tour de france 2014 yorkshire stage 1 route map

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Stage One, Tour de France 2014: Leeds to Harrogate

The route of Stage One of the 2014 Tour de France is from Leeds to Harrogate , via the Yorkshire Dales . 

It's 190.5km, or 119mi, from the beginning of the race at Harewood. The start in Leeds is a  départ fictif , or ceremonial start, and the peloton will stay together, behind a race organisers' vehicle, until Harewood; the ride from Leeds to Harewood doesn't count in the official race distance. At Harewood, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will meet the competitors at a line-up on the steps of the country house, before the racing starts.

See the above Stage 1 map in pdf format , or the interactive Tour de France map of Stage One .

Around 880,000 spectators are expected to watch Stage One. The finish is at the Harrogate Hotel du Vin on West Park, between the junctions with Albert St and Raglan St. In the week before the race, there are lots of Tour decorations in Harrogate .

(See our stage 1 report for the race as it happened on 5th July 2014).

Stage One, Tour de France 2014: video of the route

Our video of the route of Stage One of the 2014 Tour de France shows you the itinerary in about 6 minutes. We give the distance so far at each town, village, or landmark along the way. You can see the route, where the hills are, and enjoy the stunning countryside of the Yorkshire Dales . There's film of cyclists on the Tour de France route, as well the main towns, attractions, and wildlife. 

Stage One, Tour de France 2014: the route

Thierry Gouvenou, the Tour's Sports Director, who was responsible for choosing the route, said of Stage 1, 'From Skipton onwards, the racers will be cycling along undulating routes, in particular the wonderful Yorkshire Dales National Park, which the whole world will be able to see on television. This first stage will be promising for sprinters, who will have to fight for the maillot jaune of le Tour in Harrogate, since the last 60 kilometres are flat.'

Mark Cavendish will be one of the favourites to win the sprint up Parliament Street and to the finish line on West Park in Harrogate. In an interview in January 2014, Cavendish said that his whole year would be built around Harrogate . If Stage One does end in a sprint, the main competition is likely to come from Marcel Kittel, Andre Greipel, and Peter Sagan.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: the départ fictif - Leeds to Harewood (ceremonial start)

Stage one begins on the Headrow (one of the official spectator hubs ), outside the Town Hall and Art Gallery in Leeds , and picks up the A61, which is urban dual carriageway at first, with plenty of roundabouts. The A61 crosses the Leeds Ring Road between Moortown and Moor Allerton, then emerges into the countryside by Alwoodley Gates school, heading for Harewood House . 

Every Tour de France stage has a ceremonial start, where the riders remain behind a Tour vehicle, and there is no racing, so the speed is slower. (In French, the ceremonial start is referred to as a départ fictif , and the racing starts at the départ réel ). The ceremonial start of this stage will last until Harewood, with the riders going through the grounds of Harewood House, and pausing at the Festival of Cycling there, to be greeted by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. After that, the race will be on.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Harewood House to Otley (0-8.5km; 0-5 mi)

After Harewood House , the Tour de France riders will turn left onto the A659, for a flat ride along the river Wharfe, via Pool to Otley (another spectator hub ).

There's a sharp right/left dogleg in the centre of Otley (Manor Square, by the Black Horse Hotel), that anyone who has crawled through the town by car will remember. The route then continues on the A659 Beech Hill, which becomes Westgate. ( Otley is the home town of Lizzie Armitstead, silver medallist in the women's road race at the 2012 London Olympics. She is patron of Otley's thriving cycle club).

York City Council has produced a 'flyover' video of the route as far as Otley (showing the roads from the air, using Google Earth). (The route shown in the video is slightly wrong where it exits Otley, as a small change made after the route was originally announced has not been accounted for):

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Otley to Ilkley (8.5-17km; 5-11mi)

As it exits Otley to the west, the Tour de France route takes a right fork off the A659 Westgate at the Fleece, onto Ilkley Road, which runs close to the Wharfe. After a short distance, it turns right onto the wide, flat A660 Ilkley Road, which then becomes the A65 Burley Bypass past Burley-in-Wharfedale. The A65 contines to follow the Wharfe to Ilkley .

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Ilkley to Skipton (17-35km;11-22mi)

There's a gradual climb out of Ilkley . In a change to the route originally announced, the Tour will go through, not just past, Addingham . It'll take a right turn off the A65, onto Main St, Addingham, then fork right onto Skipton Rd, Addingham , to rejoin the A65 1km before Chelker Reservoir. The climb from Ilkely to the resevoir is from 70m altitude up to 221m, over about 8km. 

The next town on the route is Skipton (at 118m). In a slight change to the originally published itinerary, the Tour de France route takes a left on the A6069 just before Skipton, arriving in town on Otley Rd/Newmarket St, then turning right up the High St, left over Mill Bridge, and out of town on the B6265. The TV cameras are sure to show shots of the impressive Skipton Castle.

This is York City Council's 'flyover' video from Otley to Skipton, and just beyond into the Yorkshire Dales, as far as Cracoe:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Skipton to Kettlewell (35-59km; 22-37mi)

Climbing out of Skipton , the B6265 soon crosses the boundary into the Yorkshire Dales National Park . It goes through Rylstone and Cracoe, then rejoins the Wharfe at Threshfield, with views of Grass Wood shortly afterwards. The riders will pass through Kilnsey - past the trout fishing lake, and the Tennant Arms pub , and under Kilnsey Crag. Another few kilometres, and they'll arrive in picturesque Kettlewell .

This flyover video shows the route from Cracoe, just past Kettlewell, to Cray:

There's also a route information video with Jamie Sharp, covering the B6160 from Kilnsey to Kettlewell. Some of the safety advice is a bit banal, reminiscent of the old public safety announcements on TV - for example, we're told that there may be oncoming traffic, and pedestrians in a village. Maybe that's useful for some people. However, it's interesting to see the route being cycled:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Kettlewell to Aysgarth (59-83km; 37-52mi)

The road from Kettlewell via Starbotton to Buckden (see the Buckden-Tour de France website) is just wide enough for two cars to squeeze past each other. It's shown on this route/safety information video, which also mentions buildings jutting out into the road:

At Buckden, the route leaves the Wharfe, and climbs via Cray up a route known as Kidstones Pass to Bishopdale Head. This is the first categorised climb on Stage 1 (Cat. 4), and on the race itinerary it is called Côte de Cray . It is recommended as one of the best places to watch Stage One of the Tour de France 2014 - it's scenic, and the riders will be going more slowly, as it's steeply uphill. Because of road closures , though, you'll probably need to get there the night before at the lastest. This video shows the Côte de Cray:

Then, there's a descent - steep at first - into Bishopdale, alongside Bishopdale Beck. It's shown on this video:

In Bishopdale, the riders take the B6160 to Newbiggin, the location of the day's intermediate sprint. (For the 2014 edition of the Tour, there is one intermediate sprint per normal road stage, with points awarded in the Green Jersey competition, plus more points for the finish of each stage. There will be no time bonuses awarded for the sprints, so real time will be the basis of the General Classification. See this overview of the Green Jersey points system ). 

The route continues past Thoralby and West Burton, then it turns left on the A684 to Aysgarth , famous for its waterfalls. (This is a slight change from the original route map, which showed them turning left a few kilometres earlier, through Thoralby).

The section in Bishopdale, towards Aysgarth, is shown on this video with Jamie Sharp:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Aysgarth to Hawes (83-98km; 52-61mi)

This stretch takes the A684 up Wensleydale , by the river Ure, through Bainbridge , to Hawes . The route is very slightly uphill here, and follows the course of the river Ure.

This flyover video shows the section from Cray via Kidstones Pass to Aysgarth, Bainbridge, and Hawes:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Hawes via Butter Tubs to Reeth (98-125km; 61-78mi)

Now comes probably the most dramatic part of the stage, the Category 3 climb, Côte de Buttertubs . The route crosses the Ure, and climbs through Simonstone towards the high point of the day, 526m, near Butter Tubs . (If you're riding the route, look out for the cattle grids here, and sheep wandering unpredictably across the road). This video shows the Côte de Buttertubs climb:

The riders will then descend into Swaledale , passing through the picturesque villages of Muker , Gunnerside , Feetham, and Healaugh, before coming into Reeth .

This flyover video shows the route over Buttertubs, then down to Muker, and through Gunnerside and Reeth to Grinton:

A route information/safety video shows the roads in and around Muker, warning of concealed entrances, dry stone walls, narrow sections, and a bridge with limited visibility:

This is a video of the next section after Muker, to Gunnerside:

And the approach on the B6270 to Reeth:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Reeth to Leyburn (125-137.5km; 86-mi)

Leaving Reeth , the race passes through Grinton , then climbs by the rifle range road onto the moor - Cogden Moor, Grinton Moor, and Ellerton Moor. It's Category 3 climb, called Côte de Grinton Moor on the race itinerary. The summit of the climb is about 420m, near Robin Cross Hill. You can see the Côte de Grinton Moor on this video:

After the top of the climb, the riders pass by Stainton Moor, Bellerby Moor (where Bellerby Ranges are to be found), and Leyburn Moor. They then go through the market town of Leyburn .

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Leyburn to Masham (137.5-155.5km; 86-97mi)

The riders now follow the A6108 over Middleham bridge, with its turrets, and through Middleham , known for its ruined castle (where Richard III stayed, before he became king), and as the home of many horse racing trainers. They go to the village of East Witton, then past the ruins of Jervaulx Abbey , before arriving in the brewing town of Masham . 

This flyover video shows the Tour route from Grinton via Leyburn to Masham:

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Masham to Ripon (155.5-169.5km; 97-106mi)

Expect this later part of the stage to be fast, as it continues to follow a fairly flat A6108, especially if there's a NW wind at the riders' backs. They cross the Ure at West Tanfield , and probably won't notice how charming North Stainley is as the fly through. The race route avoids the centre of Ripon , and stays on the main road to the east of the city, taking in five roundabouts.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Ripon to Harrogate (169.5-190.5km 106-119mi)

After skirting Ripon , the final section of Stage One of the 2014 Tour de France is due south on the A61. It passes Ripley (where up to 12,000 people may be watching - see our Tour de France in Ripley page), goes over the river Nidd, then into Killinghall (the final village before Harrogate). 

After the race enters Harrogate at the New Park (also known as Little Wonder) roundabout, there's a short, sharp climb, then a short downhill stretch to the junction by the Royal Baths and the Royal Hall. As the riders stream down, they'll be able to see Parliament Street, which takes them steeply up to Bettys and the war memorial, then straight ahead on West Park, with now only a very slight uphill gradient. The finish line is on West Park, in front of the Hotel du Vin , in between the junctions with Albert St and Raglan St.

This flyover video shows the final section of the Stage 1 route from Masham to Harrogate:

Stage One, Tour de France 2014: where to watch the race

Where to watch stage 1, tdf 2014: the start in leeds.

There is sure to be lots to see at the start, on The Headrow, outside Leeds Art Gallery. This is an official spectator hub , and there are plans to put up five grandstands in Victoria Gardens (see map below). There's to be a hospitality village on Millenium Square for Tour sponsors, and a media centre in Wellington Place.

When it leaves The Headrow, the race will go relatively slowly on the A61 out of Leeds, as it is the ceremonial part of the stage, before the racing begins from Harewood. The Yorkshire Evening Post says there could be 27,000 people on the first 1.5km of the route, from the Art Gallery to Sheepscar. 

A further 2km along the route, there'll be a spectator area and big screen on Scott Hall playing fields, near the junction of Scott Hall Road and Potternewton Lane. A Leeds City Council report from 15th April 2014 estimates that there'll be 165,000 spectators from the start until the point that the race crosses the boundary to Bradford (between Otley and Burley in Wharfedale), but warns this may be an under-estimate.

