Routes in Pentland hills, Edinburgh?

Northwind

I live in Currie just at the foot of the pentlands, and I've been playing up there a few times lately but I don't really feel like I've found the good bits yet. I've seen the reservoirs loop on the edinburgh bicycle site, which uses a lot of the trails I use but I'm wondering what else there is out there... Any suggestions?

(my own, is that there's a really nice wee bit of wooded singletrack, which rides well as either a climb or descent, punch 55.877192,-3.294976 into google maps to see the area I mean. The trailheads are pretty easy to spot. Lots of mud at the moment though, but thenI like mud. My favourite water crossing anywhere is in here, lovely deep stream with a rooted exit/entry on one side and a long rooted climb on the other, and just enough splash at the bottom to make it interesting.l)

Also, for some reason the edinburgh bike trail suggests using the paths or roads around Harlaw, the shore and woods are a big playground, can't see any reason to avoid them...

Old Pedaller

Sadly the Pents aren't what they might be. I have not been there for a few years but have been there a handful of times on a rigid fork MTB before they surfaced the natural singletrack. Even then it was easy on a touring bike and now can be ridden fairly fast on a 23mmm tyred audax bike so no challenge for a suspension fork MTB (in the main).

I was with a CTC group some years ago riding over one of the open tops and even the guy on the recumbent had no problems. It was worth it just to see his technique for crossing ditches - they did not slow his progress much.

As I understand it, and I haven't seen a new map since the new access laws came in, I think we are discouraged from using or forbidden to use the "good" stuff to avoid erosion.

All part of the problem of a resource within sight of a lot of Ediburgh and used by too many for too many different activites I suppose?

Northwind

Yeah, the official map basically says "Don't cycle here", most of the trails are either marked "cycle slowly, lots of people" or "Don't cycle here, erosion", with the rest being "cycle carefully" So naturally, I ignored that, and found that half the trails marked "erosion" are actually well surfaced and completely fine, and that the "busy" trails are almost completely empty. Some of the "trails" left for cyclists are actually tarmac! Madness... It's just completely obvious they're not interested.

Hmm. I suppose that raises another question, is there any edinburgh-centred riders group that could start to apply a wee bit of pressure there? the woods on the south side of harlaw are completely empty of people but they'd be a good site for short trails, with a bit of effort...

counterculture

if you go over from harlaw reservoir on the bonaly path and up and over to glencorse reservoir via the old battered farm road, you can go through the trees to avoid handlebars into the gut, the ride down the hill can be a bit fun (ropey).

I get a good workout going up the Pentlands as i have to cycle up to them from Leith, but theres not alot of "natural" trails to use once your there, and i cant go trekking to far into the hills as ive got an 11 mile cycle home, albeit mostly downhill.

Northwind

Hey, Counterculture, this is a bit of a stab in the dark but you don't know a guy called Dave Cunningham by any chance? Skinny ginger, rides a Revolution Courier?

I think I'm going to spend a bit of time working out ways of spicing up the regular boring surfaced trails, there's loads of wee diversions and interesting bits but I've never managed to string them together. Frinstance, on the climb between harlaw and glencorse, after the first gate it's all surfaced, but if you keep your eyes open patches of the old footpath still exist, very broken up now and quite wet in places- much more entertaining. And of course nobody can complain about erosion, since you're helping restore the old path to its natural state

Deejers

hey Old Pedaller
you're right you can ride in the Pentlands on a 23 mm tyred touring bike if you stick to the surfaced paths - but, as Northwind says, there is a lot of interesting stuff out there, you just have to search it out. you may not get long sections of singletrack - but you can piece together a good ride.
If you don't want to make the effort, then Glentress will of course offer you really good routes without having to think about it too much!
Personally I think it's great having the Pentlands right on Edinburgh's doorstep. Surely somewhere that you can pedal to rather than having to get in a car is a great resource, even if the trails are not purpose-built?

Old Pedaller

Deejers wrote:

hey Old Pedaller
you're right you can ride in the Pentlands on a 23 mm tyred touring bike if you stick to the surfaced paths - but, as Northwind says, there is a lot of interesting stuff out there, you just have to search it out. you may not get long sections of singletrack - but you can piece together a good ride.
If you don't want to make the effort, then Glentress will of course offer you really good routes without having to think about it too much!
Personally I think it's great having the Pentlands right on Edinburgh's doorstep. Surely somewhere that you can pedal to rather than having to get in a car is a great resource, even if the trails are not purpose-built?

I think you have misunderstood my posting - I'm not complaining about the Pentlands, just recognising the limitations if you play by the rules. I don't bother going on the mountain bike as there's no real point and the main routes across, even where unsurfaced, don't cause any great problems on the 23 mm tyre job but at least you have to work at it a bit.

It is indeed great having them on the doorstep but that is the problem that has brought about the restrictions. I don't demand prepared trails - I prefer the natural stuff -but, as I understand it (am I wrong?), we are not supposed to go off the surfaced bits where they exist.

Northwind

You're not supposed to go off, and to be honest they don't really want us to ride ON them either. You can find a link to the "cycling in the pentlands" map here:

http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/phrp/publications/publications.html

Now, usually I'm in the camp of "work within restrictions or they'll get worse", and that people who ignore reasonable restrictions spoil it for everyone else. But it's already been spoiled, and they're not reasonable restrictions, so I treat them with the respect they deserve. Basically the only place you're welcome to ride is the surfaced trails, and even those are only suitable for "careful cycling" (if you look closely, some of the yellow "trails" are tarmac public roads!)

Having said that, if there's any sort of active group that's involved with campaigning for better bike access and facilities, I'm there... But there doesn't seem to be, and I'm not well connected enough to start one.

counterculture

i dont know the man you speak of