Looking for a gravel/MTB route that I can do in the dark overnight next weekend. It needs to be a fairly direct route that gets me from Edinburgh to Dundee. Will be riding XC hardtail.
Spotted St Margaret's Way which would get me to St Andrews, and the rest of the route is self explanatory through Tentsmuir etc. It doesn't exactly fulfil the "direct" brief though.
Any recommendations, or absolute must-avoids?
I have never done this so don't know what it is like
https://bikepacking.com/routes/the-pictish-trail/
Just to throw another Way into the mix - there's also the Pilgrim Way to get you from NQ to St A - https://www.komoot.com/collection/3041051/-fife-pilgrims-way - am sure there's a way to shortcut at the St A end.
Rode it the other way to Dunfermline from Leuchars in the autumn in 6.5 hours of gravel bike tootling. Only bit to really avoid is Markinch to Kennoway section as that's a chunk of field margin stuff that you could just avoid on quiet roads.
I would have also said Pilgrims Way, then at St Andrews head towards Tentsmuir, round to Tayport, the across the bridge
Otherwise, the Fife Coastal Path https://fifecoastandcountrysidetrust.co.uk/walks/fife-coastal-path/
Its direct, in a roundabout fashion 😀
You could take the Pilgrims Way to Lochore Meadows. Come up and over Benarty to Vane Farm and round Loch Leven (to Loch Levens Larder) , either go up the Lomonds (Glenvale). or round them to come into Strathmiglo. Go through Pitmedden down into Newburgh, then take B roads NE to Wormit and Newport.
Or
You could take the Pilgrims Way to Lochore Meadows. Come up and over Benarty to Vane Farm and round Loch Leven (to Loch Levens Larder) , either go up the Lomonds ( Up the Bishop or Glenvale), come down from the Lomonds to Freuchie. Head towards Collessie and from Monimail - up over Dunbog. Take B roads NE to Wormit and Newport.
Pitmedden down into Newburgh, then take B roads NE to Wormit and Newport.
You can pick up the Fife Coastal Path from Newburgh, it actually gets quite spicy towards Balmerino (well, so it seemed on the gravel bike anyway
Cycle.traval is a useful website for this sort of thing.
Give it a route, nudge it using the advice above, then ride:
Actually entirely coincidentally I'll be riding Gleneagles/ Auchterarder to Dundee on the gravel bike on Monday, leaving Synergy Cycles Auchterarder at 9pm if anyone's game for 100km of gravel, singletrack and cobbles 😎
I reckon you can save a fair wack if you come off pilgrims way somewhere between struthers and ceres (or even drop out at pitscottie and come through the gorge at kemback aiming for dairsie.
Then you can do something like
Dirsie, logie, lucklawhill, straiton farm, under the railway through, cross five roads roundabout ish into St Fort Estate and skirt round the dual carriageway to the south access.
Fife has had a very wet winter, anything that uses field margins will be interesting on the mud front.
You could take the Pilgrims Way to Lochore Meadows. Come up and over Benarty to Vane Farm and round Loch Leven (to Loch Levens Larder) , either go up the Lomonds (Glenvale). or round them to come into Strathmiglo. Go through Pitmedden down into Newburgh, then take B roads NE to Wormit and Newport.
This gets my vote.