Where to watch Stage 1, TDF 2014: official spectator hubs

There will be official spectator hubs at nine locations, with big screens to watch the race, and family-focussed activities. As well as The Headrow and Scott Hall playing fields in Leeds, they will be in Otley town centre, Ilkley , Skipton , Grassington, Aysgarth, Hawes, Leyburn, Ripon , and Harrogate . 

Harewood House is also putting on a Festival of Cycling event from Friday 4th to Sunday 6th July 2014, with camping and camper vans, exhibitons, entertainment, and big screens to watch the race. Stage One of the Tour is even due to come through the grounds of Harewood, and pause there for ten minutes, from 11.40am on Saturday 5th July - see Stage 1 timings . It has been announced that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will greet the riders on the steps of the house.

Where to watch Stage 1, TDF 2014: the climbs

The riders' speed is lower on the uphill sections, and the racing is often at its most exciting. The climbs on Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 are also in spectacular locations in the Yorkshire Dales.

The race organisers' Stage 1 timetable lists the climbs, and their categories. They are Côte de Cray (out of Buxton, via Cray to Kidstones Pass) (Cat 4), Côte de Buttertubs (Butter Tubs Pass, between Hawes and Muker) (Cat 3), and Côte de Grinton Moor (the road out of Grinton onto Grinton Moor and past Bellerby rifle range) (Cat 3). 

Where to watch Stage 1, TDF 2014: the finish

Details of the arrangements in Harrogate town centre for the finish of Stage 1 were made available at the end of January 2014. One side of West Park near the finish line will be cordoned off, and reserved for the race organisers and TV crews. The other side (near the war memorial) will be a public viewing area, with grandstands erected by Welcome to Yorkshire - at least, that was the plan at one stage, although it is no longer certain. It will be very busy. We've seen different estimates of the number of people likely to be there, one of them being 120,000.

There'll be at least two big screens - one by the Crescent Gardens, opposite the Royal Hall, and one on West Park Stray. 

See the details of the arrangements in Harrogate town centre for the finish of Stage 1, and the full-size map . Read about the Tour de France decorations in Harrogate . This video shows the way the town is dressed, a few days before the Tour:

Stage One, Tour de France 2014: timings

The Tour de France organisers have published the estimated timings for Stage One of the 2014 Tour. There are three scenarios, based on different average speeds of the race. Stage One leaves Leeds at 11.10 (ceremonial start), and the racing starts at 12 noon from Harewood. The riders should arrive at the finish in Harrogate between 4.20pm and 4.46pm. 

See the full timings for Stage One, Tour de France 2014 .

Stage One, Tour de France 2014: the climbs

There are three categorised climbs on Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014. The first, Côte de Cray, is Category 4, then the other two, Côte de Buttertubs and Côte de Grinton Moor, are Category 3.

Climbs on Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Côte de Cray (Category 4)

Also known as Kidstones Pass, this climb begins shortly after the Tour goes through the village of Buckden, Wharfedale. The riders will climb with Buckden Pike up to their right. Read more about Côte de Cray...

Climbs on Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Côte de Buttertubs (Category 3)

Buttertubs Pass is likely to be the most spectacular and popular climb of Stage 1. From Hawes, the riders will ascend towards Simonstone, near Hardraw Force, then on up to the top of the climb at 526m, overlooked by Great Shunner Fell. Read more about the Côte de Buttertubs...

Climbs on Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Côte de Grinton Moor (Category 3)

This climb begins at Grinton, just after Reeth. The riders will take Whipperdale Bank, up onto moorland used by the Ministry of Defence as a firing range and for military exercises. The heather-covered hillsides are spectacular. Read more about Côte de Grinton Moor...

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Harewood House

Harewood House is a graceful stately home, standing within charming grounds. 

It was built in the mid-1700s, for Edwin Lascelles. The building was done by John Carr of York, with interiors by Robert Adam, furnishings by Thomas Chippendale , and the garden by Capability Brown. 

Inside the house, you can visit State Rooms, bedrooms, and the library; there's also a Below Stairs section, that includes the Old Kitchen. One of the house's treasures is Chippendale's State Bed.

There's an impressive art collection, with watercolours painted by JMW Turner when he visited Harewood House aged 22. There are also family portraits by Reynolds, and temporary exhibitions under the name Harewood Contemporary. 

The gardens are extensive, and include a popular Bird Garden, with penguins, and an Adventure Playground. 

The ruins of Harewood Castle, begun in 1366 when Sir William de Aldeburgh was given a licence to crenellate (!), may open to the public when they are made sufficiently safe. 

Emmerdale has its own set in the grounds of Harewood House.

Harewood is organising and hosting the Yorkshire Festival of Cycling, which will see up to 50,000 people camp in the grounds. There'll be unlimited parking too. They are putting on a whole weekend of entertainment, and the highlight will be the visit of the race, after the faux départ , and before the real racing begins. There's a pause at Harewood, so anyone there should get a good look at the riders. 

Read more about the Yorkshire Festival of Cycling at Harewood...

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Kettlewell

Kettlewell, in Upper Wharfedale, is one of the most charming villages in the Yorkshire Dales. It featured as 'Knapely' in the film Calendar Girls. The population is about 340 (including Starbotton; 2010 figures).

The name Kettlewell is thought to originate from the Anglo-Saxon Chetelewelle, meaning bubbling spring or stream. Kettlewell Beck runs through the village, before flowing into the Wharfe just to the west. 

A market was established in Kettlewell in the 1200s. From 1700 to 1880, there was lead mining, and a smelting mill here. More recently, the village has made its living from agriculture (with Swaledale sheep found in the area) and tourism. Kettlewell is on the route of the Dales Way, and sits below Great Whernside. There are deer in the area, but they are shy and rarely sighted.

There are some historic houses in the village, dating from the 1600s and 1700s. The church was built in 1820. Kettlewell is well-supplied with pubs - there are three: the Racehorses, the Blue Bell, and the King's Head (currently closed). There's also a Youth Hostel, which incorporates the Post Office. 

Kettlewell hosts a popular scarecrow festival in August each year.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Yorkshire Dales

The Yorkshire Dales National Park was established in 1954, and is an area of 680 square miles. It is a collection of river valleys and hills, which is part of the Pennines, but with almost all the rivers draining east towards the Vale of York. ('Dale' is a word that comes from the Germanic 'tal' or the Nordic 'dal').

The valleys are U- and V- shaped, due to the action of glaciers in the last ice age (the Devensian). The rock is largely carboniferous limestone, with some millstone grit in places. 

The scenery in the Yorkshire Dales is green upland pastures, grazed by sheep, and separated by dry stone walls. There are villages and hamlets, which have been there for a thousand years. Traditionally, they are close-knit and self-sufficient communities. 

Other elements of the landscape include meadows, where wild flowers and herbs grow; heather moorland, used for grouse shooting; and the remains of lead mines and lime kilns.  

As well as the 20,000 residents, there are 8 million visitors to the Yorkshire Dales each year. People come to enjoy the landscape by car, to wander around the villages, and for hiking. There's a long-distance footpath, the Dales Way; and the Pennine Way also crosses the Dales. Other leisure activities include cycling and potholing. 

One of the historic buildings in the Dales is Bolton Castle. 

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Aysgarth & AysgarthFalls

Aysgarth is a village of 178 people (2011 census). 

The name comes from the Old Norse eiki (oak) and skaro (open space), so means something like oak trees in an open space. At the time of the Norman invasion, the manor was held by Cnut (presumably a Norseman). Thereafter, Alan of Brittany was the owner. In the Domesday Book, it is referred to as Echescard.

Aysgarth is famous for Aysgarth Falls, which featured in the film 'Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves'. There are three flights of falls in the one mile stertch of the river Ure near Aysgarth - High Force, west of the village, Middle Force, just east of it, and Lower Force, a little further east. They are broad, rather than very high. There's a nature trail through the woods (Freeholders' Wood and St Josephs Wood).

The rock here is part of the Yoredale geological series , laid down on the sea bed 300 million years ago. It is hard limestone, with thin bands of soft shale. During the last Ice Age, the glaciers in Bishopdale ground deeper than those in Wensleydale. After the glaciers melted, this meant that the river Ure had to drop to meet up with Bishopdale Beck.

In Aysgarth itself, the church of St Andrews (rebuilt 1536) is an impressive building, which contains a rood screen dating from the 1500s, probably from Jervaulx. (Jervaulx was affected by the Dissolution of the Monasteries, 1536-41). 

Aysgarth also hosts the Yorkshire Carriage Museum, in an old water mill, with a large collection of horse-drawn carriages.

Aysgarth used to be on the North Eastern Railway until 1954. The Wensleydale Railway , which uses this line, may eventually be extended to Aysgarth. 

Accommodation includes the Aysgarth Falls Hotel , and the George & Dragon Inn .

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Wensleydale

Wensleydale is amongst the best-known of the Yorkshire Dales, because of Wensleydale cheese. 

Its old name, Yoredale, comes from name of the river, the Ure; but its present name comes from the village of Wensley, formerly the valley's market town. The name Wensley, in turn, comes from the pagan god Woden's ley, or meadow. 

Other villages in this Dale include Castle Bolton, where Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned in Bolton Castle, Aysgarth , Bainbridge, and Hawes.

Bainbridge is where the shortest river in England (the river Bain, which runs out of Semer Water) meets the river Ure. The remains of a Roman fort are just to the east of the village. 

In Norman times, the area was dense forest, and a number of villagers worked as foresters. Each evening, the Bainbridge hornblower would sound the horn, to guide foresters and travellers back to the village. The horn now hangs in the Rose & Crown , and it's sounded at 10pm from 27th September until Shrove Tuesday.

The main town in Wensleydale today is Hawes. (The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon haus ).

Hawes is the home of Wensleydale cheese , Wallace's favourite in Wallace and Gromit. You can find out about it by visiting the Wensleydale Creamery Visitor Centre in Hawes, which has a cheese-making museum (where you can see traditional cheese-making in action, and watch clips of Wallace & Gromit films), coffee shop, restaurant, and cheese shop. 

Hawes was also a rope-making village, and at the Hawes Ropemakers , you can see traditional ropemaking in progress. Outhwaites still make ropes commercially. 

The old railway station in Hawes is home to the Dales Countryside museum , which includes a National Park Information Centre, and displays on the Dales way of life and traditions - with themes including lead-mining, farming, peat-cutting, and knitting. 

Hardraw Force & Butter Tubs pass

North of Hawes is Hardraw Force, the highest above-ground waterfall in England. To visit, you have to go through the bar of the Green Dragon Inn, and pay a small entrance fee. Like Aysgarth, these falls were used as a location in 'Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves.' 

Beyond Hardraw is Buttertubs pass , which goes up and over to Swaledale. The pass gets its name from a group of fluted limestone potholes 20m deep, which are known as 'buttertubs' - possibly because farmers would rest there on their way to market, and during hot weather, lower the butter they had produced into the potholes to keep it cool.

The Wensleydale railway

The Wensleydale railway is a heritage steam railway, which runs from Leeming Bar to Redmire, a distance of 16 miles. Eventually, they plan to run trains further west, to Castle Bolton, Aysgarth, Hawes, and Garsdale.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Swaledale

Swaledale is the nothernmost Dale in the National Park, named after its river, the Swale. It's known for the relics of its lead-mining industry, its field barns, or laithes , and stark beauty of its landscapes. The rock here is limestone, and the valley was formed by glacial action in the last ice age.

Near the head of the valley is the village of Keld, where accommodation includes Keld Lodge . As well as the B6270, footpaths link all the villages down the valley, from Keld, via Thwaite, Muker, Satron, Gunnerside, Low Row, Feetham, and Healaugh, to Reeth. 

