Do you think all the great lines have been ridden in the mountains of Scotland, surely there is descent lurking somewhere on an unpronounceble peak somewhere just waiting to be discovered, i would like to think so.

Any ideas, i have a few projects in mind and such little time to put in the ground work to see if they are feasable, such as the five sisters of Kintail for starters.

The surface hasnt even been scratched in that regard.

Why waste the effort when you’ve got the 7 Stains ?

That is the impression i get, it would be great to find a line that had all the great elements of a great ride, flow, technicality, unrivaled outlook, there must be dozens, perhaps there are hombres out riding them as we speak, but keeping quite, unlikely considering the weather!

j_me I find the trail center experience fun, but to predictable, get off the beaten track, who knows whats to be found, there is gold in them far off hills.

sorry I was being sarcastic 😉
yes the potential is massive, good luck with the 5 sisters 🙂

I’ve got two or three lines that look awesome, a couple may have been ridden, but I’ve not heard of anyone riding the other.

Am willing to share if you’re ever organising any expeditions!

I have the medical kit(champagne) and know a good doctor called prone!.

Ahhh Doodle on the isle of Rhum by any chance?

Are you allowed to include descents that feature short uphills, are as hard work as the climbs and <gasp> aren’t 100% rideable by weekend warriors head-to-toe in body armour raised on wide smooth paths with artificial features added to stop you falling asleep?

j_me yep perhaps 13floormonk will be lead rider on the Kintail excursion ?

Bloody hell, how did you know I was thinking Kintail?

But guys joking aside i am deadly serious about seeking out great lines, another area i’m sure has mega descents is the Mamores, anyone been high there.

Every munro in Scotland has certainly been ridden by bike. How many would be enjoyable outings by most peoples measures I don’t know but my guess is 10-20%. There are plenty of mountain routes out there that aren’t in the STW domain thats for sure. I think half the fun is finding the unknown ones.

Every munro in Scotland has certainly been ridden by bike.

Even the Inn Pinn? That I would pay to see! 😀

Even the Inn Pinn? That I would pay to see!

Yup. I’ve seen photographic evidence! The odd dab was involved 😛

Edit: A quick google gives a pic here though not the one I had seen.

Well, I’ll go to the foot of our stairs! 🙂

But guys joking aside i am deadly serious about seeking out great lines, another area i’m sure has mega descents is the Mamores, anyone been high there.

Yep, at the weekend actually. There were some entertaining lines off Mullach nan Coirean down to the Polldubh cottage car park, one was very muddy and rooty but looked like it would go, the other looked like a lot of fun but t.h.b. could have been straight out of a trail centre.

There’s a very interesting looking stalker’s path leading up from Mamore Lodge, would be worth investigating but a lot of stalker’s paths I’ve ridden of a similar ilk are just straight – sharp rutted switchback – straight – sharp rutted switchback etc. etc. Not bad but not always worth the grief to get to the top.

So you have been higher than most eh!
Is that the stalkers path up onto Na Gruagaichean via the west ridge, i wonder if the final section to the summit is quartz scree boulders, there is also the stalkers path up to Sgurr Elide Beag, you could then continue onto the summit of Binnein Mor, potential for sure, i must check these out some time.

The S Claunie ridge would be a nice ride. I recall coming down off it by an undistinguished route, but you would have a lot of options for descent to try and find a good one. Easy enough up at the E end. Hiking routes up to the 5 sisters are steep – you’d have some committed descents there if that’s what you’re after.

Depends what you like really – Munro biking appeals to me if it’s mainly a ride. Hairy-arsed MTB riding out in the hills. If it’s a big hike up and rag it down I’m not interested.

Sorry, quick hijack: Garry Lager, do you still want those brakes? sorry I never caught up with you last week, frantic last minute packing overwhelmed me a little!

Is that the stalkers path up onto Na Gruagaichean via the west ridge, i wonder if the final section to the summit is quartz scree boulders

Thats the one, looked very well made beneath the ridge at least, above the ridge it would probably be steep and rocky, I was only walking and found a lot of the paths there pretty steep!

I’ve forgotten where one of those is, the other is above Glen ******* and descends off the side of an 800m ridge.

