Glenmore Forest near Aviemore – route recommendations

For anyone after a GRAVEL route I can thorughly recommend the following…

https://www.komoot.com/tour/420447541?share_token=akY49TQZLJ0XVvosYsJGlaidWKdmfWfECeGNJVOWGwV8S6lbG6&ref=wtd

I’ve started it at the end of the public road in Glen Feshie but you could obviously extend it quite a bit following the other forest roads in the area.

I’m in Aviemore just now and leaving tmrow, but have the chance to ride in before leaving. Aiming to do that Loch Eanaich route, probably starting about 10am from Aviemore. In case anyone wants to join me…

Sorry, I’m aiming for Upper Glen Feshie/Eidart tomorrow to do some Scotways stuff.

Looks like a nice swimming spot Eidart! Enjoy

I’m not up there til Sunday Jimmy, would’ve joined you otherwise.

Carrbridge and Burnside are super sweet just now. Properly cleaned nazi gold rather than just surviving it for the first time this evening!

OP – lots of nice bits between Nethybridge and Loch Garten, an easy pedal from Ryvoan. Cut left into the woods above Nethy before you reach it and follow your nose. Speyside Way to loch Garten, through the woods there then back along the road towards Auchgourish but cut through the Sluggan pass and finish off with some fun in the woods at Badaguish.

Dunnit. Thanks for the thread hijack.

https://strava.app.link/yBDzfV82Xhb

Ryvoan bothy, ride/carry up MaB (ok mostly carry from that side!), down and up over the other 3 tops, down into Badaguish, some descents there, easy pedal back. Normally a bike-swallowing bog or two on the way down to Badaguish but it’s been so dry recently it’s all riding lovely.

We did Bynack Mor last month, and I pushed/carried all the way up. I did really worry that lots of it would be in rideable but in reality I only struggled with maybe 10m in total.

There are a million waterbars on the way down so hops galore!

Bookmarking this for future more pedal orientated adventures..

Good stuff, I’m fancying heading round the start of larig an laiogh to ford’s of Avon, up onto a’ choinneach and the bynack more via the barns, walked it last month and it’s not too steep.

Then descend the hop fest!

in aviemore now and staying about 1 min walk from bothy bikes, family hols, one 11 year old daughter, pretty fit but not as keen as her very fit 14 year old brother.
Today road from bothy bikes out around loch Eilein and p to loch morlich and then back down the logging road. tomorrow off to laggan.
looking for 2 suggestions please, one for a longer ride for the whole family with a good cafe in it, thinking maybe the ride over Ryvoan Pass either clock wise or anti clockwise (is either way better) and is there a good cafe on the route?
And a more challenging route, bigger climbs and nice descents for the elder son to do with me please. Burma road or the section of the LG?? from rochimurchous lodge? Other suggestions welcome, would be ideal if it was an add on to a ride we could all do?

thanks

Ryvoan Loop would be a good call. Go anti-clockwise. You have one steep, loose pull up from the Green Lochan to the bothy, a short bit of undulation, then a nice descent to Forest Lodge. Nethy House Cafe in Nethy Bridge is absolutely excellent. The return to Aviemore from there is straightforward, following the Speyside Way. You can also divert to Loch Garten if you have time/energy. Nash’s wee coffee/cake shop at Boat of Garten will be closed on Monday but should be open the rest of the week.

Burma Road is a steep, long pull up from Lynwilg but gives a long descent, basically all the way back to Carrbridge. It hs been (very) recently resurfaced in places so will be “easier” on the climb and faster on the descent. There are some optional singletrack bits on both sides of the A9 at Carrbridge but the simpest return is via Docharn, Deshar School and Boat of Garten.

If you opt for the Lairig Ghru then I’d just go up the descent and skip the track from the lodge. It’ll be particularly crap after tonights downpour.

And a more challenging route, bigger climbs and nice descents for the elder son to do with me please.

Cairngorm round to the ridge West of Coire an Lochain. But for the love of god, take tyre inserts and/or midgie nets 🙂

Midgie and Waterbarmageddon on Cairngorm

Or, if you do the Gru then these are very wise words:

If you opt for the Lairig Ghru then I’d just go up the descent and skip the track from the lodge. It’ll be particularly crap after tonights downpour.

about 1 min walk from bothy bikes,

Head over to Burnside Shirley…

Burnside, is that just a follow your nose kind of place to ride to find decent trails or are any marked?

LG ride up the trail from Coylom bridge, is there an obvious point to turn around at, or a point where it is no longer worth going up from?

thanks

Do you have trailforks? That should have some good Burnside stuff. I could PM you my strava details but the route we did had a hideous swamp navigation section and Nazi Gold. Your son may be OK on the latter but defo not the former.
I’m sure someone else will have good info.
The key thing is that it’s right next to your accommodation so you could sneak out for 2 hours to recce a route

Looks like my Trailforks sub hasn’t expired.
Up Cocoa Pops Climb
Then Up Skull Trail and Top Trail.
Down THR perhaps ( if he’s good)

Then beyond that I’m not sure. We went into the enclosure at that point to get lost so can’t recommend that bit.

