[Closed] glentress black on your own

its pretty easy if your a capable rider. No jumps etc, technically its pretty o.k. You go up, then you come down. Pretty simple really. From the top to the bottom if things do go bad then your never far from rescue ( about 3 miles or so)

not a problem - i ride it solo mostly.

ah cheers guys just what I wanted to hear 🙂 I have been to wales quite abit and the peaks but never to scotland and wondered what there black grading is like 🙂 I take it its well sign posted around the trail 🙂

it can feel a bit long and lonely on your own, which is really nice!
edit signage is great
theres nothing too technical on it, you can even take a signed shortcut back at some point if its too long for u, iirc

Black for its length rather than technicality

It's not all that black tbh, honestly I reckon if it were opened today it'd be red. There's a couple of short sections at the end (the bitch, wormhole and double x) that raise the difficulty but they're right in beside the red route, and so relatively busy.

It's lovely though... Very wet in places just now, needs a wee bit of drainage fettling I reckon, but it has a fairly "out there" feel which still in reality being pretty compact and not too far out. Do take a map, though, as the bailouts aren't always that obvious.

To be honest the Black isn't that good. Do Innerleithen and then go and do the red at Glentress...much better!

I think the black is good. The climb is interesting and long without being technical. Britney Spears and Deliverance are good descents. Redemption can be a ball ache though. I tend to do the black on my own but stray onto the red instead of Double X and the Bitch.

Did it by myself last year, in the sodding rain. I'm no trail God and had few problems. Proper mountain bike ride though.

The black is just draggy, and the climb has absolutely no redeeming qualities at all. Deliverance is fun, and there's a few odd little bits of descent that actually offer a challenge, but it's mostly just not worth the effort.

Go do the innerleithen red - an actually interesting climb with enough techy bits to keep it challenging, and a descent that rewards you for the climbing effort. Then if you still fancy riding do the red at glentress, far more reward for your effort.

when you say in length how long is it ? on the website it says 29 km , is that correct ?

I'm pretty shit technically and find it quite a bit harder than the red overall particularly towards the end. With the red i can do all the features, dont really need to think about anything but on the black there are some bits (like the rock garden at the start of the wormhole) that i struggle on and dont particularly enjoy riding.

However despite that as an overall trail i like it and continue going back for more as it is usually very quiet and i wont see or hear anyone else for a couple of hours - it gives you a feeling of being a bit out on your lonesome, unlike the red where you are never far from someone else.

It's just under twenty miles, but it feels like it goes up and down the hill twice, so you end up riding for quite a long time grinding up dull climbs.

I see maybe do the the inertheithen instead ....im staying there so might give that a go ...whats the verdict on this trail ?

Do it on my own too regularly and not tricky at all with no big surprises.IMHO to get the most out of it you need to know when to hammer it and when to pace yourself,which unfortunately usually only comes with having done it.Britney,Boundary trail and Deliverance hammer it but make sure you've got plenty of air in your back tyre as a puncture on Deliverance can spoil things-watch those stream crossings.If you plod/mince it may appear dull.There's plenty of time for plodding on the rest of the trail! Don't look too far forward/upward on the Tower ride climb and get a low gear you can keep on spinning in esp.if wet. Pace yourself on Redemption and once you get to the switchbacks you've cracked it.And make sure you take the black choices rather than red when you rejoin the main trails if you like technical stuff. The Bitch(despite the name) is one of my fave bits just wish it went on longer as it's over in a couple of minutes.
Most people mix red ,black and blue to suit.

richieokeefe1 - Member

I see maybe do the the inertheithen instead ....im staying there so might give that a go ...whats the verdict on this trail ?