Swaledale has its own breed of sheep, the Swaledale, which has off-white wool and rounded horns. They are hardy sheep, well-suited to exposed regions. They are bred for their meat, and for their wool, though it is coarse and mainly used for carpets and insulation. Swaledale cheese used to be made from ewes' milk, but is now made from cows' milk.

Swaledale attracts tourists, but not in such numbers as Wharfedale. Keld is the crossing point of the Pennine Way and the Coast to Coast path, so many walkers visit. In May and June each year, people come to the Dale for the Swaledale Festival , with classical, jazz and folk music on the programme, as well as walks.

Muker and Gunnerside

The pub in the village of Muker is The Farmer's Arms . Near Gunnerside are many old lead mines, especially around Gunnerside Gill , and a leaflet for a walk around them is available from the Post Office. 

Reeth , which was noted in the Domesday Book, is Swaledale's main village, with a population of just under a thousand people. It is set around a triangular green, and is home to the Swaledale Museum . North-west of Reeth, up Arkengarthdale, is Britain's highest pub, the Tan Hill Inn . It was originally built to serve coal miners, producing coal for the lead mines and smelting mills of the valley. 

Just beyond Reeth, on the other side of the river, is Grinton. The church there, dedicated to St Andrew, dates from the 1400s, with fragments left of the Norman church (late 1100s). It's sometimes known as 'the Cathedral of the Dales'. Before the church was built at Muker, it was the only church in the Dale, and the bodies of the dead were carried down the footpath from as far as Keld, 16 miles away. The path became known as 'Corpse Way'. They used wicker coffins, to lighten the load for the pall-bearers, and there are still long, flat rocks along the way, known as coffin stones, where they could pause and rest.

The Bridge Inn, Grinton , is a C15th coaching inn which is popular with walkers, and has folk and blues music on Thursday evenings. (If you play an instrument, you're welcome to bring it along).

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Leyburn

Leyburn is a market town with a population of 2,183. It's name is ley (meaning clearing) burn (stream).

It has a large market square, and Friday is market day. There is also a monthly farmers' market. 

Leyburn hosts the Dales Festival of Food and Drink (May Bank Holiday), and the Wensleydale Agricultural Show (end of August).

Many of the walks from Leyburn begin on Leyburn Shawl, a wooded escarpment to the west of the town, said to be named after a shawl dropped here by Mary Queen of Scots, as she tried to escape from Bolton Castle.

Leyburn has a station on the Wensleydale railway .

The Tottenham Hotspur and England footballer Michael Dawson comes from Leyburn.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Middleham

'Ham' means village, so Middleham is the middle village. 

It has been settled since Roman times: after the 9th Legion conquered York in 69AD, they built the Great North Road, and a branch of it went via Middleham to Bainbridge. There was a Roman guard station near Middleham, to control traffic on the river Ure. 

After the Norman Conquest, it was given to Alan Rufus, William the Conqueror's nephew. He built a wooden motte and bailey castle, and its earthworks can still be seen on William's Hill, immediately south of Middleham. The present castle was begun in 1190. Middleham was referred to as 'Medelai' in the Domesday Book.

In 1389, the lord of Middleham manor got royal permission for a weekly market and an annual fair. 

By 1462, the castle belonged to Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick (known as the Kingmaker), and in that year, Richard - the future king Richard III - came to learn the skills of knighthood. He met Neville's daughter, Anne, here, and married her in 1472. (Richard III died at the Battle of Bosworth Field - the last English king to die in battle. His remains have recently been discovered ).

The castle was dismantled in 1646, but significant ruins remain. 

Horse racing

Middleham has been known for horse race training since Isaac Cape set up here in 1765. Racing is the number one employer, and there is a Middleham Trainers' Association . Trainers in Middleham include Mark Johnston and James Bethell .

The Middleham Jewel

The Middleham Jewel was discovered in 1985 by a metal detector-ist. It is a gold pendant with a sapphire stone from the late 1400s, which is now displayed in the Yorkshire museum in York.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Jervaulx Abbey

Jervaulx was one of the great Cistercian Abbeys of Yorkshire. The Abbey was founded in 1145 by Peter Quintain, a monk from Savigny in France, on land near Askrigg in Wensleydale granted by the Earl of Richmond. (It was called the Abbey of Fors, and the village on that site is now called Grange). It moved to the present site near East Witton in 1156.

Jervaulx, previously Jorvalle, means Ure Valley. The monastery thrived here, and at its height, owned a great deal of land. The monks bred horses, and made Wensleydale cheese.

Since 1971, it has been owned by the Burdon family. When the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission inspected the site in 1982, they awarded it the dubious honour of 'most dangerous place in the UK.' It was restored and made safe between 1984 and 2000.

There is parking, tea rooms, luxury accommodation, and they put on events.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Masham

Masham has a population of 1,205 (2011 census). Its name is Anglo-Saxon in origin, coming from Maessa's Ham, meaning homestead or village belonging to Maessa. 

A settlement was built here by the Angles, probably because the site is close to the river Ure, but rises just high enough above it to be safe from flooding. It is also on the old Roman road from York to Wensleydale. (Signs of a Roman presence, likely a marching camp, have been found at Roomer Common).

In about 900AD, Vikings invaded, and destroyed the church at Masham. The present church has the stump of a prayer cross from the 700s, but most of the structure is Norman, with some additions from the C15th. It was the Vikings who introduced sheep to the region.

The most striking feature of Masham is its very big market place. The town was granted a charter for a market in 1250, and the market place needed to be large to accommodate the many sheep brought here by the monks of Jervaulx and Fountains Abbeys. There's a market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Masham is known for it breweries - Theakstons and Black Sheep . The Theakson family had brewed Theakstons beer in Masham for six generations, but it was taken over by Scottish & Newcastle. Rather than work for a multi-national, Paul Theakston set up a new brewery in an old building (the former premises of Lightfoot's brewery) in Masham, and the Black Sheep Brewery was born in 1992. Black Sheep is available in many of the pubs in and around Masham. The brewery also has a visitor centre. 

The Theakston family regained control of Theakstons in 2003, and this brewery also has a visitor centre. Their best known beer is Old Peculiar.

Events in Masham include the Steam Engine & Fair Organ Rally, and the bi-anual Arts Festival .

Some of the route of Stage One is covered by this Daily Telegraph article, 'Great British Drives: Harrogate to Masham' , which includes a mention of a visit to the Black Sheep Brewery and the White Bear Hotel.

Masham is planning to turn the weekend of the Tour into a big event/celebration. There'll be a big screen on the recreation ground, entertainment for kids, French wine and local beer, food stalls, live music, fireworks, and more. Read about the events in Masham over the Tour de France weekend .

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: West Tanfield

This is an ancient settlement, which was referred to as 'Tanefield' in the Domesday Book. 

The Marmion Tower is a historic feature of the village. Dating from the 1400s, it is a gatehouse which was part of a manor (which no longer exists) that once belonged to the Marmion family.

West Tanfield has set up a Tour de France website . They'll have camping for tents as well as space for camper vans and caravans. There'll also be parking. The Harrogate Advertiser quotes David Powell of the West Tanfield Tour de France Committee as follows, 'We expect substantial traffic directed here from the A1. We have organised 60 acres of parking to accommodate this and invested some of our fundraising into marshalling, security and other facilities.'

There'll be a market area, food outlets, stalls, and big screens. Entertainment will be put on on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The Pennine Brewery in Well is main sponsor. Money raised will go to the local community.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: North Stainley

North Stainley is a charming village of 518 people. There's accommodation at The Old Coach House , and Lightwater Valley Theme Park and Bird of Prey centre are very close by.

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Ripon

Ripon is said to be the 4th smallest city in England, with a population of 16,702 (2011 census). It is at the confluence of the rivers Laver, Skell, and Ure.

There was no known Roman presence at Ripon (the nearest military camp being at North Stainley). Ripon was founded by St Wilfrid during the Angle kingdom of Northumbria, around 658AD, at the time that he brought craftsmen from the continent to build the church of St Peter. The settlement was then known as Inhrypum.

The area was under Viking rule for a time. Following the Norman invasion, there was a rebellion in the north in 1069, which was suppressed ('the Harrying of the North'). Ripon suffered at this time, and its population was reduced.

In the 1100s, Ripon developed a wool trade, selling to Florentine merchants, and in the 1300s, it began making and selling cloth. In the 1500s and 1600s, Ripon became a specialist in spurs - hence the expression, 'as true steel as Ripon rowells.'

Ripon Hornblower

During the time of Edward I and Edward II (1200s and 1300s), there were incursions by invaders from Scotland, and Ripon had a wakeman, who was responsible for the safety of the city, and enforcing a curfew. (Nevertheless, Ripon had to pay a sum of money to the Scots on one occasion to prevent them burning the city).

The tradition of the wakeman lives on in the Ripon Hornblower . At 9pm, a horn is blown from the four corners of the obelisk on market square, in a ceremony known as 'setting the watch.' (It is claimed that this has happened every evening since 886AD). 

Ripon Cathedral

The crypt of Ripon Cathedral dates from the mid-600s, when the first stone church was built here (dedicated to St Peter in 672AD). St Wilfrid was responsible for the first church, and he is interred in a tomb in the Cathedral. (He is also celebrated in the annual St Wilfrid's procession ).

Subsequent churches were destroyed by the English king in 948, and during the Harrying of the North in 1069. Much of the present structure was built in the 1100s under Roger de Pont l' Eveque, but the Early English west front dates from the 1200s, and the nave was rebuilt in the 1500s and 1600s in Perpendicular style. It became a Cathedral in 1836.

Ripon's attractions

There has been racing in Ripon since 1664, but the current racecourse dates from 1900.

Close to Ripon are Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal water garden and deer park.

Read about preparations for the race in Ripon, and the events planned for the Tour de France in Ripon .

Stage 1, Tour de France 2014: Frequently Asked Questions

What time does stage 1 of the tour de france 2014 arrive in otley.

The riders are due in Otley between 12.12 and 12.13 on Saturday 5th July 2014. The publicity caravan will begin passing through about 2 hours earlier. See all the timings for Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 .

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Addingham?

The riders are due in Addingham between 12.33 and 12.36, depending on their average speed.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Skipton?

The riders will arrive  in Skipton at 12.47 (based on an average speed of 44kmh), or at 12.49 or 12.52 (on the basis of two slightly slower average speeds).

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Kettlewell?

The riders will arrive in Kettlewell between 13.20 and 13.28, according to the Tour de France organisers' estimated timings .

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive at Kidstones Pass (the Cray climb)?

The race arrives at Kidstones Pass between 13.32 and 13.41.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Aysgarth?

The riders will arrive in Aysgarth between 13.53 and 14.04, depending on their average speed.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Hawes?

The Tour de France arrives in Hawes between 14.13 and 14.27.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive at Buttertubs pass?

The race arrives at Buttertubs pass between 14.22 and 14.36.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Reeth?

The riders will arrive in Reeth between 14.50 and 15.07, depending on their average speed.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive at the Grinton Moor climb?

The Tour de France arrives at the Grinton Moor climb between 14.57 and 15.15.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Leyburn?

The race arrives in Leyburn between 15.07 and 15.26.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Masham?

The riders will arrive in Masham between 15.31 and 15.53, depending on their average speed.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in West Tanfield?

The Tour de France arrives in West Tanfield between 15.40 and 16.02.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Ripon?

The race arrives in Ripon between 15.51 and 16.14.

What time does Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 arrive in Harrogate?

The riders are projected to enter Harrogate between 16.17 and 16.42, and get to the finish line between 16.20 and 16.46. See the full timings for Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014 .

