• Length: 1.1 miles
• Avg gradient: 10%   Peak gradient: 15.2%
• Difficulty: 4/5
• Likelihood of encountering unpleasant motor-vehicles: 1/5
• Elevation gain: 598 ft
• Strava

There is pretty much nothing that I can say about Curbar Edge that hasn’t already been said in greater detail and with more authority elsewhere, not least Simon Warren’s 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs and James Allen’s 50 Classic Cycle Climbs but as it is what I’d consider a headline hill, it would be remiss of me to not include it here.

I’d driven up to Curbar Gap many times before, heading for family walks along the edge, so I was familiar with the hill, its two sweeping bends and the towering gritstone rocks that give the hill its character. It’s an even more impressive climb when you’re on a bike.

You start in the village of Curbar itself, next to All Saint’s Church, and it’s from here that you head up the innocuous looking Curbar Lane. As you pass The Old Vicarage on your right, the gradient is immediately into double figures, reaching 14.5% as the road bends to the right. This is the steepest section of the whole climb, which is a good thought to keep in mind as you progress up the hill, eventually passing a red telephone box at a crossroads.

The climb now drops to a more pleasant 6-7% for a straight section, lined with rather nice looking houses with big gardens. You’ve pretty much reached the halfway mark when you pass the national speed limit sign, which sees the gradient return to around 10-11% and, more impressively, the countryside open up and the appearance of Curbar Edge, loom ominously above you.

The steepness remains fairly consistent around the first sweeping bend and then reaches 11.5% as you head towards the second, sharper corner. The views from here more than make up for the additional challenge though. Just try not to focus on the ridge of Curbar Gap which, at this point, still seems very high up and very far away.

Grind on around the next bend and, once you’ve passed a gate into a field on your right, I always feel like you’re pretty much there. You still have to cycle 0.3 miles and climb 130 ft but it’s broadly straight with a gradient of less than 10% and the views alone will keep your legs powered until you reach the car park at the peak.

Curbar Edge is a beautiful climb worth travelling for.

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