Paul Kirkwood ventures out into South Yorkshire on his bike.

Poor old South Yorkshire. The North has the Dales, the Moors and the coast, the West has the Pennines and the South has, well, not a lot. At least, that's what I thought until I tried this bike ride which starts and finishes at Cannon Hall Country Park near to Junction 38 of the M1.

Straight after setting off I was enjoying rolling, verdant hills and a near complete lack of traffic. In fact, the lanes hereabouts are so quiet and narrow they could almost be cycleways. They include the odd surprise too. At the top of a hill, sweating profusely and with flies buzzing around my head, I spotted a field full of ostriches. This, I figured, is as close as you get to going on safari in Barnsley.

Another narrow lane took me to Thurlstone after which I ascended Spicer Hill. Here, like me, you should pause again and breathe a sign of relief for you have reached the highest point of the ride, albeit a humble 310 metres.

The view is worthy of close examination too. In opposite directions and on the horizon are towers of contrasting usefulness. The Emley TV transmitter pricks the sky like a needle to the north while the folly, Hartcliff Tower, is discernible to the south, though easily mistaken for a farm silo. To the left of the tower is a splendid viaduct spanning the Don and close by, right on top of the hill, are the 13 wind turbines. Their tight-fitting steel doors are submarine-like and, close up, they whir like the rinse-cycle of a washing machine.

All around are reservoirs like giant puddles and it is to Ingbirchworth Reservoir that you should next head. It was built in the 1860s to provide water to Barnsley after the town's previous supply, the River Dearne, had become too polluted. At this handy midway point, you have a choice of three lunch spots: beside the water in the shade of some trees, at a rather nondescript picnic site (which is where I stopped) or at The Fountains pub.

Those interested in seriously big meals should visit nearby Denby Dale, site of the world's largest pie dish. It is basically an 18-foot long, oblong metal trough that, in between pie baking, is planted with flowers. The origins of the dish can be traced back to 1788 when the first mega-pie was baked to celebrate the short-lived return to sanity of George III. This curious form of celebration is believed to have been facilitated by the existence of large ovens for the local manufacture of earthenware pipes.

Other occasions deemed worthy of the pie treatment have included the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo, the repeal of the Corn Laws and Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee.

The 1964 pie marked four royal births but was also known as the "Darby and Joan pie" to raise funds for a community centre for local pensioners.

It is the dish for this pie which is outside Denby Dale Pie Hall today.

After a brief stretch of an A-road it's back to the thin, yellow roads on the map for the remainder of the route. A pub well worth visiting is The Cherry Tree in High Hoyland which has one of the best views in the county. From it you will also have a good chance to get your final bearings before sweeping down the last couple of miles of the route.

I also highly recommend you allow plenty of extra time and energy to explore Cannon Hall Country Park along with its open farm, adventure playground, tea shop, garden centre, two museums and folly gardens. That's not to mention a dinky little cottage-like stone building half-concealed in the pine trees beside the hall. It's actually a two-seater earth toilet called a midden that was built about 200 years ago during the time of the hall's foremost owner, John Spencer, for when residents were caught short in the park.

He was a very wealthy chap. Pineapples were sent by coach from his kitchen garden to London while he was away on business there. From one beautiful south to another, you could say.

Fact file

Distance: 19 miles.

Directions: L out of Cannon Hall. R on A635. Second L then L at a T-junction with a pond. Soon after, R up a steep hill, R again at T-junction and R on A629. Fork L then L again onto B6462. Opposite Penistone Grammar School R down a narrow lane. In Thurlstone R and R again to leave the village via High Royd Lane. R at the crossroads to complete ascent of Spicer Hill. Just before wind turbines R to Ingbirchworth Reservoir. R along southern shore then L and R to re-join A629. Almost immediately R down Fouledge Lane. At crossroads at Dunkirk Inn L and then R down Miller Hill. At junction with A636 R to pass Denby Dale Pie Hall L and then R down Cuckstool Rd and L down Hollin Edge. R at first T-junction then L at next. After two miles R into High Hoyland then R back to Cannon Hall.

Click here to view a map of the ride