Track: Chapel Gate (Pre-2011)
This Information Is Now Outdated
Please note this information refers to the track before maintenance carried out on the track in 2011. For the current state of the track see the new page Track: Chapel Gate.
Technical/Speed/Fun Rating: 
/ 
/ 
Height Descent/Distance:200m / 1.5km
Ground: Sandy dirt, rocks, rocks, rocks, tarmac, rocks. Lots of mainly medium sized gritstone rocks and some very large rocks, a few bits of bedrock.
Location: SK 105 837 – View on the Tracks Map
Chapel Gate is a bridleway south west of Edale. Starting at the west end of Rushup Edge, it heads north, before turning north east as it crosses the contours for about 1 kilometre, it then flattens out and weaves to join the road from Mam Tor to Edale.
Description:
Chapel Gate starts out tamely enough on a wide, sandy, flat track, after 500m the downhill starts and the big rocks appear it continues like this with some drops and humps and a few gentle corners, the rocks (possibly boulders) are very large in a few places, there are also a few gullies to watch out for. Towards the bottom of the middle section there is (or was) a strip of tarmac running down the middle, this makes line choice interest as the tarmac middle makes it hard to switch sides. After the first gate there are less rocks and the gradient is more gentle. The last section is more like a farmer’s track, with some tarmac, but there are some quite deep gullies running along the track to be avoided. Upon exiting the track you either have a flat out, straight, road blast to the bridge or an epic hill climb up the road.
See a Head Cam Video of a run down the track.
Feel free to put any questions, your experiences of the track, or just any thing that’s relevant as a comment down the bottom.
R O T H A R . C O M » Blog Archive » Hey Jacob… said,
Wrote on September 28, 2008 @ 10:32 pm
[...] to go even faster and try not to crash. After the down, there’s always an up, in this case Chapel Gate, which now has ruts 4 to 5 feet deep where the rain has washed away the [...]
Monkeyspoon.com | Upcoming: Hope Valley Mountain Bike Challenge 2008 said,
Wrote on July 4, 2010 @ 4:36 pm
[...] and Hollins Cross to Castleton on the short route as well as the long descent towards Hayfield and Chaple Gate in the long route. It generally looks a good route with relatively gentle climbs and descents, [...]
Jeff R King said,
Wrote on December 17, 2010 @ 5:58 pm
The Peak Park are currently consulting on a proposal to ban 4x4s and motor bikes from Chapel Gate for a year and a half as an experiment.
http://www.peakdistrict.gov.uk/chapelgate
http://www.peakdistrict.gov.uk/index/news/news-display-page.htm?id=23743
Hugh B said,
Wrote on May 16, 2011 @ 4:10 pm
So, Chapel Gate has been re-surfaced as part of the Peak Park experiment. It no longer looks like the fun photos above
Descending, the track remains steep but is now smooth and loose, with 3 or 4 culverts to jump over. Ascending, well at least I can now ride it (previously it was beyond me).
Unfortunately, the re-surfacing doesn’t achieve Peak Park’s objective for ‘conserving the natural beauty’ as those who have looked from Edale and seen the wide stripe up the side of the hillside will testify. I guess a bit more rainfall will help return it to its natural state.
I hope the Peak Park experiment isn’t going to be repeated in too many more places. Chapel Gate was always navigable, and if walkers can’t cope with uneven surfaces, perhaps they should stay on the valley floor ?
SCARFACE said,
Wrote on May 21, 2011 @ 9:25 pm
How could they do this to our beloved Chapel Gate? We considered Chapel Gate the best downhill in the Peak District and Edale arguably the best course. However, now it is hardly worth riding. I have been out for almost a year now after breaking my face down Chapel Gate. Following a number of operations, plates, screws and god knows what else in my face, not to mention a long rehabilitation I was finally ready to ride Chapel Gate again only to be confronted by the monstrosity that the Peak Park has created. I could have cried. I felt completely cheated out of my chance to conquer Chapel Gate again.