Anyone else?

Regarding LG, assuming you have a map then where the track from Rothiemurc Lodge comes in is one obvious place to turn round. Can’t recall if there are good bits above that point. ( there are certainly bad bit above that point, so don’t persevere too much if it seems shit)
Another option if you do do LG is to tag a bit of Badaguish onto it. I think OTG is the section I did which was nice. We were going to tag it into our LG trip but we’d already done 23 km, the cafe was about to close and I still had to ride back to the ski carpark to pick up the car.

PS, getting slightly worried about my Cairngorm suggestion. Do not do this unless you have solid experience of the mountains, your son is solid and the weather forecast is solid. Even then don’t do it unless you are quite sure you know what you’re letting yourself in for. And don’t take the kid.

Not sure if this is the easiest way to share but here’s a good day out at Burnside. Done with 15yo but he would have managed last year too – quite tech/steep/hard but if he’s up for it it’s proper good riding!.
strava

Many thanks for all advice, don’t worry re Cairngorm suggestion going to pass on that, but happily secure in remote mountain environments.

Will have a look at Burnside as well, thanks for Strava link

Does the Badaguish XC trail still exist? That was always a fun little ride.

I did have the map on my Flickr account but looks like it has been taken down….

Yep. I was up there on Thursday evening. I don’t usually do it all, just my fave bits.

LOL. Don’t start the Badaguish map debate 😂

Yep. I was up there on Thursday evening.

We always did it as a night ride, was good fun at night.

LOL. Don’t start the Badaguish map debate

I have posted it on here before so maybe it annoyed someone and they got Flickr to take it down.

Have the original (mid 2000s) paper copy somewhere.

Although with Strava, you can’t hide it anymore.

EDIT: Yep, just found it in a map folder ‘Strathspey Mountain Bike Club’

Hi all,

Just checking back on what is probably the most successful thread I have ever started on STW 🙂

I’m a long time back from holiday but had a couple of great rides thanks to the first ten replies.

I rode to Loch Eanaich with my wife and son. It was just the right level of challenge on that day and we really enjoyed it.

In the evening I didn’t quite get it right but saved by the awesome descent of Lairig Ghru. Basically I tried to make a loop out of it and as so many others have said since – don’t. I rode from Glenmore towards the ski area then the path towards the Chalamain Gap (did that ten years ago so didn’t repeat the mistake) then the route I was following cut across to Rothiemurchus Lodge. That was 2km of largely trudge. But the ride was saved by the amazing descent that at that time of day I had all to myself.

A brilliant area for riding I am sure I will return especially as the suggestions here all sound good!

Thanks to all on here for the advice – I rode the Loch Eanaich loop yesterday morning and had a stunning ride and lovely solitary rest at the loch before returning to the family holiday. Got sunburnt though!

@filks are you in this photo? 😁

@scotroutes If you saw me and I was washing a fat bike in the loch it definitely wasn’t because I went over the bars after a 1 foot drop into a bog on the lower section 😳

Just a stunning route and as your photo shows just the perfect day for it! Thanks again for the route

Did the Ryvoan loop yesterday, started at Glenmore, great ride, Norwegian sketches at forest lodges were good to see, youngest enjoyed a great Sundae at nethy bridge cafe. Finished at the house and I ride back for car and a quick run back to bothy and over MB great day out, many thanks for those with suggestions. Burnside later today

I’m in Aviemore (Glenmore campsite) at the moment myself and have got some great riding in. I did MAB the first night – just the first summit after climbing up Ryvoan Pass. So good dropping down off the saddle and into the woods.

I then did Lairig Ghru via Chalamain Gap. Sure, the boulder field was a bit awkward but the trails either side of it were incredible and it was equally nice riding some of the upper section of the Ghru. I now need to try riding the whole thing south to north!

finally, last night I met up with a friend and we went up Cairn Gorm from the carpark, across to Ben Macdui and then down on the track just west of Coire an Lochan. Not too techy, and I got within 20m of the summit of Ben Macdui through the Boulder field which was hugely satisfying. Then the last descent back to the car park was just incredible!

I did mean to head over to Burnside, but ran out of time – it is a family holiday after all 😁

I now need to try riding the whole thing south to north!

No.

You don’t.

a good friend of mine disagrees. Whether he’ll remain a good friend once I’ve tried it remains to be seen 😆😆😆

Yeah. I didn’t listen to folks advice either 🙂

Ha! I did point out that he’s on his own saying it’s any good, but when pressed, he said he’d do it again 🤷🏻‍♂️