Where are the spectator hubs on Stage 1 of the Tour de France 2014?

We have a complete list of the locations of the official spectator hubs on Stages 1 and 2 of the Tour de France 2014 in Yorkshire .

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Tour de France 2014 route and map: Leeds to Harrogate in Stage 1

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The 2014 Tour de France opens on Sunday in England, with the first stage beginning in Leeds and ending in Harrogate. The first three stages of the 21-stage, 23-day premiere event in cycling are all in England, the first time the Tour de France has had more than two stages in the United Kingdom.

The "Grand Start," as the first three stages through England are referred, covers an area of roughly 15,000 square kilometers and will see stops in Leeds, Harrogate, York, Sheffield, Cambridge and London.

Stage 1, from Leeds to Harrogate, runs 190.5 klilometers, or roughly 118 miles, and is considered a relative flat stage of the three-week event. It starts at 6 a.m. ET, with coverage on NBC Sports Network and NBC on Sunday. Harrogate is no stranger to cycling, a common stage city of the Tour of Britain.

Mark Cavendish, with 25 stage wins to his credit, is called the favorite to wear the yellow jersey after Stage 1 by The Telegraph , which also provided this video flyover of the 190.5 kilometers from Leeds to Harrogate:

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Tour De France 2014 Stage 1 Preview

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We preview the route of Stage 1 of the 2014 Tour de France in Yorkshire. For more on the Tour, subscribe: http://gcn.eu/SubscribeToGCN

Daniel and Matt went up to Yorkshire to check out the route for Stage 1 of the Tour de France. The stage, from Leeds to Harrogate, features three categorised climbs and exposed sections on the beautiful Yorkshire Moors.

It's down as a bunch sprint, but we reckon the course will throw out some surprises.

Take a closer look at the route with Matt and Daniel, and let us know how you think it'll turn out!

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Tour de France 2014 as it happened: Leeds to Harrogate

Marcel Kittel won the opening stage, while a crash on the run-in may have ended Mark Cavendish's Tour

• William Fotheringham's stage-by-stage guide
• Tour de France interactive: Route map and stage profiles

That's all from me for today ...

Marcel Kittel is in yellow, Mark Cavendish is gone to hospital for an x-ray on what looks like a broken collar bone and hun dreds of thousands of other people in Yorkshiure have had a far more pleasant day. Sean INgle and William Fotheringham will be reporting from Harrogate over the next couple of hours, so stay tuned for their updates and treat yourself to a copy of The Observer tomorrow, for a nice leisurely read over breakfast. Thanks for your company and have a great weekend.

Top 10 on General Classification after Stage One

1. Marcel Kittel (Germany/Giant) 4hr 44min 07sec

2. Peter Sagan (Slovakia/Cannondale) ST

3. Ramunas Navardauskas (Lithuania/Garmin)

4. Bryan Coquard (France/Europcar)

5. Michael Rogers (Australia/Tinkoff - Saxo)

6. Chris Froome (Britain/Team Sky)

7. Alexander Kristoff (Norway/Katusha)

8. Sep Vanmarcke (Belgium/Belkin)

9. Jose Joaquin Rojas (Spain/Movistar)

10. Michael Albasini (Switzerland/Orica)

An email from James Cavell

Our resident expert is here with his first strident opinion of the summer. "Cavendish looks to have totally failed to handle the pressure and stress of home expectations," he says. "That looked to be some totally unacceptable butting and jostling with Gerrans. There is minor contact often in sprints, but it's generally frowned upon to lean into opponents with the shoulder or use the helmet. It wouldn't surprise me if the jury issue some sort of infraction for that stunt. Pretty poor show, really."

Kate does the honours again

Having snipped the ceremonial ribbon earlier, the Duchess of Cambridge helps Marcel Kittel into his yellow jersey as Harry and William look on from the side. A few moments later, William helps him into the green jersey. Presumably Jens Voigt will be helped into the polka dot jersey by Prince Harry.

I've just seen the head-on of that crash and it certainly seemed that Cavendish got a little up close and personal with Gerrans, but he certainly didn't headbutt him. A push into Gerrans' shoulder with his head/helmet? Certainly. A headbutt? Emphatically not. Away from the crash, it briefly looked as if Fabian Cancellara might nick the stage, when he made his move with 1,200 metres to go, but in the end it was Kittel who prevailed by about a bike-length from Peter Sagan. Cancellara finished 12th in the end, while defending champion Chris Froome was sixth, no less.

More on that Cavendish v Gerrans stramesh

The pair seemed to be having quite a frank exchange of views and shoulders as they jockeyed for position on the run-in. On Twitter, it's been suggested there may even have been a headbutt or two, but I'll need to see it again before giving a definitive verdict.

Kittel wins and Cavendish is in trouble

The Giant Shimano sprint specialist sprints his way into the yellow jersey ahead of Peter Sagan and Ramunas Navardaskaus. Having received medical attention, a rather distraught looking Mark Cavendish gets back on his bike and cycles slowly over the line holding his handlebars with his left hand, while holding his right arm in the manner of a man who might have done a mischief to his collar bone. He came down in a crash after a jostling match with Orica-Greenedge rider Simon Gerrans on the run-in. That was a nasty crash, with both men hitting the deck very, very hard.

Marcel Kittel wins!!!

The German sprinter wins the stage! Mark Cavendish was brought down in a pile-up on the run-in and is lying on the ground holding his shoulder. Hopefully he's OK.

One kilometre to go

On the earlier slopes of the climb to the finish, there's grimaces all round as the riders dig deep. Fabian Cancellara jumps off the front under the one kilometre to go banner and tries to nick the stage! Can he hold on?!?!?!

Two kilometres to go

Tony Martin continues to time-trial the Omega Pharma-Quick Step through Harrogate to the finish.

Three kilometres to go

Omega Pharma-Quick Step continue to lead, with five riders ahead of Mark Cavendish in their train. Behind them, Peter Sagan is hoping to piggy-back their train, while Giant-Shimano are attempting to make up ground.

Four kilometres to go

Andre Greipel's Lotto Belisol team continue to make the pace on one side of the road, with Katusha on the other. OMega Pharma-Quick Step take advantage of the gap and zoom through to fill it and take up the lead.

Seven kilometres to go

Andre Greipel, one of the favourites for today's stage, appears at the front of the bunch. Omega Pharma-Quick Step's riders are bunched together in behind the peloton leaders.

10 kilometres to go

The riders pass under the 10 kilometres to go banner. Andre Greipel's Lotto Belisol team, Mark Cavendish's Omega Pharma-Quick Step team and Marcel Kittel's Giant-Shimano team are first and foremost in the bunch, with various members of Peter Sagan's Cannondale team also prominent.

12 kilometres to go

No really, that's what he said. He goes on to add that "When you have so many riders together and so many teams, there's only so much room so hopefully they'll all get through." Marcel Kittel's Giant-Shimano team are visibly getting their ducks in a row, but are they setting up their train for Kittel or or John Degenkolb?

14 kilometres to go

The road is wide and at the front of the peloton "it's simmering to the boil-over", says Sean Kelly on Eurosport.

20 kilometres to go

A couple of riders take a bad line and ride into a crash barrier in a village near - I think - Ripon. It's nothing serious, but they hold up some of the peloton behind them and towards the front, the speed picks up and various teams start jockeying for position. Belkin rider Lars Boom was one of the rideers to crash and he drops back to the medical car to get treatment for a graze and, more importantly, a tow back to the bunch.

23 kilometres to go

As you were. The peloton rolls over a giant "SLOW" painted on the road in white paint. They don't seem to realise it's for the attention of motorists and isn't supposed to apply to them. An attempted breakaway might liven things up here.

25 kilometres to go

The peloton continues to roll along at half-gas, with Lotto Belisol and Saxo Tinkoff controlling the pace. In a few kilometres time, the teams of the assorted sprinters will begin the process of getting their lead-out trains. The ridersw will have to negotiate two roundabouts about five kilometres from home, then a third about two kilometres out. The profile of the route through Harrogate to the finish line is up-and-down, with a serious of dips and ramps that could make life difficult for sprinters who prefer their finishes to be pancake flat.

David Cameron is here

The camera cuts to the finish line in Harrogate, where his boss David Cameron is seated at the finish of today's stage. The prime minister's advisors have told their man to go with the "Casual Dave" look today and has removed his tie.

39 kilometres to go

The peloton is cruising along at a reasonably leisurely 40 kilometres per hour, which means they'll be hitting Harrogate within ... minute-by-minute reporter counts on fingers ... the hour. Most of the stragglers who got dropped on Buttertubs have rejoined the peloton, but a few including Alessandro Petacchi (OPQS) and Sacha Modolo (Lampre) are still struggling to catch up.

An email from our cycling correspondent

"If you are wondering why there are no cars or campers parked up, two things," writes William Fotheringham. "We saw a lot of signs on Sunday's route saying no parking on the verge ... also this morning, driving off the course to the press room, we saw dozens of people walking a long way (three miles at least) down a road (again no parking allowed) from a spectator car park. The idea, it seems, is to keep cars away from the course to avoid mega congestion around the race. If you're feeling kind, plug me twitter feed. Occasional nuggets; some accurate."

Consider it plugged, Fothers.

French television have realised this stage is "more complicated than it looked on paper". should have asked @chrishoy like we did :-) — William Fotheringham (@willfoth) July 5, 2014

45 kilomtres to go

The peloton snakes past St John the Baptist church in East Witton, with all in it pedaling at a fairly sedate pace. As if sensing that we're all very worried about them, the riders of Mark Cavendish's Omega Pharma-Quick Step team hove into view at the front of the bunch.

51 kilometres to go

Lotto Belisol continue to do the hard work at the front of the bunch, pushing the pace in the hope of making it difficult for Andre Greipel's riders. On Eursport, Sean Kelly is talking ab out how neither Mark Cavendish nor his Omega Pharma-Quick Step team have been prominent in the bunch, aslthough there is a suggestion that his team-mate Alessandro Petacchi was dropped on the last climb. The bunch have moved from the narrow roads of the dales and are now on wider roads, which ought to enable the bunch of riders who were shelled to get back in touch with the peloton.

Jens Voigt has been caught

Sterling work at the front of the peloton by the riders from Lotto Belisol means that Jens Voigt's solo adventure is over for today. With 55.4 kilometres to go, the riders are on the run for home.

61 kilometres to go

Sorry about that pause in transmission. Crazy Jens's lead is down to just over a minute as he heads for the top of the third climb of the day, the Côte de Griton Moor. He'll wear the polka dot jersey tomorrow, assuming he finishes today. He certainly won't be winning the stage and is well aware the jig is up. He'll sit up, have some food and drink and wait until they reel him in.

70 kilometres to go

Jens Voigt continues to lead the peloton by 2min 58sec. Behind the bunch, a number of riders were dropped on the climb up Buttertubs and have lost almost a minute on the bunch already. Thibaut Pinot (FDJ), Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) and Dani Navarro (Cofidis) are among the biggish names who are struggling on day one of the Tour.

Apologies, but I'm going to selfishly abandon my post briefly to dash downstairs and grab a sandwich and a cup of tea. In my absence, here's another video from the Global Cycling Network, in which they spend the day with Alberto Contador and his Saxo Tinkoff team.

74 kilometres to go

Eurosport's commentary team report that they've been told by people from Jens Voigt's Trek team that the German has every intention of going for the stage win this afternoon. He has another climb, Le Côte de Griton Moor, to negotiate in about 10 kilometres time and then it's 60 kilometres to Harrogate. He leads by 3min 11sec.

