Hicks Lodge

Part of the path around the big lake.

View looking Eastwards across the big lake towards the Cycle Centre.

End on view of the building (doesn't do it justice).

Hicks Lodge is the new cycling centre situated near Moira in the National Forest. The building includes cafe, bike hire, bike repair shop, toilets and showers. Work on the building is almost complete and the contractors will be handing it over to the National Forest Company within the next week or so. Work is still in hand on the large car park and the main entrance.
Impressive as the building is, it is out in the surrounding countryside that this place really comes to life. The whole site covers a very large area, with lots of fine surfaced tracks amongst lovely scenery where thousands of trees have been planted and several lakes established. Among the surrounding forest graded mountain bike trails have been constructed.
Quite amazing that much of this area is reclaimed land, once scarred by coal mines, slag heaps, steam railways and various industrial buildings. A few preserved relics remain, adding interest as reminders of the past.
This place is going to become extremely popular with cyclists of all kinds once the word gets around.
Not a place to visit once and forget, but a place to go to time and again. It is only a couple of miles from Ashby-de-la-Zouch on the one side and Conkers Visitor Centre on the other. NCN Route 63 runs close by and there are many fine inter-connecting  multi-user paths throughout the National Forest.
As soon as we have confirmation of the completion date and opening of Hick's Lodge, the Derby Rangers will be organising a trip there. Watch this space.

This is a better photo of the building taken with a proper camera (others are phone pictures) with the setting sun lighting up the front of the Cycle Centre.