Hi I am coming up to Edinburgh from Plymouth on Saturday to pick up a car for the wife. Before I drive back down on Sunday I thought I would stop in at Glentress and try some of the trails there.

Being a softy southerner, is the grading any different to that on the South Wales trails/Bike Park Wales? what routes would you suggest?

also im guessing a 130mm full susser would be better than a 120mm hardtail with no dropper (A dropper may be sourceable if the HT is better bet)

whats the weather going to like, forescast on radio said -8, but t’internet reckons a much more pleasant 3 – 6!

cheers
Dave

If you’re happy with the reds/blues at BPW you’ll be fine at GT, even the black is just long rather than particularly challenging. Full suss would probably be better, but if you do the red it’s one big up followed by one big down, so you can just drop the saddle on the HT at the top.

No idea on the weather, I’m not psychic 😆

It was full snowing when i left peebles this morning.

Glentress is fun on any bike.

Don’t eat at the cafe go to nashys in cardrona or no. 1 in innerleithen. Parking will cost you but its way better than slogging up Janet’s brae.

You’ll get muddy but there are showets etc so i wouldn’t worry about getting cold to much. Depending on what you have alot of the blue is actually fun aswell.

Never been to BPW..but by all accounts from what I’ve read their grading is a little harder BPW blue = red at Glentress .
If you can handle things there you will be ok.
130.mm full sus would be my choice but equally a hardtail would be up to it .
Stick to the red if limited for time as there is a lot more climbing on the black which isn’t worth the effort ( just my opinion) ..
Not sure about the weather ..but check the 7 stanes website for Glentress prior to going .
http://scotland.forestry.gov.uk/activities/mountain-biking/7stanes

We did it a few weeks ago,
I’d put it at the same level as the bike park wales blue/reds. Ad above it is quite a nice climb up followed by a big down split up into the various sections. Here’s a little highlight video if your interested. [video]https://youtu.be/SsmY026B6jQ[/video]

It’s great. Hardtail will be fine. Last time I was there I used Trailforks to get me to some of the unmarked trails – and they are great too. See how much time you have after the red loop, and then get yourself back up to the mast for some more.

Any decent bike is fine, the black at GT is graded that way more for the distance and climbing as anything else.

The black tops out at 600m at Dunslair heights so long sleeves are permitted at Glentress, gloves even. If it is snowing there on the weekend post up again for route advice, as the higher GT trails can get choked with snow and turn a ride into a hike.

Grr, random logout ate my reply – will try again.

Take the FS imo.
For me the HT is faster, but the FS is more fun.
Think there’s some bits that are just bumpy enough to beat you up a little, and really have to concentrate, whereas on a FS you can relax and enjoy the ride more. Possibly a larger rider on a long travel HT might not find it as bad.

The blue is superb – difficulty/features scale well with speed, so better riders can still enjoy themselves but going faster.

Red is one of the easier reds i’ve ridden.
Take the shortcut (Pie-run?) as it cuts out a couple of km of meh.

Nope.

Don’t go direct to Pie Run after Super G
Climb up and do The Matrix and Lombard street
The climb back up for Pie Run etc

Exactly what sort of ride do you want? The red and blue are kind of classics of the genre but the best thing about GT is you can cut and paste it as it’s very loopy, so you can build a more tailored ride. Like, I cannot be arsed with Spooky Wood (the very top of the red) so personally I’d cut that and pedal back up and do something extra instead, an offpiste or the blue descent or something.

Do include Zoom or Bust, it’s not really part of any of the laps, but it’s just a wee 10 minute loop right off the main climb so 100% worth it.

cheers guys, i’ll take the FS (Whyte T130) I wont have masses of time as I will be driving back down to Plymouth on the Sunday as well. the video makes it look very similar to the stuff i’ve ridden before so comfortable with that.

how long does the red take? at an average pace?

thanks for advice on food, I assume there is a bike wash there? Cant be putting a muddy bike inside the wife’s brand new car!

With no stops you could be round the red in under 2 hours easily

Closer to 3 at a leisurely pace

Bike wash in the main carpark next to the cafe at the bottom

how long does the red take? at an average pace?

Very much dependant on how fast you climb.
Allow 2hrs, it probably won’t take that long though.

In my opinion the blue and red trails at Glentress are equally fine with a full sus or a hardtail. The black benefits from a full sus a bit more, not because of technical challenge just because it’s trail surface is continuously a bit rough and saps the speed from a hardtail.

As Northwind says Zoom or Bust is an easy off-piste trail to add to a ride around the waymarked routes. If you decide to go upwards after Hit Squad Hill rather than go direct to the Pie Run I’d say that the Matrix (red) and the Bitch (black) are the best pairing of the next available trails. Other than that, mixing and matching the various trails comes down to what you’re wanting from the ride and what the ground conditions are like. If it’s snowy then a lot of the upper black and off-piste trails are likely to be awkward to access and/or ride.

If riding solo and not stopping for long then the red can be done in 90 minutes, but if you stop for a bit longer before the descents it’ll probably be more fun.

There’s a decent hire fleet available at GT if it saves dragging a bike up with you (assuming flying up). A morning hire will easily see you round the red and a few choice additions. Usually plenty of friendly people there who can help with additional/off-piste sections and loops back round things again.

Definitely aim to get to the top of the red, Spooky Woods is usually the favourite bit of trail for anyone new that has headed out with me. Sticking to main, marked trails you could do the red with a couple of laps of the free ride area which you can’t miss on the way up.