The black isn't good enough for some, so they recommend Inners instead......really??!! There's far more to the GT black than Inners in my book. Inners is just a long slog up with trail-centre-by-numbers trails back down, and if riding solo you'll do it in no time whatsoever. At least you feel like you've done something and had some decent riding on the black

Innerleithen's good too, not so much better or worse as different. GT black has a more laid back, slightly backcountry feel, Innerleithen is more your incredibly manmade, gravel path + features sort of trail. Some standout bits and a pretty interesting climb, but a bit lacking in variety if you only do the red. (and where does the altitude go? You pedal as much on the descents as the climbs)

Anyway- if you've got time do 'em all. Otherwise do the ones that ticks your boxes. I don't think anyone rides these trails once and complains, I've ended up a bit less impressed with innerleithen than I used to be but it took a few goes before it wore thin. Doubt you'll have a bad ride at any of em.

It's pretty tame, more techy than the red, but then I think the red is pretty straight foreward. The whole center seems designed to be ridden on sight with no suprises so when I a lot of it of it twice in a weekend I wasnt actualy any faster 2nd time through.

And I'm unfit but reckon it was twenty 'easy' miles, some places like the Lakes 20 would leave me dead, GT isn't one of them, I did the red and black back to back with no issues. Innerleithern's worth doing too, it's easy to do the black, then the red on one day, then do the blue and add spooky wood onto the top, then turn off and do the blue decednts again, and even then the climbs are fairly short so you could double back and ride any you fancy. Then do Innerleithen red in the afternoon, but be aware the climb is a killer. It's ridiculously steep for the first few miles, then suddenly flattens out and becomes quite fast for the 2nd half. The decent is cracking though.

Innerliethen is really short - not a days ride unless you do some of the down hill runs as well.

The black is fine if your a fit rider*, the uphills really aren't that hard and there is plenty of entertaining down - its a bit less bmx track than the rest of Glentres. If you look at the map it is really easy to do the black to redemption and then join the red back up to the top of spooky wood and do that as well. Might even be worth splitting from the red on the way back to take in the blue bits like berm baby berm.

If you want, berms, jumps and smoothness then GT red and blue. If you want way marked fun "natural" riding then the black.

*If you are genuinely fit then you can ride most of the red blue and black at GT comfortably in a day. GT Black, Innerliethen, GT red combined is about 40 miles if you ride between them.

legend - Member

The black isn't good enough for some, so they recommend Inners instead [b]+ the red at Glentress too![/b]

thisisnotaspoon - Then do Innerleithen red in the afternoon, but be aware the climb is a killer. It's ridiculously steep for the first few miles

d45yth - Member
thisisnotaspoon - Then do Innerleithen red in the afternoon, but be aware the climb is a killer. It's ridiculously steep for the first few miles

??? The climb just moseys away, it does go on for a bit though. The climbs at Glentress are worse, especially the one to the tower on the black.

Both wrong...the first bit is steep switchbacks going by the DH tracks, then mellows, up/downs, then up to the top.

cynic-al - Member
Both wrong...the first bit is steep switchbacks going by the DH tracks, then mellows, up/downs, then up to the top.

Alternatively, when going up the first bridleway, completely ignore the sign pointing you up the trail to the left (shitty rock steppy section) continue for 50 yards, join the fireroad, arrive at quarry after a few hundred yards and continue on knowing that you've just skipped the boring meandering bits 🙂

Whatever cynic-al. None of it can be classed as steep.

the climb is a killer. It's ridiculously steep for the first few miles

wrong...the first bit is steep switchbacks going by the DH tracks

Spot the difference between those two statements?

??? The climb just moseys away, it does go on for a bit though. The climbs at Glentress are worse, especially the one to the tower on the black.

The start to the climb at Innerleithen isn't steep but you do get into it straight from the car park. This means you are not yet into a rhythm when getting to the rocky bits.

[quote=legend ]
Alternatively, when going up the first bridleway bridleway? 🙄

If Spooky Wood is your absolute, no questions, most favourite bit of the red and you often just ride straight up the fire roads to get to it, then you'll probably not appreciate the black too much. If you like the narrower, wigglier bits of the red and can cope with a rougher trail surface and longer climbs then there's much to enjoy on the black.

druidh - Member
legend »
Alternatively, when going up the first bridleway
bridleway?