The people who make these terrible decisions obviously have no idea or connection with the countryside and those responsible for this rural vandalism have no understanding of the challenges the countryside should offer. Any mountain biker who claimed Chapel Gate was unridable should either get better or head straight for a trail centre, and any walker claiming it was un walkable should naff off back to the town or city they came from as they’re clearly not local to the area.
What’s next on their list, The Beast, Jacob’s Ladder? If the Peak Park had their way it won’t be long before we have hand rails, wheel chair access and the compulsory wearing of high vis vests for all who braves the ‘wilds’ of the Peak District. I can physically feel the Peak District getting smaller and safer around me. Is this the beginning of the end for our local play ground?
CHAPEL GATE R.I.P.
Monkeyspoon.com | Chapel Gate Maintenance 2011 – Pictures said,
Wrote on May 22, 2011 @ 7:40 pm
[...] Chapel Gate track in Edale has been resurfaced and turned into a smooth motorway. The long and very rocky track was previously [...]
Jeff R King said,
Wrote on May 22, 2011 @ 7:47 pm
Yeah, it’s a shame and a great loss. The only real consolation is that the rocky track itself hasn’t been destroyed, only covered over. Give enough time it should show through again.
For those who haven’t seen it we’ve put up some pictures of it’s current state.
Danny Hemmings said,
Wrote on May 23, 2011 @ 8:43 pm
Can’t believe the timing – I’d only ridden Chapel Gate once when I’d only been riding about 8 months. I have a ride planned for this Friday when I was going to go back after 5 years to ‘take it to’ this trail. I’d planned to ride the Jacobs Ladder route anticlockwise to be able to do it – doh!
Don’t worry too much – at least in the Peaks you have got some good legal stuff at all. Where I live (Loughborough), you have to be seriously cheeky to ride anything that’s remotely challenging. With any luck, some of these namby-pamby, nanny-state public finance sponges will lose a lot of their funding over the next few years and just leave things be. They have already ruined Rushup Edge as a climbing challenge as well (I assume the same people).
Chapel Gate | RideSheffield said,
Wrote on May 24, 2011 @ 10:04 am
[...] Chapel Gate track in Edale has been resurfaced and turned into a smooth motorway. The long and very rocky track was previously [...]
Hugh Barton said,
Wrote on May 24, 2011 @ 3:41 pm
Danny, that’s unlucky. As an alternative from Edale valley floor, try going up to Hollins Cross, then round the back of Mam Tor and pick up on Rupshup Edge which brings you to the top of Chapel Gate (more of less). Good luck.
@ Danny Hemmings:
Annabelle said,
Wrote on June 14, 2011 @ 5:22 pm
I have been riding this route for some years now, both as a horse rider, walker and a mountain biker. There’s no question in my mind about how it compares to what it used to be. At last somebody has had the guts to sort this route out, which was getting increasingly dangerous and unenjoyable for all but the most hardcore bikers. Yes we all like a bit of danger but it was getting ridiculous.
Anyone who knows anything about resurfacing of routes will know that they are ugly at first and will weather and erode over time, making them more interesting and visually acceptable. There are routes we enjoy that offer a great ride because they’re gnarly but you have to admit – Chapel Gate was rather extreme!
Whilst on the subject of route ‘improvements’, the route from Mam Nick to Greenlands was worked on by Ride the Peak and it is brilliant – the number of mountain bikers has increased hugely on that route as it is better (I know as I ride it every weekend)so when is it acceptable to level out a route and when is it not? The fact is that different people want different things and the Peak District can accomodate this. But Chapel Gate was getting ridiculous and it was only going to erode even more – to think otherwise would be naive. So I’m all in support of the work and whilst it might not be so gnarly, you can get some great speed up!
Paul said,
Wrote on August 18, 2011 @ 10:55 am
One of the reasons that this resurface work is going on is because a lot of the trails that we ride on can also be legally driven on with either a 4×4 or trails bike. It is upto the local authority to ensure that these routes remain passable as from a legal point of view – they are roads albeit not very good ones.
There is a lot of this surface work ongoing. As above it will eventually wear down to a more rocky state.
You can keep upto date with whats happening with lanes and what work is ongoing from links in here http://www.peakdistrict.gov.uk/looking-after/vehicles