So I have to admit I have a soft spot for Scotland, I used to go every year as a child to varying places throughout Scotland and I'm currently applying for some jobs in Scotland so I can make the move permanent, I'd love to become a bike mechanic and based out of Scotland but that doesn't make enough money to sustain myself and Ziva. I've been biking to Scotland many times but its been a year or two now since my last visit so it was time to visit some new places as well as some already fond places! I booked a cottage staying in Errogie on the south side of Loch Ness, just outside of Inverness so it's still good for fuel and food etc. but outside of the city so a lot quieter, no neighbours for about half a mile just the way I like it! There were only the three of us staying, all bikers but they joined me as the week went on so not all three came to all the locations, at times it was just Ziva and myself!
1. Whinlatter - okay so its not technically Scotland but when your journey compromises about 450 miles its best to break up the journey and there's nowhere better than a Lakes blast to do this. I've been a couple of times before so knew what to expect, but for those that haven't been before, it compromises a north and a south loop, both are between 5 and 6 miles and gives riders the perfect chance to swap wardrobe if they've decided wrong, refuel food and drink supplies, fix any small mechanicals or like me drop off their trail dog to pace her for the week to come! Both loops are all the way up and all the way down, my way of preference as means you can pace yourselfon the climbs and truly enjoy the descents. The views are fantastic and the riding is even more fantastic and I'd recommend anybody ride it who has the opportunity, the only problem is the absolutely extortion car parking charges. I'm a big believer in supporting trail maintenance and I know car park charges go towards this but £7 for a parking ticket is absolutely ridiculous especially as it is such a hugely popular place for walking and the Go Ape course. There are no other negatives to this lovely trail centre in the Lakes, it's not natural riding like you'll find a lot of in the area but its an easy stop off on your way north and does exactly what it says on the tin without worrying about getting lost!
2. Laggan Wolftrax - This was my first visit to Laggan having heard good things about it from friends I was quite excited to get going. It's a reasonably quiet place, only a couple of cars in the car park even though it was a Sunday so bear this in mind if you're planning on riding it mid week, you could be the only person on the trails and this should be reflected in your ride planning. The climbs are a 50% trade off between singletrack and fire road, I personally don't mind this but know some people would rather less fire road. The whole red loop is 8 miles long, a length I'm quite happy with as it means I can drop Ziva back off at the car then double back up the climb to do a little more alone if I want to. I was riding solo for this one so I decided to stick to the red rather than the black, I know Scottish blacks tend to be about technical skills and being able to clear a section with no dabs. Not the sort of riding I do while alone so red was for me! I cant tell or rave enough about how much I enjoyed this trail centre, the surfacing is fantastic with the right amount of obstacles but the right amount of speed and flow. It isn't overly manicured like some trails are becoming and it has an old school feel to it like some of the welsh trail centres used to have before they were maintained and ruined. I only wish I lived closer so that I could ride it again and again.
3. Glenlivet - Another new trail I've not ridden before as it's relatively new and have read some reviews about how fast and flowy a place it is so knew what to expect before I got there. The climb is a majority of singletrack and is really wide and open and very easy so the fit amongst us will fly up to the top. It begins with a short climb then a short descent and then a long climb to the top and some good views and then one of the longest joined sections I've done for some time. The end is a bit up and down and roundabouts and in my opinion could of done with chopping shorter, if it was somewhere local to me I'd probably check on the fire roads and just cut out the end completely as it doesn't add anything. There a couple of black options but these aren't your normal Scottish blacks and are very easy to ride, 9/10 of them are just slightly larger drops with the other 1 being a rock garden, don't do what I did though and assume its another drop off to go flying up to it only to realise at the last minute and slam your anchors on. They also feel the need to put warning signs at every small drop off, a little overkill as it's a red marked trail so they shouldn't really need to. More health and safety gone mad clearly, top tip if its a HOT drink you're buying its going to be HOT! Other than a few niggles I quite enjoyed it from an easy fast ride perspective, there were no challenges involved just a bit of easy riding to be able to turn your brain off to. I wouldn't necessarily drive a long distance to ride it again but if it was nearby I'd definitely drop in. I left Ziva in the car for this one with the windows cracked, two rides in a row isn't good for her legs and besides I think the long descent and the speed of it would of finished her off.
