire the e-bikes.
Derwent Reservoir was full of variety on the cycle round. The blue of the sky and the water helping with the drama of the views. The reservoir is half in the County of Durham and half in Northumberland so you do a little County hopping in the process.
The reservoir is 4 km2Â and 3 and half miles long. It is one of the larger inland bodies of water in England and perfect for a bike ride or walks.It was opened in 1967 and is the main water supplier to the area of Tyne and Wear. Most reservoirs as we know are made by flooding a valley and building a dam head to stop the flow at one end…. but Derwent Reservoir was different, it was actually dug out of the ground with the earth removed going into the dam head.
I was ashamed I had never spent enough time in the past at this reservoir, there are panorama spots and picnic spots all around it. Information boards with a wealth of interesting info for all ages plus woodlands of the tracks that make you want to do some on foot too.
I must thank again the great guide we had, Dave Hull. As a novice e-biker he had me up and pedalling in no time, plus his knowledge of the area added a lot to the adventure. If you have any questions or maybe a tour you can get him via the website I mentioned above in the article.