Call it whatever then, it aint singletrack and it isn't a fire road so whatever boring description is in-between

druidh - Member

bridleway?

Everyone calls it that, don't know why... But a bridleway doesn't have to be an english approved-for-traffic style bridleway, it can just be an old horse track.

Not that I approve of skipping bits of interesting climbing in order to ride up boring forestry road, regardless of whether it's a bridleway or not 😉 Let alone skipping a whole climb and descent and riding straight to the quarry. Why not just ride once round the carpark and go home?

The bit past the DH tracks at inners is a granny ring winch that seems to go on for ever

I regularly ride both Inners and GT, all trails - and enjoy them all. Black is pretty satisfying.

Is GT Black ok for a solo? Sure, but if you do crock yourself just beware that its not that highly used and you may have a wait for help - and there are many mobile dead-spots.

Inners is good fun, but its basically 6 miles of climbing then 6 miles of descent - up/down in 2 hours at the most.

the descent off minch moor is well worth the effort to get up there

Not that I approve of skipping bits of interesting climbing in order to ride up boring forestry road, regardless of whether it's a bridleway or not Let alone skipping a whole climb and descent and riding straight to the quarry. Why not just ride once round the carpark and go home?

Wrong quarry. It takes you to the quarry you go through on the way up, not the way down

The minch moor climb makes for a belter of a descent at 3am on a monday morning in january when there is a full moon. Makes you realise just how long the climb is.

He means the quarry with the big bombhole like feature with a choice of two chutes after it, or one before it. There is a descent into that, albeit a short one.

legend - Member

Wrong quarry. It takes you to the quarry you go through on the way up, not the way down

Er, what are you talking about? It takes you to the quarry at the end of the taniel hill descent- so as I said, skips a whole climb and descent 😕 it's not like it's a long route so why cut bits off?

Don't know how I ever make it up Inners or get round GT black for that matter running 1x9 and those who I saw on rigid SS well.....

I feel slightly inadequate now only manged it on 1x10...............

Besides, I said inners was a granny ring slog, not GT, although I manged that 1x10 too, but it wasn't pretty.

Is it possible to take a route avoiding the rocky steps low down but still come in above the quarry, as I like the descent to it on Taniel Hill?

Aye, you can ride straight past the steppy climb, then shortly after you have a choice of turning left, and up a short fire road climb to the start of taniel hill climb, instead of going right/straightish and down to the quarry.

Yes - instead of taking the left where it goes upto the rock steps go straight on to the fire road, turn left there, then continue up the hill past the entrance to the next section of rocky bits, past one of the DH trails, then there is a trail goes off on the right. It then crosses one of the DH trails then meets up with the xc route at the end of the straigh climb after the rocks finish.

Option two - go up to the first rock step and instead of taking the right corner go straight ahead and gain your height by following the path straight ahead for a hundred yards or so before following the path upto the right and joining the trail mentioned above.

Option three - ride up the push up track until you get to the path mentioned in the other two options. Or further up if you feel so inclined.

I love the black at GT. As soon as you get past the Buzzard's nest you are on your own nothing like the rest of the centre which can be mobbed. I love the Tower climb, love Britney, okay don't really like the slog up to the mast but then it is pure joy down to Deliverance. Not really much of a fan of Deliverance and Redemption so often skip these to move on to better stuff.
On your own definitely. With mates sure but you can sit around waiting for ages.

Thanks guys.

Er, what are you talking about? It takes you to the quarry at the end of the taniel hill descent- so as I said, skips a whole climb and descent it's not like it's a long route so why cut bits off?

That descent is in no way worth the climb (if you stick to the official trail) to get there.

Anyway, don't mind me - I just think that the Inners XC route is pish

[i]That descent is in no way worth the climb (if you stick to the official trail) to get there.[/i]

Its barely a climb, just a few mins of middle-ring.