Housekeeping: Second climb

Jens Voigt was first over Buttertubs and was followed by Nicolas Edert, who wins a point for his trouble. Further back, Benoit Jarrier has been swallowed by the peloton and the same fate awaits Edert, who has accepted his fate and given up the ghost. The gap between Voigt and the bunch, which is being led by the riders of Lotto Belisol, is 3min 41sec and there are just over 76 kilomtres to go.

Housekeeping: Intermediate sprint result

1. Jens Voigt (Trek): 20 points

2. Nicolas Edet (Cofidis): 17

3. Benoît Jarrier (Bretagne-Séché ): 15

4. Bryan Coquard (Europcar): 13

5. André Greipel (Lotto): 11

6. Peter Sagan (Cannondale): 10

7. Mark Cavendish (OPQS): 9

8. Kevin Reza (Europcar): 8

9. Alessandro Petacchi (OPQS): 7

10. Maciej Bodnar (Cannondale): 6

11. Elia Viviani (Cannondale): 5

12. Fabio Sabatini (Cannondale): 4

13. Jurgen Roelandts (Lotto): 3

14. Greg Henderson (Lotto): 2

15. Lars Bak (Lotto): 1

87 kilometres to go

Jens Voigt crosses the summit of Buttertubs and hoovers up the two points on offer for King of the Mountains. He's 3min 25sec ahead of his former escape partners and 4min 33sec clear of the peloton. Interestingly, the road is so narrow and the throng of people lining it so vast, that the peloton keeps having to stop as a result of bottleneck induced traffic congestion.

89 km to go

Jens Voigt continues to make his way up Buttertubs, where there is a quite phenomenal crowd of people roaring encouragement. The number of people that has turned out is quite astonishing - hats off to every single one of them. One strange thing, though - while there are quite a few bikes visible on the roadside, there doesn't seem to be any cars or camper vans parked anywhere nearby. How the hell did everyone get there?

Cannondale move to the front of the peloton

Peter Sagen's team-mates move towards the front of the peloton to do a turn, hopeful that the ramp near the finish of today's stage might catch out some of the sprinters and suit their man better. Giant-Shimano rider John Degenkolb is another man who might be suited by today's stage finish and I've had a nibble on him at 33-1. Of course, chances are that the sprinters such as Marcel Kittel, Andre Greipel and Mark Cavendish, whose mum hails from Harrogate, will duke it out for the honour of wearing the yellow jersey tomorrow. Their team-mates will need to reel in Voigt first, mind.

92 kilometres to go

Jens Voigt, who is 42, continues to put the hammer down as he extends his lead over the chasing duo - Benoit Jarrier and Nicolas Edet - to 2min 53sec. He's 5min 03sec clear of the peloton and just over four kilomtres away from the top of the Côte de Buttertubs, where he'll earn himself two King of the Mountains points.

99 kilometres to go

The riders have passed through the feeding station and Jens Voigt's face is a mask of concentration as he increases the gap between himself and Benoit Jarrier and Nicolas Edet to a minute. He leads the peloton by a little over five minutes and they'll be aware that their German colleague has a lot of "previous" in the field of nicking stages like this.

"It's hard to follow the Tour from a moving train to London, so thanks for the updates," writes Joel Down. " But I do know what's happening in Voigt's head ."

I commentated on cycling for over a decade and I have never seen crowds like this. Cycling is the new national sport. Long may it remain so — david harmon (@spokesmen) July 5, 2014

103 kilometres go

Riding in his final Tour de France , Jens Voigt has opened a 30 second lead on Benoit Jarrier and Nicolas Edet, who are in turn 4min 30sec ahead of the peloton. I don't think anyone would begrudge Voigt a victory today, but he would probably increase his chances of victory later this afternoon if he stopped waving at various spectators shouting encouragement from the roadside.

An email from Andy Bradshaw

"Funny how head of Guardian Online sport has managed to get himself a cushy assignment in a tea/cake shop at Le Tour," he says of Sean Ingle. "The people of Yorkshire (and the rest of the country if all the people I know who have gone) have done themselves proud. Although I'm not sure whether they're just going because it's not the usual the men in a bathtub that's the norm for around there."

Here you go, Andy. Just for you ...

The scenery in that video is incredible

I missed that first time around, but it really is well worth a look. The two lads certainly earned their mugs of tea, cake and cheese. Meanwhile back in the first stage, the peloton has just contested the intermediate sprint. Jens Voigt led the breakaway over the line and then did the dirty on his two fellow riders by refusing to slow down once he'd crossed the line, forcing them to give chase. Bryan Coquard (Europcar) was the first man from the peloton over the line in Newbiggn and was followed by Andre Greipel, Peter Sagan and Mark Cavendish.

An email from William Fotheringham

He's pinged me a missive to let me know that the riders are about to tackle the Buttertubs Pass, which he rode with knight of the realm and track speedster Sir Chris Hoy earlier this year. Here's the video ...

Approaching the summit of the first climb

The riders from Andre Greipel's Lotto Belisol team lead the chase at the front of peloton as Jens Voigt tows the two other members of his escape party up the first climb of the day, the Côte de Cray. There's one King of the Mountains point up for grabs and it's taken by Benoit Jarrier, who's riding in his first Tour for the Bretagne-Séché team, who are a wild card entry in this year's Tour. He beats his compatriot Nicolas Edert over the top of the hill. Both sides of the road are so packed with spectators that the pair were barely able to race.

My colleague Sean Ingle is in Harrogate

Himself and William Fotheringham are stuffing their faces with cake as they wait for the riders to arrive in town late this afternoon. It's dirty work, but I suppose somebody's got to do it ...

Meanwhile the famous Betty's tea shop is 200m from the finish of stage one. Have bought @willfoth a fat rascal ... pic.twitter.com/piosU8ZpjM — Sean Ingle (@seaningle) July 5, 2014

Finish to stage one of @letour in Harrogate steeper than expected. Big ramp from 450m to 250m. Harder for Cav to win? pic.twitter.com/IYNzTS6Uju — Sean Ingle (@seaningle) July 5, 2014

131 kilometres to go

Back to the business in hand and the gap between the breakaway group of Jens Voigt, Nicolas Edet and Benoit Jarrier and the chasing peloton is 3min 21sec. Our leaders have just cycled past a field in which a flock of sheep, who have all been dyed bright yellow for the day that's in it, while there have been a couple of minor crashes at the back of the bunch as the roads get more narrow.

What could possibly go wrong?

Michael raises an interesting point about Kate, Duchess of Cambridgeshire, presenting the yellow jersey to today's stage winner. I was thinking about this last night and couldn't help but wonder what the Queen, whose relationship with her grand-daughter in law is rumoured to be strained at the best of times, makes of this new role as a Tour de France podium girl. I'm also curious to know if there'll be any breaches of royal protocol, considering it's quite possible that force of habit might prompt a sweaty Andre Greipel, Mark Cavendish or Marcel Kittel to give her the traditional kiss on each cheek when she zips them into the jersey. Heaven forbid that Peter Sagan might win today's stage. I should add that the Slovak rider subsequently issued a grovelling apology for his faux pas at the Tour of Flanders.

An email from Michael Cosgrove

"Hello from France, where Le Figaro has offered its readership 10 good reasons to watch the Tour today," he says. "They include a) France are out of the World Cup so why bother watching it any more, b) You can learn new French cycling vocab such as, translated into English, pedaling with your ears, riding on a potato hunt (??!!), and doing a jackal, c) Kate Middleton is there to present today's yellow jersey, d) Tour de France riders don't get cramps in less than 90 minutes, as is the case for footballers in Brazil, they can stick it out for eight hours in the blazing sun, and e) If you are on the roadside you can get free publicity trinkets such as baseball caps and key rings. Add to that the fact that cycling is one of the few major sports that you don't have to pay to watch on TV and what's not to like?"

The best and worst things about being a professional cyclist?

Look at the state of him.

Peter Sagan, the bonkers Cannondale rider is sporting quite the bouffant for this year's Tour, which he describes as his "Wolverine haircut". ITV have just broadcast an interview with him in which he says he hopes it brings him luck. It'll probably cushion the blow if he's unlucky enough to fall off the bike and land on his head, but I'm not sure how it'll cope within the confines of his helmet for several hours each day. Here, in case you haven't seen it before, is Mr Wolverine parking his bike on the roof of a car.

147km to go

The riders leave Skipton, which I vaguely remember featuring prominently in All Creatures Great And Small, one of several excellent books written by James Herriott, a Scottish vet who spent his working life in Yorkshire. There are 147 kilometres go and Giant-Shimano continue to tow the peloton along as they keep the gap between them and the three-man breakaway to a respectable 3min 11sec.

A former colleague writes

"Some Tour pics from your ancient colleague Martin Wainright, now lazing in the sunshine in Leeds," writes my ancient colleague Martin Wainright, who has an MBE and was probably invited to help Kate snip the official Tour ribbon at Harewood House. Martin adds that this photo was "sent from my iPad Mini, a generous gift from my dear departed colleagues at The Guardian for which I am most grateful."

162km to go

The gap between the three-man escape party and the peloton has judged edge over the three-minute work. Voigt, Edet and Jarrier are 3min 09sec clear. Minor housekeeping: Orica-GreenEdge rider Michael Matthews was unable to start this morning as he was suffering from an injury to his arm. He's been replaced by Christian Meier. Mathews had a bad fall in training earlier this week ahead of what was supposed to be his Tour debut and suffered some bad cuts to his hands, arms and shoulder.

Meet the "breakaway killer"

Presumably unsure quite what to make of today's stage, the peloton is keeping an eye on the breakaway, with Giant-Shimano making the pace at the front of the bunch in order to ensure the breakaway trio don't open too much of a gap. Apparently tireless Chinese rider Cheng Ji, the first man from his country to compete in the Tour, is their ace in the hole when it comes to pace-making. Known as the "breakaway killer", his speciality is towing the bunch along for long periods

175 kilometres to go

With the riders making their way out of Otley, a group of three riders has broken away from the chasing peloton. It will come as no surprise to veteran Tour-watchers to learn that crazy Jens Voigt , king of the rouleurs, is one of them. The oldest rider in the race at the age of 42 (42!), Voigt rides for Trek Factory Racing and has Benoit Jarrier (Bretagne-Seche) and Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) with him for company. They lead the bunch by 2min 22sec.

What you've missed so far

Not a huge amount, to be honest. A bit of pomp and ceremony, but very little racing. The riders set off from Leeds Town Hall and made their way to Harewood House in a ceremonial procession. There, they paused for ther playing of the national anthems of France and Great Britain and a fly-past by the Red Arrows, then Prince William, Kate and Harry chatted with a few of the riders before sending them on their way once again with a snip of the royal scissors to cut the ceremonial Tour de France ribbon.In a nice touch, the Tour organisers presented William and Kate with a tiny bespoke maillot jaune for their son George.

Stage one: Leeds to Harrogate (190.5km)

Today's stage takes in 190.5 kilometres across the Yorkshire Dales and features no end of verdant scenery, narrow roads flanked by stone walls and three big hills: Côte de Cray (category 4), Côte de Buttertubs (category 3) and Côte de Griton (category 3). A sprint finish looks likely and the winner of today's stage will begin tomorrow's second stage in York wearing the yellow jersey.

William Fotheringham's guide to Stage One

As in 2013, a simple road race stage starts the Tour rather than a prologue time trial. Buttertubs and Gritton Moor would test a club cyclist but by the standards of the Tour this is relatively flat, with a few long drags over the moors, but not enough to split the bunch, although rain and wind could make life unpleasant if the British summer is in Wimbledon form.

The script is for a bunch sprint won by Mark Cavendish in his mother’s home town, but Marcel Kittel could well get in his way as he did several times in 2013 and another German, André Greipel will be in the mix as well.

