Gravel Rides Scotland: 28 gravel bike adventures in the wilds of Scotland

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From our earliest products, the objectives at Kinesis UK have always been to create bikes, bike frames, wheels and components for road, cyclocross, adventure and mountain bikes that excel in UK riding conditions. For us to put a Kinesis UK badge on any product it must be well made and dependable all year round, perform at a level beyond its price point and help people have fun while riding or in use. The days are so long in the summer that you’ll probably never need lights while riding, although they may be useful in camp. In winter, you’ll definitely need some extra illumination on your bike though. This route is a loop from Kinross, which the book says spans “from faster sections on rural roads and the cycle path along the shores of Loch Leven to more technical off-road passages.” The Lomond Hills are a really nice place to ride. You're not going high up, so you can ride the route year round... The impact guiding has on people is what Aneela loves most about it. The effect it has, not just in terms of the journey or the ride itself, but also the social interaction and being connected to the environment. She has the ability to show people places they've never been, and enjoys how confident and happy cycling makes people. And does she plan to run any guided gravel experiences? Not yet, but possibly in the future. Tweed Valley gravel route Oban to Fort William (route 78) - these popular Highland towns are connected by 48 miles of mostly flat paths that take you past lochs, castles and the picturesque coastline.

The mountain bike trails on Cathkin Braes were custom-built to host cycling events at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. This gives you a certain guarantee of the trail quality and, sure enough, there’s some serious infrastructure up there. The route is inspired by an old Drovers trail – the Drovers being men who would bargain for cattle, then form a herd to take south to towns like Falkirk or Crieff to sell as summer arrived. It’s a particularly unusual inspiration for a route, and a ride that follows historic footsteps through lesser seen parts of Scotland. Leading on from that, it’s versatile, instead of owning and maintaining both a mountain bike and a road bike, plump for one gravel bike. With over 20 years in the cycling industry, we’ve built up a fantastic amount of in-house experience, talent and depth in our team. Our knowledge and expertise at selecting the best materials, the right components, design, construction, engineering and manufacturing partners through to colours and design. We use international elite cyclists to test all of our bikes and this culmination has seen Kinesis UK flourish and grow. Big Rides: Great Britain and Irelandis an inspirational guide to the most iconic, epic and popular long-distance cycle trails in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland, including two excursions from mainland Britain to Northern France. The twenty-five featured routes showcase the best of Britain on two wheels. For those who prefer to pedal on-road, the routes take you along the historic Way of the Roses trail through Lancaster and York, as well as across Scotland’s Atlantic perimeter on the Hebridean Way. The trails head off-road to Northern England’s hills on the Sea to Sea (C2C) and past iconic monuments in Southern England on King Alfred’s Way. Mountain bike enthusiasts will find plenty to challenge them in the Sarn Helen and through the Scottish Highlands on the renowned Highland Trail 550. The routes then head offshore, to Ireland’s coast on the Wild Atlantic Way and from Devon and Dorset’s Jurassic Coast to Normandy’s alabaster cliffs on the Tour de Manche. Vertebrate Publishing’s Big Rides books are designed to inspire big adventures. Rather than being carried along the route, this guide provides everything you need to plan and explore further, including a general overview of the trails, specific technical information, overview mapping, key information and stunning photography. As well as this, each route specifies approximate timings which allows for you to plan your adventure at your own pace. Whether you’re completing routes at a leisurely speed or racing towards the finish, let Big Rides: Great Britain & Ireland be your guide.Filled with practical tips and advice on all aspects of gravel riding, including the bike itself, essential kit to carry when out on a ride, as well as a brief history of gravel riding in Scotland. Contains 28 routes, ranging from 31 to 128 kilometres in length, exploring the very best gravel riding that Scotland has to offer. Beautifully illustrated, easy to use and with a ton of useful information … perfect for exploring on two wheels.’Richard Bath, Scottish Field I’m just an average guy who found bikes a bit later in life and is trying to make up for lost time. In the last five years I’ve raced a few seasons of cyclocross, done a bit of touring around Scotland and completed two ultra-distance cycling events: the Transcontinental Race and the 2020 Atlas Mountain Race. I love just how much distance you can cover in a relatively short period of time and exploring local lanes and new destinations. After a day in the rain, you’ll probably not want to ride a second day in wet kit, so take several changes of clothing. If you’re camping, make sure that it’s all well wrapped up in dry bags. Take something to wash out wet, dirty clothing with too.

