Holiday in the Highlands.Ideas please!

Rich25

Planning a trip next May/June with the missus. Can anyone assist with a good selection of the best places to bike, stay and things to see?

Want to include the obvious like Fort Bill and Laggon and would love to do lots of natural riding too.

Cheers

Fastlad

Natural riding. Now you're talking!!! I'm scottish and it would be a shame for me to suggest trail centres when Scotland has so much more to offer for real mountainbiking! If you are heading to fort bill, check out Glencoe en route. MTBing doesn't get anymore scenic, mountains all around 8) Granted, they are not that rideable BUT there is the fantastic DEVILS STAIRCASE from Glencoe to Kinlochleven. Totally raw MTBing. I'd suggest it's an essential trip for anyone visiting Scotland with a bike. There's a small bit of off-road parking on the main A82 just past the kings house hotel. From here you have a mix of riding and pushing to reach the summit of the Devils (max 30 mins) from the summit, the trail really opens up, downhills, xc, streams, slickrock....it's all there. The way i used to do it was park at the kingshouse hotel and ride north on the westhighland way (the devils is a part of it) then over the top to kinlochleven, turn left in town and join the main (but very quiet) road to glencoe village, along a singletrak road to the Clachaig inn. From there, go to the end of the road where you will meet the A82 again, cross it to find a landrover track that runs parallel with the A82 back to the kingshouse (heading south) It's a long climb off-road (some 12 miles ish) but it's well worth it!! The whole ride should take you about 4-5 hours. Accomodation is available at the kingshouse, though i would personally recommend The Clachaig Inn. Great food and atmosphere, being in the heart of Glencoe!!

Rich25

What a brilliant reply,cheers!
Any more?

Buckled_Rims

Fastlad wrote:

snipped...
though i would personally recommend The Clachaig Inn. Great food and atmosphere, being in the heart of Glencoe!!

But only if your name isn't Campbell

A lot of Scottish Youth Hostels have secure bike sheds and provide cheap accomedation. Braemar is excellent site. You have the ski slopes near Glen Shee to the south, The Cairngorms to the north and then visit Queen Elizabeth for tea in Balmoral Castle/Lochlagar. All these are within 20 minutes drive away.

popstar

I recently came back from my first ever Scottland special. Stayed at the bestest places of them all -Aviemore-. Plenty of bars restaurants shops in that tourist place, as well as it's so lovely down there. Stayed at Cairngorm Guest house (£30pppn), Laggan 30min drive away, Fort Bill under 1 hour, and tonnes of natural riding in Cairngorms.
Be aware, Laggan's black graded trail is one of the most technical, from official trail centers, while Glencoe is something you have to be prepared for. Glencoe as far as I understand, isn't trail center ... more of natural riding style, but boy it will surprise you. Not sure if your wife will thank you for that Gnarl.
Some knowledgeable Scott will laugh at Fort Bill but will pay respect to rockgardens of Laggan, and inspect you closely if you head to Glencoe. Should you come back from Glencoe in one piece, you will be crowned by cheerfull lot as a - Rad Dude- !

Check Imbikemag issue6 (page57) for Laggan Wolftrax review, looked tempting to me.

bluechair84

This summer I did a big roadtrip to the outer hebrides - was an awesome three weeks. Fro Fort William, you could hit the Isle of Skye and go see the Cuillin mountains - pretty amazing scenery ad the ferry ride is good. From Sligachan hostel there is some good natural trails though I dind't take the bike with me.... I was very sad to be surrounded by all those trails and not have the bike

Richie63

The biking around Torridon is pretty good with wild cycling in the areas North of the A896 between Torridon and Gairloch.

Also taking your bike up to Inverpolly gives stunning views


While you can't go much wrong with a trip to Skye either

Stoo61

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scotland-Mountain-Biking-Wild-Trails/dp/1906148104

Buy this book.

I'd say a stay in Aviemore would put you in good traveling distance for a lot of the great runs along with all the facilities it has. The book contains 24 Scottish wild riding routes with OS maps and numbered instructions. All day epics, short scenic blasts, 2 dayers, The 4 day Cairngorm tour and the week long Coast to Coast all covered.

I'm yet to go out there but i'm thinking if you come away up here and have the time...you must really goto Skye. That book has the Glen Sligachan route in it too

DickBarton

Aviemore would be a cracking base for plenty of riding. A few Hogmanay's ago we stayed in a large farmhouse at Ardverikie (where they filmed Monarch fo the Glen) - was a brilliant week - 5 mins drive from Laggan, 20 minute drive from Fort Bill and had plenty of really nice natural stuff from the door.

Not a popular holiday location (you really are out in the middle of absolutely nowhere) but it was stunning.

welshkev

in this months MBUk there's a section about riding the west highland way (WHW) it looks awsome, i'd love to do that

Cferg

There was also a very good (and quite long) article in MBR not so long ago about Torridon which looked amazing. It's abit further north but it looks spectacular.

Stoo61

DickBarton wrote:

Aviemore would be a cracking base for plenty of riding. A few Hogmanay's ago we stayed in a large farmhouse at Ardverikie (where they filmed Monarch fo the Glen) - was a brilliant week - 5 mins drive from Laggan, 20 minute drive from Fort Bill and had plenty of really nice natural stuff from the door.

Not a popular holiday location (you really are out in the middle of absolutely nowhere) but it was stunning.

Rode the Ardverikie Estate last week, some real nice stuff tempered with some out and out bogginess (due to weather undoubtedly) and some out and out rockiness. Great days riding though.

Briggo

DickBarton wrote:

Not a popular holiday location (you really are out in the middle of absolutely nowhere) but it was stunning.

Sounds exactly like my kind of place.

Rich25

Top replies, many thanks.

Aviemore is looking like the place to setup camp as there are so many options from there. Cant wait!

Steve_F

Golspie surprised me with how great a ride it is. I was passing on my way further North and decided to sleep in the car in the car park and get out early before heading to the ferry early afternoon.

What a surprise that place was. Seriously glad I stumbled across it and can't believe I haven't been back this year. There's not much else near it (except of course mile after mile of natural riding but I'd never return if I headed out there on my own without a local guide and a Sherpa!!!).

popstar

Aviemore is a top place. Be it restaurants bars shops camping sites or B&B for any budget. Location of being in center highlands is the clincher. IMO it is best base for getting that experience of Scotland with all offerings from walking,cycling etc.

lochussie

If you're going Devil's Staircase to Kinlochleven, I would not follow WHW down to KLL, but double back up river left of the Leven (riding on the cool concrete over the pipes) to the Blackwater Reservoir, and then down river right. This is a great and challenging downhill. I'd give it a miss if you've found the start of the WHW descent hard though.

Torridon has got great stuff. Eg, Kinlochewe>Heights of Kinlochewe>Lochan Fada>Loch Maree, great challenging riding, great scenery.

If you get to Skye, the Sligachan route is best out and back rather than loop on the road, some really awesome bits on way back. You can then do a clockwise loop from N coast, through hills to Torrin and back to Luib the next day.

Loads of awesome stuff out there, get that book, pick your rides and then book hostels/b&bs. Some rides will not be very enjoyable if it's been wet but there are plenty that are on hard surfaces and it doesn't rain that much.