Any good routes in the hills around Crieff?

Off to Crieff next weekend and hoping to take the bike. I know about the Hairy Coo trail at Comrie but are there any worth doing in the hills. Google Earth shows some tracks around Glenturret but are they worthwhile.

Thanks for any help.

Glen Artney is interesting with a variety of mostly easy ground but with a rutted Land Rover track heading towards Callander and long boggy stretches between Auchinner and Dalclattick. My brother and I spent a day cycling up there and back from Comrie in November.

Thanks, I found a link describing the route – promising. The ‘long boggy stretches’ doesn’t sound too appealing unless there is a hard frost

The ground on the surrounding hills is firm now. The snow flattened foliage, grass bracken etc, means that conditions are ideal for exploring, easy to see where to go. You are extremely unlikely to sink hub deep in any bog the noo. Make the most of it. Keep well clear of sheep but.

I did an epic loop up Glen Lednock in October 08 – below is my account of it from another forum:

My legs still hurt!!!

Excellent ride yesterday, was Dwayne, his mate Alex and myself out in the hills. It was mostly trudge, but the descents were excellent and markedly different.

We started at Invergeldie, and rode up towards Loch Lednock on tarmac. Reaching the loch, we crossed a river delta and had some fun attempting to navigate a rocky beach towards where we thought the path was. After a steep climb up a fence line, we reached what we thought was the path over to Loch Tay. This was the first of many occurrences of us losing the path, with some Indiana Jones style trailfinding until we eventually found the sliver thought to be the path.

There was a long trudge uphill until we reached the watershed, and then a really good descent to Ardeonaig. This was along a pretty vague path, with continual rocks, puddles, streams and bogs to either avoid or go straight through, hoping for the best.

In the final approach to Ardeonaig, we crossed a few fields and saw a convenient gate that we went through, and discovered that we had come out exactly where the path finished.

A tarmac ride along the Loch took us to Ardtalnaig, where the second ascent of the day began. We climbed firstly on tarmac and then on doubletrack to Dunan, and crossed the river at the weir to begin the painful ascent towards the moor. Finishing the ascent, we crossed the boggy moor (the trudging was approaching miserable by this point), and made it onto the landie track that marked the beginning of our descent to the carpark. It was a fast descent, hairy in places down to the speeds reached, but it marked the end to an excellent ride.

37k, about 1150m ascent, but very tiring. We did it in about 7 hours with not much in the way of stops. I’d recommend it though.

AlasdairMc -sounds like a bit of an epic. Will only have half a day as the bettehalves get half a day to MTB as well (silly idea!). Might try the course of the St Fillan Challenge and then the Hairy Coo route.

Ben Chonzie is not a bad climb (mostly all rideable apart from a couple of steeper scree-like bits on a landy track) and if you get a clear run at it, a good descent. I spent a day last autumn doing this in the morning and the Comrie croft trails in the afternoon. Fun.

Start in Comrie, up through Laggan wood, all the way up to Melville’s monument and then down past the Deils Cauldron.
Short, sharp and fun, if you want super technical you can come straight down the front of the Monument rather than switchback land rover track.

Good route up at Dunkeld round Birnam Hill and Rumbling Bridge. Its in kenny Wilsons book if you have access to it. Not far from Crieff and a good all round route.

Ben Chonzie sounds fun, i don’t mind pushing a bit. Did you take the bike to the top and how long do you reckon for the round trip. Is it do-able in 3.5hrs?

thanks

You can pedal Ben Chonzie almost to the top, the path ends and you need to break off towards the summit.

I’d always thought the path down the monument would be fun, but haven’t been up it for years and years…

Ben Chonzie should be OK for 3.5 to 4 hrs though it may have snow/ice at the top – there was still a fair bit of ice on the tracks around Kinnoull Hill in Perth at the weekend and its only 200m high.

At lower level there are various tracks out the back of Comrie Croft and a reasonable loop up through Laggan Wood towards Balmuick and on up to Braefordie. As your original query you can then head across to L Turret. Its scenic rather than challenging. If you park at Turret there is a route up onto Chionneachan and back that should be doable in about 4hrs – though it is a huge landy climb which is mostly demoralising pushing unless your fitter than most.

The Monument is good fun but will only take a few minutes – if you can ride the whole descent you’re a star (2 or 3 challenging corners) – but you may take out several families if doing at the weekend – its a popular walk.

The guys at Comrie are pretty helpful if you go in with a map. Drop them a few pennies for track development (honesty box from recollection)

PS I’m not sure if you’re intending the Croft trail to be an easy option for your better halves – I wouldn’t take my BH round it (tho she loves the Glen Garr trail referred to by islander. I would guess it really will be bog in several sections at the moment)

AlasdairMc – next time, wave as you go past my window at Ardeonaig – my office overlooks that trail at the outdoor center.

It is a cracker 🙂

Oh, and having been up there today, the ice is well and truly still around at medium to higher levels.

Matt – as a slight hi-jack – if you are that local is there actually a path from Dunan to the col – I’ve gone c/w and anti c/w and never found it – the route I followed is over the weir – as described by Alisdair.

PS I last did it in Feb 2005 😯 tho my legs don’t hurt as much as my son’s who did on a bullit built as his first DH bike!

and the pain was captured here http://bigpaul.fotopic.net/c423534.html 😉

Thanks for all the ideas, I was wondering about the snow. Walking at 840m at the weekend in the borders and virtually snow free. I was hoping it would be similar.
I think we will pop into the Croft and see what they suggest.

Pop in to Comrie Croft Bikes – we have lots to recommend, including a little OS map sheet with some great loops marked on it, if you only have half a day then theres a great little ride around Torleum hill, coming out at Auchingarroch, theres a big landrover track loop with a bit of serious climbing up over the Choinneachin ridge behind Loch Turret if you fancy something more taxing, and the loop here at the croft is well worth a bash, not fogetting the Knock and laggan hill. Theres no snow here at the moment, its a great time to come:)
Col

I’ve been looking for an excuse to ride Glen Kendrum, it looks like a rough landrover track to about 700m or so climbing from Lochearnhead.

Ideal loop might be up Kirkton Glen, down to the Crianlarich Road (this bit looks a little sketchy) then climb up Glen Dubh to the top of the Glen Kendrum descent.

Maybe not one for this time of year, and is closer to Killin than Crieff…

I’ve done that route 13thfloor.
Not sure when in the year I did it but it was very wet (Balquhidder Old Library tea room was open so after Easter I guess).
The descent was rocky enough to persuade me to buy a full-sus!