Hi, I would like to go to SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS for a summer trip, but get sooo turned off once i start google all the things. Is here anyone that could offer / give me some tips? Some local cyclist?
ADDITIONAL: I would want to spend some time for pop culture - Edinburg or(and) Glasgow - concerts,…
BIKE PACKING is NOT my cup of tea - would like to stay at one place and have several routes at hand.
(If someone asked me this for my country I would shoot like no biggie :))
You could start on this site, which has good route descriptions, accommodation recommendations and advice:
Thanks, will look.
I live in Edinburgh and have a passing familiarity with the cycling options in the Highlands. Happy to provide what info I can.
It would help if you could set out some basic parameters. Road/gravel/MTB? Toruing by bike or based in one place (if so, where)? Rough ability? Anything particular that has caught your eye and you want to definitely include?
Hello! I live in Inverness*, the capital of the Highlands. Riding bikes around here is one of the best things a human can do with their time IMO.
If you can clarify what kind of riding you’re into, whether you need to hire a bike and what length of rides you’re thinking of I can help you narrow down your search.
*if you remember Dane Cash’s story about Inverness on the Spin Cycle podcast I want to assure you that is not a typical experience.
@SteveC @tim_k7906 mornin from Slovenia!
My ideal plan would be Edinburg for a day or two, and 4-5 days on a road bike I would need to hire. Route preferences: 70-80km/1000 vm or more km less vm climbing. Nature is superb there, so I have no bucket list. I can stay at one place (pref rbnb) and go to E from there. I would prefer not to be stationed somewhere in the wild, with no soul around:)
Timetable :mid july - mid august. Thank you so much!
If you are starting in Edinburgh and need to rent a bike, look at Projekt Ride. Great shop and they do lots of rentals for people travelling north.
Look to use the trains to open up options. Despite what’s advertised, most trains in the central belt are fine to use without booking the bike onto, rust roll up whenever you like, as long as you steer clear of rush hour. Meanwhile trains into the highlands/cairngorms would need to be booked. One thing to remember though is that I once out of the central belt, it takes a long time to get anywhere.
While I know you said Highlands, you might want to consider the Borders area south of Edinburgh. Way more route options within a smaller overall area and surprisingly quiet. You can ride straight from Edinburgh, or better still it’s only an hour on the train from central Edinburgh to Tweedbank/Galashiels from where you can start some great routes. It’s not the highlands in terms of scenery, but it’s great cycling (road, gravel or MTB), and you can still get remote/away from it all.
For actual Scottish Highlands, the more dramatic landscapes start North of the highland boundary fault:
There is for sure some nice riding in the central belt around Edinburgh/Glasgow, but I’m not sure I’d base a cycling holiday around it. JC1979 makes a good point about the Borders - I don’t know that area well enough to advise so I’ll keep my recommendations to what I know.
The closest city to Edinburgh with good Highland access is Perth. It’s about an hour’s journey and is a small city that you can get out of quickly by bike. From here you can access places like the Sma’ Glen and the Angus Glens although you’ll need to stretch your distace a bit to get there. If you’ll have a car that would open up lots of options, as would opting for a smaller town a bit further North like Dunkeld or Pitlochry.
If you’re willing to travel further then Inverness (3-4 hours travel from Edinburgh) has a lot more wild stuff on the doorstep. Off the top of my head you could could see Loch Ness, the cairngorms or Glen Affric pedalling from your doorstep. A day trip to Bealach na Ba / Applecross is possible with a car, and maybe even by train (although there’d be little margin for error in planning that).
Travel wise within Scotland, I’ve found booking trains via thetrainline.com to be the most user friendly. THere’s a fairly new bus company called Ember who are opening new routes up all the time and they take bikes if you book in advance. The citylink coaches don’t reliably take bikes although in some cases you can get lucky.
Once you’ve picked a destination then I’d be more than happy to suggest some specific routes to try.
Your big problem is that there’s not that many roads in a lot of the highlands. Personally I’d look at Deeside, I.e. inland from Aberdeen as it’s lovely round there and there’s enough roads you can get in some varied riding. As above Pitlochry and Dunkeld are good options too and you could do some nice loops from there, plus both accessible from Edinburgh on the train.
Be aware that because of the Edinburgh Festival accommodation in Edinburgh in August is going to be pricey.
While this is true, I think unless you choose somewhere really remote there’s enough roads to support a few days riding in a lot of places.
U are best! Will take a look during the weekend and I hope to come back if any further questions. Have a riding one!