Global Cycling Network

As usual, our chums at the Global Cycling Network have invited us to jazz up our coverage with some of their excellent videos, the first of which is this preview of this year's Tour de France . Enjoy.

Bonjour! Welcome to our rolling report of Stage One of this year's Tour de France . This year's odyssey began in Yorkshire, with the riders congregating in Leeds for an 11am Grand Départ that was witnessed by ridiculously large crowds that looked to be lining the city's streets eight or nine deep in places. It's the first of 21 stages in a Tour being contested by 22 different teams of nine riders each.

That's 198 riders in total, with Sky's Chris Froome the even-money favourite to defend the title he won last year. Alberto Contador (15/8), Vincenzo Nibali (14/1), Alejandro Valverde (31/1), Andrew Talansky (37/1), Rui Costa (60/1) and Tejay Van Garderen (64/1) are the only riders priced up at less than 100/1 to beat him.

Profile and map of today's stage

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The Climbs and Finish of Stage 1 of the 2014 Tour de France

Other posts for Tour de France 2014: Climbs of Stage 2, Part 1  – Climbs of Stage 2, Part 2 –  Cote de Buttertubs –  Cote de Holme Moss  – Cote de Jenkin Road  – Strines .

There are mixed reports about how many categorised climbs there will be on stage 1, either just the 1 or maybe 2 , but there has been no official announcement that I know of to confirm this. So I’ve pulled together a profile for the stage based on the route map currently provided and it looks like there could even be 3:

Stage Fly Through

Download the kml file for this stage to view for yourself in Google Earth .

Chelker Reservoir

Elevation gain: 131 m

Maximum elevation: 221 m

Average gradient: 3.1 %

Maximum gradient: 8 %

Strava climb category: 4

View maps, graphs, photos and stats on A65 climb to Chelker Reservoir .

There is a drag out of Leeds up to Harewood but the first time you’ll be needing to get out of the saddle will be the pull up to Chelker Reservoir shortly after passing through Ilkley. Certainly never going to count as a categorised climb in the Tour but probably will act as a good warm up for the climbs ahead. If the 1st break of the Tour hasn’t already stuck then chances are this will offer a good springboard. I remember this climb purely because the wind farm at its summit was the first I ever saw back in 1992, apart from that it is mostly unremarkable.

Elevation gain: 185 m

Maximum elevation: 424 m

Average gradient: 6.3 %

Maximum Gradient: 16 %

Strava climb category: 3

View maps, graphs, photos and stats on Buckden to Kidstones .

So if anyone in the peloton thought the opening stage was a straight forward sprinters’ stage then this climb will certainly get a few of the heavier riders drifting back down the line. A mellow start but ever steepening to a fairly painful 16% near the summit. Slightly longer and steeper than Box Hill so should any teams want to start softening up the pure sprinters then this is a good place to begin. If the rumour is true and there are only 2 categorised climbs in this first stage then one of them will be a toss up between this climb and the final climb out of Grinton.

Buttertubs Pass

Elevation gain: 287 m

Maximum elevation: 526 m

Average gradient: 6.5 %

Maximum Gradient: 20 %

View detailed post on Buttertubs Pass .

View maps, graphs, photos and stats on Buttertubs Pass .

If the Kidstones climb didn’t register on the categorised climb radar then Buttertubs pass certainly will. With a short steep section midway up, this climb will have you hunting through your gears. The summit (at 526m it is the high point of the Tour whilst in the UK, just 2m higher than Holme Moss ) is eventually reached after a long, rolling, exposed crossing of the moor which I’ve not included in the profile or stats as it makes it look far less impressive! Read a detailed review about the Buttertubs Climb here .

Robin Cross Hill from Grinton

Elevation gain: 228 m

Maximum elevation: 420 m

Average gradient: 5.2 %

Maximum Gradient: 17 %

View maps, graphs, photos and stats on Robin Cross Hill from Grinton .

The other possible categorised climb of the stage and a climb I can’t find a proper name for (let me know in the Comments if you know what it is). Steeply leaving Grinton the road briefly levels before kicking up again onto Cogden Moor with the high point at Robin Cross Hill reached after the climb mellows. This is the last chance for any of the teams to drop the sprinters before descending right the way down to the impressive cathedral city of Ripon (although it is the 8th smallest city in the UK with just 16,000 residents) and the very slight rise back up to the finish in Harrogate . If you are riding the stage yourself then on reaching the summit give yourself a good pat on the back but remember to refuel, it’s still 60km to the finish.

The Harrogate Finish

This is my most speculative part of the route especially around the exact placement of the finish line. Stray FM (Harrogate’s local radio station) claim that the finish will be on The Stray which is 200 acres of park that wraps around the town centre. This is an obvious spot due to the great space it affords for the Tour’s village.

If this is the case and the race is entering Harrogate from Ripon to the north then the profile of last 6km will be something like this:

View graphs/stats/map/photos of the finish in Harrogate.

There will be 2 roundabouts at about 6 km (Ripley) to the finish and a final roundabout at 2 km to go. Apart from that the roads are as good as straight. There is however that 6% ramp with about 1 km to go but at around 600m in length it shouldn’t cause any upsets (fingers crossed… come on Cav!).

Please note: This finish in Harrogate will be going the wrong way up a one-way street. The segment I’ve created in order to display it on my site is just for illustrative purposes. Don’t go riding it!

Here is the route on Strava which allows you to sync the route to your GPS device for those people interested in riding it themselves. It might not be perfect but good enough.

Please let me know in the comments section (or @VeloViewer on Twitter ) if you spot any errors. The maximum gradients are a bit of a guess on a few of the climbs but should be there or thereabouts.

0 thoughts on “ The Climbs and Finish of Stage 1 of the 2014 Tour de France ”

Danny says:

Great work… Would love to see a similar post for stage 2.

Already in progress! 13 distinct climbs (in my opinion) on stage 2 so will spread it out over 2 or 3 posts. Friday’s are my TDF2014 blog days!

Martin GT says:

Thanks for this, a great article. Donation your way my man.

brilliant..

Darran Moore says:

Climb out of Grinton is Whipperdale Bank, descent is Herontree

LenoirLenoir says:

Great work. Just what I was looking for.

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Philip Mcshane says:

wow lot of work went into that

longshot356 says:

Just looked at the route. I live in Harrogate and can tell you the finish is a definite uphill. Sadly it looks much better suited to Sagan than it does to Cav 🙁

I know the pull up past Betty’s but would have thought momentum would get the likes of Cav and Kittel up that. I’ve wondered more about the short climb at around 1km to go. Certainly enough for some of the sprinters to loose their position in the leadout and to let some punchy rider try and make a break for it. Stage 2 has Sagan’s name all over it though!

Akira Seung says:

Guide to seeing the Tour de France in France, finding accommodation… More from http://www.tdf-tours.com

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Tour de France 2014

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Defending champion Chris Froome (Team Sky) will start, along with Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar). However there is no place for Team Sky's 2012 race winner Bradley Wiggins.

Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma QuickStep), Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and Marcel Kittel (Argos Shimano) are expected to fight it out for the green points jersey.

2015 Tour de France | 2013 Tour de France | 2012 Tour de France |  2011 Tour de France | 2010 Tour de France | Tour de France forum | Tour de France glossary | 2013 Tour de France route map | Video: 5 Key Climbs | Video: Top 5 climbers to watch | Video: Top 5 sprinters to watch | Video: 5 wildcards to watch | Provisional start list

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Tour de France 2014: Route

The 2014 Grand Depart is from Yorkshire, England, the first time the race has visited the UK since the tainted 2007 edition.

3 stages in England and then the caravan moves to France – the 4th stage is from the coastal town Le Touquet to Lille. Stage 5 then leaves the country again, starting in Belgium, in the town of Ypres. This is the highly anticipated stage to Porte du Hainat featuring a healthy serving of Paris-Roubaix’s famous cobbled sectors. Could Froome run into difficulty here?

The next day starts in Arras. Win the stage today and expect a good bottle of bubbly as the finish is in Reims, champagne capital of France. The next day’ s stage leaves champagne country and finishes in Nancy.

Heading in a southeastern direction, stage 8 goes from Tomblaine to Gérardmer and will see the first summit finish. The second is just two days  later at La Planche des Belles Filles, where Chris Froome won the stage and Bradley Wiggins took yellow in the 2012 race.

A couple of flat stage follow the rest day until the road kicks up again in stage 13, a 200 kilometre ride with a summit finish in Chamrousse.

Stage 14 follows up with another summit finish, this time on the never before used climb to Risoul. Stage 15 takes sees some respite with a more moderate stage from Tailard to Nimes.

July 21st marks the second rest day of the Tour. It’s followed by a flat stage 16 from Carcassone to Bagnères-de-Luchon. The next day it’s back to the mountains with a summit finish on Pla d’Adet. Stage 18 goes up again, this time with the well known climb to Hautacam.

That’s it for the mountains with stage 19 a flat stage from Maubourguet to Bergerac. The penultimate day will see the first and last time trial: a 54 kilometre lung buster from Bergerac to Périgueux. The GC should be decided today if it wasn’t already. Will it be another party for Sky or can someone put a stop to the three in a row? Tinkoff, Astana and Movistar will be the most likely teams to upset Mr Froome.

The last stageis the procession from Evry tot Paris with a final sprint showdown on the Champs Elysees.  Garçon, champagne !

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DriveTheDales.com

Driving and walking in the yorkshire dales.

2014 Tour De France Route

2014 tour de france route- grand depart through the yorkshire dales.

Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE

The Grand Depart of the 2014 Tour De France took place on 5 July 2014, with the first stage of the famous race taking in some of the highlights of the Dales. The race actually began in the Centre of Leeds, but for ease of making this a circular drive, our route will start at end at Harewood, about 8 miles North of the City Centre. The stage 1 route covers a distance of around 118 miles but this circular route starting is around 124 miles in total and encounters a variety of terrains and road conditions encompassing the full diversity of the region. Many of the roads are quite narrow, but all are in good condition. I would anticipate this drive taking around 3 hours of driving without any stops.

For some unique photographic perspectives of the Dales and villages covered by this drive , have a look at our sister website- Yorkshire-Photography.com.

 Start –Harewood

The village of Harewood, situated on the A61 road to Harrogate to the North of Leeds is the site of Harewood House, one of Britain’s best known Stately Homes .The house was built from 1759 to 1771 for Edwin Lascelles, whose family had bought the estate after making its fortune in the West Indies by lending money to cotton plantations and slave trading. (The British actor David Harewood who starred in the US Hit drama ‘Homeland’ is rumoured to descend from a Lascelles slave family). The house is still owned by the Lascelles family – The current, 8th Earl of Harewood, David Henry George Lascelles, is a British hereditary peer and film and television producer. He is the first cousin, once removed of Queen Elizabeth. His grandmother was Mary, Princess Royal, daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. She also lived at the house and died there in 1965. The estate has been transferred into a trust ownership structure, and as a result is managed by Harewood House Trust and is open to the public most of the year. Attractions include 100 acres of land with fine gardens designed by Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown, an art collection and bird garden housing a collection of over 90 species of birds, of which more than 30 are listed as vulnerable or endangered. Harewood has one pub with accommodation, The Harewood Arms. The popular soap opera ‘Emmerdale’ in filmed in a specially constructed village next to the estate, and can be glimpsed in winter (with no tree cover) from a footpath beyond the lake at the west side of the estate.

From the gates of Harewood House turn left and follow the road down the hill. Take a right at the A659 signposted Otley and Pool. Travel along this good, straight road through farmland to arrive at Arthington.

