Heading down there this weekend and I notice that the black trails are “closed”. Are they properly closed or is there sneak past the tape scope at the weekend?

Bump!

I thought they opened back up few weeks ago?

http://7stanesmountainbiking.com/Kirroughtree
Cafe is also closed.
Laggan outdoors for an alternative
Call Sam or Phil at the bikeshop(Breakpad)for local advice

Has been open / shut randomness every time we’ve been this year. Usually all clear at weekends.

We were there last week and there was a diversion from the narrow tarmac road bit where you enter Rivendell. Unfortunately, the diversion sent you on all the forest roads the trucks were using, so it was a filthy mud and diesel swamp in places (and busy with them loading logs) plus no singletrack until McMoab to make it worthwhile.

If doing it again, I’d turn left when you hit that little road and follow it to the main A road. Turn right up that road for 5 mins and start black at Talnotry / up Heartbreak Hill. You can also access McMoab from that point.

I appreciate it is a working forest etc – but just wish they’d close a section, do the job, re-open and move onto the next bit. Instead it seems to be random carnage everywhere. Open sections that turn out to be blocked / still being worked on. Closed sections that are clear and not being worked.

I’ve done the diversion that mick_r suggests. It is doable but is quite a bit more than 5 mins. It’s at least 2 miles down the road of which there is a bit of road climb. Another way of doing is it parking at Heartbreak hill carpark and only doing the across the road black bit before driving round the the trailhead and then doing other bits you want. There is also a way of getting to the forest road where you join across the road at the bottom of the talnotry hill trail.

So is the Black Craig bit across the road open then?

Is it worth running the whole black at the weekend anyway if the felling is not happening??

(we are up there this weekend too)

Cheers,
Mark

Sounds like there’s definitely sneak past the tape scope then. We’ll suck it and see.