Hey Iain that’s no problem – I got some sorted in the end. Thanks for the offer though.

Nice work, is that top one Na Grua….whats the surface like on these.

Nah, they’re both Kintail area, and I’ve ridden neither so couldn’t comment, although the top one joins on to a fairly well known descent in the area (described by a mate as one of the best he’d ever ridden).

How about Bealach Duibh Leach, east of Sgur na Sgine for the bottom one getting hot?

Garry Lager do you know The five sisters reasonably well was thinking the ridge NW of Sgurr nan Saighead, then down from the col below point 576m.

Don’t know it all that well Fergal, just walked it twice and that was 5 years ago. I remember that descent you describe, I got briefly separated from my wife in the mist there and we had a massive argument about it. Doesn’t stand out as a good biking descent – just bog and heather I think.
You’d still need to know how best to exploit the steep drop down to the valley from below the col at 576.

There is a rough path up to the Bealach an lapain at the other end that might have some potential. From memory it’s a steep, ardous hike up though that you’d probably need to be DH-skilled to ride back down in any fluent fashion.

Every munro in Scotland has certainly been ridden by bike

I wouldn’t class walkers carrying a bike up to the top of each being ridden ‘properly’ 🙂

I always chuckle when I read UK downhillers complaining that there aren’t any mountains in the UK. There are plenty, it just takes a bit of effort! There are years and years worth of exploring the proper big hills and mountains up there.

Cheers Lagers, while your online, do you you reckon the south Cluanie ridge would be a goer then, a big traverse, would the downs inbetween summits be doable, been looking at photo’s to try and get some pointers, will shut up now.

Probably doable for long stretches, but tbh it might be inferior to hiking it – unless you uncovered an absolute top drawer descent. Long day as well.

This is how it looks on top:

I wouldn’t class walkers carrying a bike up to the top of each being ridden ‘properly’

What exactly do you define as properly? You either ride down it the mountain or you don’t. Maybe its only properly if you have full body armour and a 6″ radcore bike. 😛

Well those guys managed the Aonach Eagach with their bikes, strapped to their rucsacs for most of it apparently, does that count as riding it?

What about the traverse from Stob Ghabhar to Glencoe ski centre? Perhaps take the lift up and do any out and back.

Nice little ridge which can be ridden.

What exactly do you define as properly? You either ride down it the mountain or you don’t. Maybe its only properly if you have full body armour and a 6″ radcore bike

I got the impression that the bikes were carried a lot, and an experienced mountain biker would ride a bit more than someone who is more of a walker that is carrying a bike. I guess you are right, a lot of trails in the highlands would benefit from a big bike to come down too, though I wouldn’t fancy dragging one up!

Messiah “one of the narrowest ridges in the Cairngorms” 😉 i see the Devils point peeking out in the corner, do you know if anyone has ridden the path from Corrour bothy to DP.

Letting the cat out of the bag but one of my prospective rides, possibly this summer, is Cairn Toul down to the col on DP, then path to Corrour bothy (this path is good and could be a peach of a descent, although the upper section maybe a little hairy), what is putting me off is the trail of tears back along the ghru to get back to Aviemore.

Why go out to the north unless it’s part of a longer route? You can loop in and out via Glens Luibeg and Dee (probably in that order) which are quite pleasant, rather than an out and back.

The lower section of the CoireOdhar path was repaired reasonably recently, the upper has been under snow every time I’ve been up recently (its a good winter access route which is generally when I’ve been). The upper section is pretty steep in any case and I wouldn’t think of biking it if it was anything like it was back in the day (remember it as too steep to contemplate with V’s and rocky/eroded). Either way from the bealach the tops are pretty bouldery and will likely see you carrying though some paths have emerged in places.

Thanks for the input, would approach Carn Toul via Glen Einich so need to get back north. The DP path i am sure would be very technical at the top but doable, was up there last summer, but even now i cannot really remember what the path at the headwall is like.

>what is putting me off is the trail of tears back along the ghru to get back to Aviemore.<

Nothing difficult about that – not half as bad as the trail of tears if you go CT, DP Corrour 😉