Great British Gravel Rides is not your ordinary cycling guidebook. Instead of simply compiling a variety of routes to ride, I (Markus Stitz) took a different approach and introduce you to key people in the gravel riding world, understand their motivation for cycling and to ride their favourite routes in Britain. The book features a total of 25 different routes for beginners, intermediate and expert riders, spread across England, Scotland and Wales. If you’ve got more time, combine a trip to Cathkin Braes with some of the other riding in the Central Belt. Head to Beecraigs in Linlithgow, the Callendar Estate via Falkirk High, or explore the beautiful Pentland Hills on the outskirts of Edinburgh, all easily accessible by train. Start from the south and head north to take advantage of the, potentially strong, prevailing winds rather than spending your days riding into a headwind. The route is waymarked so it’s easy to follow.

I follow lots of people on Komoot that I find really inspiring and they get me amped up to explore and ride more. That’s really useful if you’re all out of ideas.” We launched this brand believing that UK riders will appreciate products that are carefully designed to make UK riding better and are affordable and over the years many thousands of Kinesis customers have agreed with us.

If you fancy island hopping, the Hebridean Way is a road ride that takes you from one end to the other of the wild and remote Outer Hebrides. It takes in ten islands including Vatersay, Barra, Eriskay, South Uist, Benbecula, North Uist, Harris and Lewis. On the way are six causeways and two ferry rides. Along the way, you’ll pass Cowper’s Alcove, Cowper and Newton Museum, the Emberton Country Park, Great Linford Manor Park and Bradwell Windmill.

Gravel Rides Scotland

Plan your own Highlands adventure Meet Neil Henderson, the Komoot Pioneer who organised the team’s Highland fling. Cycling in Scotland can be one of the toughest, but ultimately the most rewarding, experiences. For starters, the scenery is as varied as the weather. From dramatic mountains shrouded in mist to scenic glens, Scotland’s cycling routes will impress even the most seasoned cyclists. The Loch Ness 360 - connecting the Great Glen Way and the South Loch Ness Trail, keep your eyes peeled for Nessie as you pedal around the surrounding countryside. Another example of that is that the route also goes by Olney, where 'Amazing Grace' was composed. There's a pavilion where you can sit and look out on a field, and that's where Reverend John Newton used to sit and write. Those kinds of things I find really interesting.” Lomond Hills Gravel, Perth and Kinross/Fife, Scotland The Lomond Hills are a range easily reached from Kinross, a town between Dundee and Edinburgh. Photo: Markus Stitz The Drovers Trail is not just about the scenery, but the dense forests, rolling hills, deep glens and winding routes do make for dramatic viewing. There’s a whole lot of history along the way, too.

Trains offer a great way to link up routes. Scotland is home to some iconic train lines like the West Highland Line and the Scot Rail from Glasgow to Oban (and soon extending to Fort William), which has dedicated bike carriages. Some routes rely on trains, such as Beauly to Ardgay, so train stations are indicated to help you link up the rides. Before reaching that promised land, however, there was the other promise that Neil had mentioned at the start – crossing that aforementioned “boggy” bit. It would transpire that “boggy” was a gross understatement, with the emphasis very firmly on gross. Markus says: “I find Kinross quite an interesting place. There used to be three railway lines going into it and now it has none. That's partially because someone decided to build a big motorway from Edinburgh northbound, and the railway line had to give way to that. So in a way, Kinross as a town is a place where public transport has been going in and out for decades. You can also extend things by looping around Arran, which adds 88km for a complete circuit of the island.

For each route, Markus sought out a gravel rider based in the area, from GBDURO winners Josh Ibbett and Gail Brown in East Anglia to Markus’ fellow round-the-world record holders in Scotland, Jenny Graham and Mark Beaumont. The end result is a guidebook which is not only full of local expertise and exceptional bike routes, but which also has more of a human edge. Stitz 26 routes are split between Wales, England and Scotland, and each is based on the expertise of local riders. Photo: Markus Stitz We had planned to ride with Andy and Robert Penn originally. Robert has written a book called 'It's All About the Bike', where he travelled the world to assemble his dream bicycle. I have a German translation and watched a documentary about it as well. I got to stay with Robert when I was in Wales researching the route. He's a super interesting character and the story of [Andy's business] Twmpa Cycles is really interesting - they make bikes out of wood. The Scotrail network is extensive though and can get you to some far-flung areas, although it too peters out towards the northwest. Look out if you’re planning to take your bike on the train north of Inverness, to Oban and on a few other routes, as some services require a reservation to be sure your bike will be carried.