Arthington is a commuter village of around 550 people within the City boundary of Leeds. It is best known for its dramatic 21 arch viaduct built in 1850 for the Leeds and Thirsk railway. Unfortunately it’s not easy to see the viaduct from the road, as it’s away to the right and obscured by trees and hedgerows. Better views can be obtained from high ground near the rocky outcrop of Almscliff Crag, near North Rigton off the A658 to Harrogate.

 A few miles from Arthington the road passes through Pool in Wharfedale

Pool in Wharfedale is a village on the outskirts of Leeds and just within Lower Wharfedale- the River Wharfe passes through the village. It has a population of around 1800 and is situated at the junction of the A659 to Otley and Harewood and the A658 between Harrogate and Bradford and at the foot of the steep hill known as Pool Bank. It has two pubs, The White Hart and The Half Moon, a post office, school, petrol station and cricket club. Its church, St Wilfred’s was built in 1839 .The village had a station for 100 years before it closed in 1965. Opened by the North Eastern Railway and Midland Railway, the line was intended to link the Leeds to Harrogate line with a new line, the Otley and Ilkley Joint Railway. A separate connecting quarry rail line was opened in 1880 by Benjamin Whitaker & Son, owners of Pool Bank Quarries. The station was at the end of the Bramhope Tunnel, the 2 mile long engineering feat constructed between 1845-49 by armies of thousands of navvies. 24 Men died during the construction of the tunnel, and they are commemorated by a magnificent monument, fashioned in the style of the tunnel’s entrance in Otley Parish Church yard. Pool was well known for its quarries from the 1700’s to when Pool Bank Quarry closed in 1939, and stone from the area was used in a variety of prestigious projects such as the re-building of the Houses of Parliament after a fire in 1834, Leeds Town Hall and Parish Church, Otley Civic Centre, Pool Bridge, Swinsty and Fewston reservoirs, and the Bramhope Tunnel and Arthington Viaduct.

Carry on through the village and turn left at the petrol station (the main road is the A658). Continue along the road with the River Wharfe on the right, to arrive after a few miles at Otley.

Otley is a market town in Lower Wharfedale, straddling both sides of the river. It’s close to Leeds and Bradford which make it a popular commuter town with many of its 14,000 population working in the large Cities to the South. Otley’s name is derived from Othe, a Saxon personal name and Leah, a woodland clearing in Old English. It was known as Othelia in the Domesday Book of 1086.  In the town’s early years, The Archbishops of York were lords of the manor and had a palace on the site occupied today by the Manor House. In the 13th century the archbishops laid out ‘burgage’ or rental plots on Boroughgate, Walkergate and Kirkgate to attract merchants and the town began to grow. In 1222 when King Henry III granted the town a Royal Charter to hold a market, and Otley still has a street market three times a week plus a monthly Farmers’ Market. The town was always a centre of the woollen trade and production increased at the time of the Industrial revolution when mills were built using water then steam power. By the mid 19th century 500 inhabitants were employed in two worsted-mills, a paper-mill, and other mills. Above the town is the gritstone escarpment of Chevin Forest Park which provides great views over the town and the surrounding countryside. J.M.W. Turner, the painter, visited Otley in 1797, and returned regularly over the years. His famous painting of Hannibal Crossing The Alps is reputed to have been inspired by a storm over Otley’s Chevin. Otley has all the amenities one would expect from a small town with three supermarkets and many high street chain shops. It also has a large number of pubs – and is reputed to have more pubs per head of population than any other town in Britain! The Black Bull in the Market Place was allegedly drunk dry by Oliver Cromwell’s troops on the night before the battle of Marston Moor during the English Civil War. Otley isn’t actually within the Yorkshire Dales National Park but is close to the boundary and is likely to be en-route if travelling from Leeds .The main roads through the town are the A660 to the south east, which connects Otley to Bramhope, Adel and Leeds city centre, and the A65 to the west, which goes to Ilkley and then onto Skipton and the ‘actual’ Dales. The A6038 heads to Guiseley, Shipley and Bradford, connecting with the A65. To Harrogate, the A659 heads east to the A658, which is the main Bradford-Harrogate road.

At Otley the A659 crosses the A660 which in turn becomes the A65 at Burley in Wharfedale.

Burley in Wharfedale is a commuter village of around 6000 inhabitants just off the A65 road. The village has a railway station on the Wharfedale line, with direct trains to Leeds, Bradford and Ilkley making it a popular location for workers in Leeds and Bradford who want to live in a more rural location. The area was originally settled in Roman times, and the Domesday Book of 1086 mentions Burley (Burghelai) as part of the Manor of Otley. Burley developed in the late 18th and early 19th centuries into an industrial village with many residents employed in the local cotton mill, Greenholme Mills, and a weir remains where a goit harnessed power from the River Aire to power the mill machinery. In the late 19th century, over 700 workers were employed at the mill and the population of the village reached 3000. After the two world wars there was an increase in council house building in the village, and with improved transport links this led to an increase in younger residents, and the predominant age group in the village today is 35 to 55 year old, which is younger than most villages in the more rural areas of the Dales. Burley has 3 pubs –The Generous Pioneer, The Queens Head and The Red Lion, though none seem to offer accommodation.

It’s only as the A65 begins its approach to Ilkley and the heather covered hills of its moor come into view high to the left, that the Tour De France competitors will start to get their first taste of the Dales.

In ilkley, the route heads down leeds road and skipton road, before bypassing addingham and heading for skipton on the main a65 road. indeed it’s the major route from yorkshire north to the lake district. its scenic enough but reasonably flat, apart from a section near the addingham turn off, and not a comparison to some of the stunning terrain to be experienced later on the drive /ride the a65 eventually arrives at skipton with the race passing along otley road,  newmarket street, then travelling up skipton high street, and turning onto raikes road, and leaving the town via grassington road., from skipton, the tour de france then picks up the b6265 and heads into the dales proper. just a few minutes after leaving the a65 the road leads through fields bordered by drystone walls which will become familiar to the riders. the road runs parallel to a railway line on the left for a while- though this would be a nice scenic rail trip it’s in fact a freight only line going to a cement works/quarry close to the next village rylstone and its near neighbour cracoe..

  Rylstone is a small village close to Cracoe and about 6 miles south west of Grassington, beneath Barden Fell and the twin skyline landmarks of Rylstone Cross and Cracoe Pinnacle. The village became famous when members of the Rylstone Women’s Institute posed naked for a calendar to raise money for Leukaemia research after one of the member’s husbands, John Baker, died from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1998. The story was made into a film starring Helen Mirren and Julie Walters which was shot mainly in nearby Kettlewell but also in Buckden, Burnsall, Coniston, Ilkley, Settle, Linton, Malham, and Skipton.

Cracoe is a hamlet of 139 inhabitants and 32 houses close to Rhylstone, Hetton and Threshfield and 5 and a half miles North of Skipton. It was reputedly founded in the 14th century by a family banished by the residents of Skipton.  Cracoe is famous in geological circles for the nearby Cracoe Reef Knolls a series of limestone hills which are geological remnants of an ancient coral reef. It is also the discovery place of a rare moss – bexicus ruellam.

  A right turn off the B6265 just after Cracoe leads to the village of Linton which is worthy of a detour (though obviously not if you’re competing in the race!)

Back on the b6265, the road presses on towards upper wharfedale, soon arriving at threshfield..

  Threshfield is a village of around 1000 inhabitants at the junction of the B6265 road which leads from the A65 to Grassington and the B6160 from Bolton Abbey North to Upper Wharfedale. It has a small ‘old style’ petrol station and garage, one of the few not to have been taken over by one of the oil company chains. The village is home to a Georgian pub with cottage accommodation, The Old Hall, named after the 14th century hall at its rear, which was built by monks and is reputedly the oldest inhabited building in Wharfedale.  

Here the B6265 heads East towards Grassington, Hebden and Nidderdale. The Tour De France pushes on up the dale, now becoming the B6160. The road narrows after a turn off left to Skirethorns and after passing through a leafy wooded canopy, starts to descend with the River Wharfe coming into view on the left, with fine views down Wharfedale as the road heads to Kilnsey.

After passing the tennant arms pub, kilnsey crag dominates the skyline as the road passes beneath it. glance up to see rock climbers who will have a great view of the race on 5 july the road bends to the right by a right hand turn to arncliffe and littondale and starts to climb as it crosses the river. the tour de france riders are now treated to some classic dales scenery as the good, straight road passes stone barns and drystone walls as it travels along the valley, eventually arriving in kettlewell., the b6160 crosses the wharfe again via the picturesque stone bridge at kettlewell, and narrows as it heads via the hamlet of starbotton to buckden on a delightful stretch of road passing through meadows, grazed by cattle and the ubiquitous dales sheep.  , follow the road straight on at the buck inn, passing beneath the brooding hillside of buckden pike. the road bends to the right and begins to climb as it passes the tiny settlement of cray and its pub, the white lion, which is the highest in wharfedale. the section of road from cray, kidstones bank, running parallel to the bishopdale beck is probably the steepest uphill stretch the riders will have experienced thus far. there’s a descent into the hamlet of kidstones where the road narrows as it runs close to the river again. the road widens after crossing the river again by a stone bridge as it heads through the valley of bishopdale and eventually arrives at the hamlet of newbiggin which is off the road to the right by the street head inn..

  Newbiggin is a small village of just over 100 people, situated just off the B6160 near Thoralby and West Burton in Bishopdale. The village is home to the Street Head Inn which was a 17th century coaching Inn on what would have been a tortuous journey North from Wharfedale. There’s also a caravan park, Streethead caravan park in the village.  

    Just past Newbiggin is a left turn to Thoralby and Aysgarth, and the race turned off the road here.  

Thoralby is around a mile from Newbiggin and West Burton, just off the B6160 in Bishopdale. It has a population of just over 300 people living in 101 houses. The name comes from the Old Norse words of ‘Thoraldr’, a person’s name, and ‘bi’ for farm, meaning Thoraldr’s farm. By the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 the village was referred to as Turoldesbi.  As is the case with many villages in the area, it was a centre of lead mining in the 18th and 19th century and the remains of mines and quarries are still visible on Thoralby Common. In the 19th century the village had two chapels, both of which have been converted to private dwellings and the village boasts 26 Grade II listed buildings in the village, which include the old chapels, post office and the pub The George, dating from 1732.

 The tiny lane winds its way up hill through Thoralby and gives some nice views down Bishopdale. It swings left at the top of the bank and emerges on the A684 by the garage at Aysgarth in Wensleydale.

   Aysgarth is situated in Wensleydale on the A684 between West Witton and Bainbridge. It has a population of 178 people living in 100 dwellings. The village once had a railway station that was part of the Hawes Branch of the North Eastern Railway from its opening in 1878 to its closure in 1954.The Wensleydale Railway Association aims to rebuild the railway from Northallerton to Garsdale, and to reopen Aysgarth station. Aysgarth’s main attraction is its series of 3 waterfalls which have cut their way through the limestone and can become a spectacular raging torrent after rain, or a more subdued affair in dry weather. The falls featured in the film Robin Hood Prince of Thieves and are off the main road and down a steep hill behind the Palmer Flatt Hotel, which serves food and has accommodation. Other pub options are the Aysgarth Falls Hotel, by the falls, or the George and Dragon further along the A684 . 

 After joining the A684 it’s a 5 mile stretch to Bainbridge and 9 miles to Hawes. It’s a good, long, straight and reasonably wide road with occasional views of the River Ure to the right, and feels more agricultural than the less tamed landscape back in Upper Wharfedale and Bishopdale. The road bends right by a left turn signposted to Semerwater, the Dales only natural lake, and enters Bainbridge.