4. Torridon - if you're a biker worth its salt and living in the UK you will of heard of Torridon. It features regularly in MBR and the top twenty rides in the UK so when this trip was planned and put into motion Torridon featured highly on the must do list. We'd heard so many glowing reviews that all of us said 'save it for me' so that we all ended up riding it together towards the end of the week. I always seem to be lucky when I come to Scotland never face the weather it's renowned for and the day we chose also didnt let us down and we were able to rid it in short sleeves and not worry about midges either.The going up is hard work, low down when the terrain isn't too steep and you can pedal it you face drainage gaps that can be too large to hop, high up and the rocks get bigger and you'll be faced with no other choice but to push. The scenery up there is breathe taking, you could literally just sit and stare and marvel at the beauty of the area. It's remote and apart from the few footpaths you'll see that join your route now and then you wont see anybody or anything else, not even sheep! Just when you think you've gotten to the top of the route you're faced with a short downhill section and then the worst climb I've ever encountered on a bike. It's not possible to ride and you can't push, there is no choice but to keep the bike on your back and every step is arduous as the steps are so large and precarious you have to use your knees to not only lift your own body weight up but also the bike. Once at the top you can pause next to a rock wall and amuse yourself with echoes and marvel at the sheer beauty again and prepare yourself for the descent. When I say prepare yourself, I mean it!! The descending is very hard work, its black and its continually black. You'll need to be prepared to pat yourself on the back everytime you progress another ten metres. My best mate pushed the majority of riding as this style of riding wasnt for him and he hated what had already been torture. My boyfriend continued to ride but fell off twice and as a result both of them were a good distance behind me and just doing their best. It isn't smooth and isnt fast, it's a tech fest so be prepared for this! You wont be grinning but you'll be in awe of its beauty and you'll look back at your riding and know you've pushed some of your limits.
5. Golspie - I've ridden Golspie twice before so knew what to expect on this days riding. The first time I rode it bad weather meant we couldn't get to the top, the second time I was on a hardtail having taken a break from riding so I was ready on this trip to ride it properly and give it it's due attention. It has one of the most enjoyable climbs of all the trail centres I've ridden, there are a few black sections towards the top but even these are enjoyably difficult! The top takes you to an awesome monument before starting the descent which will need your wits to clear. It's definitely worthy of a black rating with some tricky drop offs and some tricky rock gardens. These continue right the way to the bottom, however, there are easier options once you get closer to the bottom where the red joins the black. One of the beauties of Golspie is the short cuts that exist all the way to the top so once you've completed the 8 mile total loop you can go back up and do shorter sections towards the bottom. Its a VERY quiet trail centre being the furthest north in the UK, we only passed one couple the whole loop so again bear this in mind and plan accordingly. Its still one of my top ten and will remain there!
6. Innerleithen - I have ridden Inneleithen many times, it's one of my favourite spots to ride in the UK and has been in my top five places to ride for many years now but it's been a few years now since I've been so I was glad to finally get back up and either keep it in the top five or relegate it down the scale. The climb at inners is horrible, really hideous! Its instantly lung busting and then when it does settle down there are rocks to overcome and unlike rocks at places like Laggan, they are completely slippy so you really need to nail your 'approach with speed and dont try to pedal over it' technique. When you finally get to the top its basically all downhill with nothing major to worry about, although some advice I've gleaned over the times I've been, stick to the red its much more enjoyable! It's wearing over time and could probably do with some TLC but it's still in my top five places to ride and it's nice and fast and flowy still.
1. Whinlatter - okay so its not technically Scotland but when your journey compromises about 450 miles its best to break up the journey and there's nowhere better than a Lakes blast to do this. I've been a couple of times before so knew what to expect, but for those that haven't been before, it compromises a north and a south loop, both are between 5 and 6 miles and gives riders the perfect chance to swap wardrobe if they've decided wrong, refuel food and drink supplies, fix any small mechanicals or like me drop off their trail dog to pace her for the week to come! Both loops are all the way up and all the way down, my way of preference as means you can pace yourselfon the climbs and truly enjoy the descents. The views are fantastic and the riding is even more fantastic and I'd recommend anybody ride it who has the opportunity, the only problem is the absolutely extortion car parking charges. I'm a big believer in supporting trail maintenance and I know car park charges go towards this but £7 for a parking ticket is absolutely ridiculous especially as it is such a hugely popular place for walking and the Go Ape course. There are no other negatives to this lovely trail centre in the Lakes, it's not natural riding like you'll find a lot of in the area but its an easy stop off on your way north and does exactly what it says on the tin without worrying about getting lost!3. Glenlivet - Another new trail I've not ridden before as it's relatively new and have read some reviews about how fast and flowy a place it is so knew what to expect before I got there. The climb is a majority of