[Closed] Goatfell

Good, but you get to a point up on the shoulder that there's no point taking bike any further.

We (family, no bike) were over on Arran last week and I was drooling at thought of going up Sannox Glen over the bealach and down to Brodick via Glen Rosa. However when I dropped into the bike shop in Brodick for a wee shufty and to see if they had any mtb route maps for the island (they don't) the owner told me the the National Trust for Scotland, who manage Goat Fell and environs are not keen on mtb activity up there because of the delicate tundra type habitat.
If you know different or just go and do it anyway, please tell and I'll get the ferry booked.

Hardly any environmental impact if you stick to the main path-it has hunners of walkists up there every week. It was a bit of an anticlimax iirc. It'll be a major hike, particularly as you get to the left turn on the shoulder as nobeer says-and certainly unrideable (for me anyway) on the way down. There is a couple of lovely fast flowing sections on the way back down but a. Not worth the trek up and b. could be well ruined by walkers.

Edit-IMO the best descent is the descent into Broddick from the south. Do a search on the full route-there was a post recently with gpx files

One of these by any chance?

[url] http://www.mtbtrails.info/Trail_Venue.aspx?VenueNumber=46#TrailNumber63 ]null[/url]

A pal and myself tried doing Glen Rosa - Glen Sannox about twenty years ago, but were thwarted by the crags at the corrie head in Glen Sannox. Difficult with a bike.

I've done that saddle over form Glen Sannox to Glen Rosa twice this year. Bits of it are ace, but as said above, the hike a bike up from Sannox side is brutal. It's so steep, we form a chain and hand the bikes up, as you need to have a good foot/hand hold. The descent down into Glen Rosa starts off great, but the path is so eroded/deep that you get right pissed off, really no room for pedals.

Kunstler, gimme a shout when you want to go, I'm just down the road from Ardrossan in Prestwick, and like to think I know the best stuff on the island, I'd be glad to show.

Nobeer - we did that Sannox / Rosa route last month. I quite enjoyed it but the two other GMBCers reckoned it was the worst "ride" they've ever done. It is a bit frustrating due to the deep ruts in places. I quite like hike a bike though.

Goat Fell is OK, although it was snowing when we were up and the first section off the shoulder was slippy as. Overall it was OK, not as good as some other big hills in my opinion. Wouldn't go near it on a weekend, not much fun with all the walkers. It can be a bit frustrating in places, due to the vast number of walkers the path has erroded between boulders in places making it unrideable.

Cheers Nobeer. I went on Saturday - a bit of a spur of the moment thing. The wind was pretty raging and the last ferry back was cancelled so I had less time and ended up doing the Clauchlands route. Funny as I went to 'Scotland in miniature' for some rocky Highland stuff but ended up in the miniature central belt, which is where I'd travelled from. Nice to be on an island even if I couldn't see much of the mountains. Clauchlands was alright when I wasn't getting blown sideways.

I'd heard about your 'march of doom' Tom!. 😆

It's a bit frustrating at times, but if you start the ride out to Laggan cottage, then up and over to Lochranza, at least you get some good miles in, and a cracking descent into Lochranza, then up the road, coffee n cake at Corrie golf club, before you get your ropes n crampons on!.

The guys from the club over there frequently talk about a ride on the west of the island, from thundergay up to coire fionn lochain, and along the beinn bhreac ridge line, but I've never managed over that side on the MTB yet, need to get round and give it a bash.

I often wonder how the glen rosa horseshoe would be on a bike too (the round of beinn nuis, tarsuinn and chlabhian from glen rosa) only one way to find out I suppose.