The a684 winds its way past the wide green verges of bainbridge and out towards hawes. again it’s a good, wide road, now offering some great views down wensleydale towards hawes and beyond. eventually the road arrives in hawes by the old station, now the dales countryside museum., upon arriving in hawes, the tour takes a right turn, signposted hardraw, over the old railway line. the road winds its way alongside and over the river ure via a stone bridge built on a bend in the river. at the t junction, take the left turn signposted hardraw, simonstone and muker. after a couple of hundred yards, take the left turn for simonstone and muker. this road marks the lower, wensleydale end of the buttertubs pass, one of the 2014 ‘king of the mountains’ climbs.,  the road climbs steadily, arriving almost immediately at the cottages of simonstone, location of simonstone hall, which is now a country house hotel. the road rises and bends and you’re afforded the first glimpses of the surrounding hills. after passing over a cattle grid, the road narrows and you’re driving through a wild landscape of stunning moorland vistas as you approach buttertubs pass. for many people, the climb at buttertubs pass was the highlight of the race through the dales as an extimated 20,000 people assembled alongside, and at times, on the road, creating a carnival atmosphere..

The Buttertubs Pass is a high road climbing from Simonstone near Hardraw and Hawes in Wensleydale to Thwaite in Swaledale. The 6 mile drive takes around 10 minutes of straight driving but it’s likely you’ll want to stop and take in the scenery.  TV Presenter Jeremy Clarkson’s describes it as “England’s only truly spectacular road”.  The name come from the 20 metre deep limestone potholes called the Buttertubs which the road passes. Rumour has it that the name came from the time when farmers would rest there on their way to market. During hot weather they would lower their dairy produce into the potholes to keep it cool. The road is in good condition though can become slippery in wet weather. You are high up and enjoy great views but there are only a few sections with sheer drops and these are well protected by barriers. It’s popular with motor cyclists and cyclists and featured as one of two King of the Mountains climbs in Stage One of the 2014 Tour de France.

After crossing another cattle grid the road begins to drop, with some iconic views as the road snakes along the pass, before starting its descent into the Swale valley below. There are a couple of stopping places here, which is good as it’s likely you’ll want to stop and take some pictures. The road drops down into the valley before arriving at a T Junction, on the B6270 near Thwaite.

The residents of thwaite may think themselves unlucky (or lucky) that the tour passed within a few hundred yards of their village at the foot of buttertubs pass but then turned away in the opposite   our direction, along the b6270 to the swaledale villages of muker and gunnerside..

Gunnerside sits at the foot of Gunnerside Gill, a narrow, rocky valley where extensive remains of the lead mining industry can still be seen. Most of the villages stone cottages were built in the 18th century to accommodate miners and their families. The historic Kings Head pub in the small village centre reflects the areas Viking settler history. Gunnerside takes its name from a Viking King’s summer pasture – ‘Gunnar’s Saetr’. The village houses a museum –the Old Working Mill and Smithy, in which can be seen interesting artefacts from the area’s history. Tracks from Gunnerside lead over the moors to Swinner Gill, which is the site of a cave where local Catholics reputedly held services in times of persecution.

The route then heads along the scenic route of the B6270 as it passes through the heart of Swaledale, and the tiny stone cottaged hamlets of Low Row, Feetham and Healaugh, with maybe a diversion off the main road to the intriguingly named settlement of Crackpot with its remote and ruined 17 th century farmstead, Crackpot Hall. Eventually the road arrives at Reeth, and around a mile further on, Grinton.

Reeth is located on the B6270 road and has a spectacular setting, overlooked by the fells of Fremington Edge and Calver Hill. It’s a sizeable village of around 700 inhabitants, situated at the meeting point of the two most northerly of the Yorkshire Dales: Swaledale and Arkengarthdale. Like most of its neighbours, Reeth grew in the 18th century with an influx of workers attracted to the many lead mines in the area. Today it’s a popular tourist village, set around an attractive village green, and is a stopping point on the Coast to Coast walk. It boasts a number of B+Bs, a hotel, post office and general store and 3 traditional pubs which all offer accommodation – The Black Bull Hotel, The Buck Hotel and the King’s Arms. There is also an outdoor clothing shop and a Yorkshire Dales National Park centre.

At Grinton, the road passes over the river Swale via the above mentioned bridge. On the bend, opposite the pub is a right turn, signposted Redmire, 5 Miles. Take this road which rises as it becomes a pleasant tree lined lane. The road begins to climb and crosses a cattle grid (watch out for wandering sheep here), after about 50 yards, ignore the right turn towards Redmire and carry on straight ahead. On the left is the turreted Grinton Lodge, built in 1817 as a hunting lodge, but used as a Youth Hostel since 1948. As you begin to climb, look back for fine views across Swaledale with the cottages of Reeth in the distance. The narrow single track road snakes its way across a bleak moorland landscape which is typical of this part of the Dales. The moor ends at a cross roads with a right turn to Carperby and a left to Richmond. The Tour route heads straight on to Leyburn. The road heads across the moors, eventually passing an army firing range, before dropping down into Leyburn.

Leyburn is a small town of 1800 inhabitants on the River Ure in Wensleydale, set around a market square. It’s famous for Leyburn Shawl, a 1.5 mile escarpment just outside town which provides panoramic views across Wensleydale and the Coverdale Hills. According to legend, Mary, Queen of Scots, upon fleeing captivity in nearby Bolton Castle, dropped her shawl en route to Leyburn. The Shawl is the start of several circular walks to the village of Wensley, from where Wensleydale takes its name. Leyburn hosts a Dales Festival of Food and Drink, held over May Day bank holiday weekend and also an annual Wensleydale agricultural show at the end of August. The town also has a local market in the town centre every Friday and a farmers’ market which specialises in local meats once a month. Leyburn is a stop on the Wensleydale Railway which runs for 16 miles between Leeming Bar and Redmire, with stops at Bedale, Finghall and Leyburn. The railway station is about a quarter of a mile from the town centre. Leyburn has a number of B+Bs, eating options and pubs (including the Golden Lion, The White Swan, The Dragon and the Sandpiper). It’s a good option to stay if you want more amenities than are available in most of the surrounding villages.

From the market square in Leyburn, follow the road down the hill. At a cross roads, take the A6108 to the right, signposted Middleham. The road passes houses with some nice views opening up before you. Eventually the road arrives at a turreted, single lane road bridge crossing the River Ure. The bridge is a grade II listed structure was built in 1830. Cross the bridge and follow the road up the hill to arrive at Middleham.

Arrive at the market place in middleham and follow the a6108 round to the left, downhill and out of town. travel through farmland on a good, wide road to pass the 16 th century coverbridge inn which as its name suggests, is situated by a bridge over the river cover, near its confluence with the ure. cross the bridge and continue on the a6108 to reach east witton, situated just of the main road..

East Witton is a small village on the A6108, set around a village green. The remains of the 12th century Jervaulx Abbey lie within the village. The Cistercian monks of Byland Abbey in Ryedale erected a new church and monastery on the current site in 1156, dedicated to St Mary. The abbey eventually owned half of the valley and was renowned for breeding horses, a tradition that remains in the area to the present day, particularly at neighbouring Middleham.

The road swings left at the Blue Lion Inn at East Witton and heads out past the church. It’s a totally different landscape here to that experienced earlier in the High Dales, as we’ve now past the boundary of the National Park. The landscape is flatter and more agricultural and hedgerows have replaced drystone walls as borders to the wider, and straighter roads. The road eventually passes allotments on the left and arrives at Masham.

  Located in Lower Wensleydale Masham is a small town of around 1200 inhabitants. Locals pronounce the name as ‘Mass-am’ but you may hear it referred to by visitors as ‘Mash-am’.  The area was probably first settled in Roman times, due to its position near an easily fordable part of the River Ure and its proximity to the course of a Roman road on the main route from Wensleydale to York. The tiny town is famous throughout Britain for its breweries. Theakston’s Brewery was originally founded in The Black Bull hotel on Silver Street in 1827 and later moved to their current site at Paradise Fields which is their site today. In 1992 Paul Theakston founded The Black Sheep Brewery and began brewing ales which have become some of the most popular beers produced by an Independent Brewery, and are available all over the world. Not surprisingly the town has a number of pubs in which you can sample the Ales including the White Bear, The Kings Head and a pub attached to both of the breweries.

Follow the road as it bends to the left and heads out across a stone bridge crossing the River Ure, and towards Tanfield, Ripon and Thirsk. Arrive in West Tanfield in Hambleton with its 15 th century Manor House gatehouse by the Bruce Arms pub, and turn right signposted Lightwater Valley. The road again crosses a wide expanse of the River Ure here and heads through farmland through North Stainley with its picturesque village pond and on to Ripon.

Ripon is beyond the boundaries of the Yorkshire Dales but is one of the nearest Cities to the National Park. It’s actually the 4th smallest city in the UK with a population of around 16,000.  It is located 11 miles south-west of Thirsk, 16 miles south of Northallerton and 12 miles north of Harrogate. It’s famous for its 7th century Cathedral and racecourse. It’s also a good base to explore the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Studley Royal Park and Fountains Abbey and is close to the theme park Lightwater Valley. Market Day is Thursday with the market held in the town’s square with its 300 year old Obelisk, and where a Horn blower sounds his horn at 9 o’clock every night.

At Ripon join the A61 signposted towards Harrogate and Knaresborough. The route is now on a busy main road which seems a million miles away from some of the isolated and wild landscapes experienced earlier in the drive/ride. Follow the A61 to Harrogate where this leg of The Tour De France ended.

Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, beyond the boundary of the Dales, with a population of around 72,000. The main road through the town is the A61, connecting Harrogate to Leeds and Ripon. Harrogate is connected to Wetherby and the A1, by the A661. A short distance south is the A59 which is the main East-West route through the lower Dales area.  It also has a railway station with services to Leeds and York and a daily train to London Kings Cross. The town is first mentioned as Harwegate in the 1300’s. The town became renowned for its iron and sulphur rich water, with supposed health providing properties, and its first spring was discovered in 1596 when William Slingsby discovered that water sources on Stray common possessed similar properties to those in the famous town of Spa in Belgium. He named the spring Tewit Well after a local bird species, and the site is marked today by a dome on the grassy area in the town centre still known as ‘The Stray’. The town developed as a resort and peaked in popularity in the 18th and 19th centuries when many of its buildings were constructed, including the Royal Pump Room which was built to house a series of sulphur wells in 1842. The popularity of spa towns reduced in the early 20th century, but in the Second World War several government offices were evacuated from London and rehoused in some of Harrogate’s now empty large hotels. This helped reinvent the town as a conference and exhibition centre. Harrogate International Centre is the third largest conference and exhibition centre in the UK, and attracts over 350,000 business visitors to the town each year. Harrogate is also home to the Great Yorkshire Showground which, as its name suggests hosts the Great Yorkshire show every July. The town has a number of pleasant gardens such as Valley Gardens and Crescent Gardens, and is also home to the famous Betty’s Tea Rooms which was opened in Cambridge Crescent in 1919 and later moved to their current location in Parliament Street.

From Harrogate stay on the A61 and follow it back towards Leeds, eventually arriving back at the start point in Harewood.

Circular Walks which can be undertaken in conjunction with this drive –

Kilnsey and Mastilles Lane

Hawes and Hardraw

Kettlewell to Arncliffe

Reeth to Arkle Town

2014 Tour De France Route — 2 Comments

Has anyone produced a GPS route of this stage

We are doing a three week drive around parts of England and Wales and I particularly wanted to spend some time in the Yorkshire Dales and the above drive that you have described sounds perfect. It looks and sounds marvelous. Could we do it justic in roughly driving two days staying one night in the Dales. I can’t thank you enough.

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