singletrack and is really wide and open and very easy so the fit amongst us will fly up to the top. It begins with a short climb then a short descent and then a long climb to the top and some good views and then one of the longest joined sections I've done for some time. The end is a bit up and down and roundabouts and in my opinion could of done with chopping shorter, if it was somewhere local to me I'd probably check on the fire roads and just cut out the end completely as it doesn't add anything. There a couple of black options but these aren't your normal Scottish blacks and are very easy to ride, 9/10 of them are just slightly larger drops with the other 1 being a rock garden, don't do what I did though and assume its another drop off to go flying up to it only to realise at the last minute and slam your anchors on. They also feel the need to put warning signs at every small drop off, a little overkill as it's a red marked trail so they shouldn't really need to. More health and safety gone mad clearly, top tip if its a HOT drink you're buying its going to be HOT! Other than a few niggles I quite enjoyed it from an easy fast ride perspective, there were no challenges involved just a bit of easy riding to be able to turn your brain off to. I wouldn't necessarily drive a long distance to ride it again but if it was nearby I'd definitely drop in. I left Ziva in the car for this one with the windows cracked, two rides in a row isn't good for her legs and besides I think the long descent and the speed of it would of finished her off.4. Torridon - if you're a biker worth its salt and living in the UK you will of heard of Torridon. It features regularly in MBR and the top twenty rides in the UK so when this trip was planned and put into motion Torridon featured highly on the must do list. We'd heard so many glowing reviews that all of us said 'save it for me' so that we all ended up riding it together towards the end of the week. I always seem to be lucky when I come to Scotland never face the weather it's renowned for and the day we chose also didnt let us down and we were able to rid it in short sleeves and not worry about midges either.The going up is hard work, low down when the terrain isn't too steep and you can pedal it you face drainage gaps that can be too large to hop, high up and the rocks get bigger and you'll be faced with no other choice but to push. The scenery up there is breathe taking, you could literally just sit and stare and marvel at the beauty of the area. It's remote and apart from the few footpaths you'll see that join your route now and then you wont see anybody or anything else, not even sheep! Just when you think you've gotten to the top of the route you're faced with a short downhill section and then the worst climb I've ever encountered on a bike. It's not possible to ride and you can't push, there is no choice but to keep the bike on your back and every step is arduous as the steps are so large and precarious you have to use your knees to not only lift your own body weight up but also the bike. Once at the top you can pause next to a rock wall and amuse yourself with echoes and marvel at the sheer beauty again and prepare yourself for the descent. When I say prepare yourself, I mean it!! The descending is very hard work, its black and its continually black. You'll need to be prepared to pat yourself on the back everytime you progress another ten metres. My best mate pushed the majority of riding as this style of riding wasnt for him and he hated what had already been torture. My boyfriend continued to ride but fell off twice and as a result both of them were a good distance behind me and just doing their best. It isn't smooth and isnt fast, it's a tech fest so be prepared for this! You wont be grinning but you'll be in awe of its beauty and you'll look back at your riding and know you've pushed some of your limits.
5. Golspie - I've ridden Golspie twice before so knew what to expect on this days riding. The first time I rode it bad weather meant we couldn't get to the top, the second time I was on a hardtail having taken a break from riding so I was ready on this trip to ride it properly and give it it's due attention. It has one of the most enjoyable climbs of all the trail centres I've ridden, there are a few black sections towards the top but even these are enjoyably difficult! The top takes you to an awesome monument before starting the descent which will need your wits to clear. It's definitely worthy of a black rating with some tricky drop offs and some tricky rock gardens. These continue right the way to the bottom, however, there are easier options once you get closer to the bottom where the red joins the black. One of the beauties of Golspie is the short cuts that exist all the way to the top so once you've completed the 8 mile total loop you can go back up and do shorter sections towards the bottom. Its a VERY quiet trail centre being the furthest north in the UK, we only passed one couple the whole loop so again bear this in mind and plan accordingly. Its still one of my top ten and will remain there!
6. Innerleithen - I have ridden Inneleithen many times, it's one of my favourite spots to ride in the UK and has been in my top five places to ride for many years now but it's been a few years now since I've been so I was glad to finally get back up and either keep it in the top five or relegate it down the scale. The climb at inners is horrible, really hideous! Its instantly lung busting and then when it does settle down there are rocks to overcome and unlike rocks at places like Laggan, they are completely slippy so you really need to nail your 'approach with speed and dont try to pedal over it' technique. When you finally get to the top its basically all downhill with nothing major to worry about, although some advice I've gleaned over the times I've been, stick to the red its much more enjoyable! It's wearing over time and could probably do with some TLC but it's still in my top five places to ride and it's nice and fast and flowy still.
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