I’d also skip Cool Runnings (part of the red). It’s just not that good and loses height far too quickly for the amount of fun you have. You’re better off spending the time doing Zoom or Bust (or all the way from the Mast to Peebles via The Fort or Dave’s) or Hush Hush.

Trailforks, chat to the shop guys (buy a map and mark it up with pen), have fun.

yea i’ll be riding solo. Trying to work out how early i’ll have to start riding so I can get home at a reasonable hour! not sure how fit I am at the minute was very fit back in the summer, but recently feel like ive lost quite a bit of it through lack of exercise!

I did Glentress as a novice on a HT about 8 years ago and it was a doddle. Afan is more challening.

recently feel like ive lost quite a bit of it through lack of exercise!

Avoid spooky woods then. the climb is grim and whilst its fun its not wirth it if you take half an hour to recover.

I don’t get the lack of love for spooky woods. I think the climb tho a drag is worth it. I’ve only ever been on hardtails inluding the tandem.

The best thing about glentress is you can have a great day out no matter your skill level and how long you have / how fit you are. I’d expect a lap of the red plus some extra bits ( Berm baby berm is a must for me) to take me 3 hours. Old and slow.

Anyone I’ve taken to Glentress has mostly enjoyed Spooky Woods and then the Blue descents but it depends if you mostly want fast/flowing or more rough and twisty.

I completely agree with TJ. 😯

tjagain – Member
I don’t get the lack of love for spooky woods. I think the climb tho a drag is worth it. I’ve only ever been on hardtails inluding the tandem.

Singlespeed the climb is definitely not worth it. 😆

Its just a bit wide and plain for my tastes. Plus i can’t get air so it highlights my own inadequacies…

I was there yesterday and it was very wet. Just a word of warning if your doing the black Mild Peril , deliverance and the redemption climb is currently closed. We had to go along the fire road and pick up the red again. Some of the puddles on the black were very deep , almost throw you over the bars deep. Still good fun. Shame ‘Bonni’s’ next door was closed as much prefer it to the peel cafe.
Also ‘Daves trail’ which leads down to the hydro now seems better than the proper red .
Have fun but take waterproof socks.

The closures around Deliverance, etc are only during the week, I think – they should be open on Saturday/Sunday.

Spooky Wood is fun and accessible, but lacks depth I think. It is always popular with people who haven’t ridden at Glentress before but the more someone rides there the more they seem to go off Spooky Wood. Also if you’re used to the plus trails at BPW Spooky Wood may seem a bit tame in comparison.

I’d include Cool Runnings in your loop, it breaks up the climb and switches it from a fire road slog to a better mix of fire roads and singletrack.

Also please kill anyone who refers to the Glorious Five Year Plan as Hush Hush, and leave their bodies as a warning to others not to make this mistake.

If it’s reds then Carl’s Lane, Ho Chi Min, Zoom or Bust and round to Dave’s Trail. Repeat as time-able. All on Trailforks.

Only time I’ve ever enjoyed spooky wood is on a rigid bike but others seem to like it

As you are shortish of time and first trip, then following the regular red will be a great 2hrs including a few stops to look at the scenery and gather your breath.

FS will be more fun than HT.

Cafe is pretty decent, clean, good food.

Parking is a fiver.

If you need a shower before the drive back, make sure you’re back down the hill on-time. I *think* the loo block closes at 5, but best check on the day.

Climb, berm baby berm, climb up past Spooky, join the black, nip down hush hush and mild peril. Red or black until you get to the start of magic mushroom but make sure you go up the road and do Pie run and mushroom Pie.

I love the boundary into hush hush 😆 then along to mild peril…

Similar love for ewok into double x, matrix and ponduro. Awesome.

Getting way OT but, never sure where all the love for dave’s trail comes from, the first bit is good fun but the rest just sort of mehs its way down the hill then it’s over before it gets started. I’d always rather ride the fort…

Which of those goes past the wee stone monument thingy northy? I’m guessing it’s the fort?..

Not sure which monument? Dave’s trail goes off the top of the wee hill with the tourist board on, the fort is about 30 feet away to the right, they’re pretty much parallel.

Aye, the tourist board one, that’s what I meant.

I think what you can take from this op is this…

There is something for you.

Most of it is ridable on whatever you have (rigid singlespeed is fun too) if its easy then just ride faster.

You can chop and change between all the routes.

No one knows the actual name of the section which aren’t signposted.

I personally really rate bluevelvet (if thats the top of the blue?) And think its worth looping back to get it.

There os also a superb trail that links the bridge over the climb from the carpark back onto the climb… Its clearly been crafted by artisans with heart and sole. The finish is that of a master craftsman and the design finely nuanced clearly it was crafted by beutiful people with higher than average intelligence Northwind and ChrisL helped too…

i finally understand spooky woods.

its taken 10+ years.

ive ridden it on all sorts – from sc heckler (98) to SS 29er hardtails to fully rigid hardtails to 160mm travel hardtails.

the only time its ever made sense was on a gnarpoon 140mm travel full sus. and thats not because the trail warrents it – but the trails so cut up with horrendous braking bumps it was like trying to corner while flying through the air unless you cut your speed drastically on entry.

on the full sus you float round blissfully unawares of these braking bumps.

it was ok….. not quite worthy of the accolades all the mags bestowed on it mind but finally i see why everyones raving about it.

Prior to that i thought it was very unflowy/stoppy starty.

If you amalgamate all of the suggested detours/shortcuts I think the OP is essentially riding to the cafe and back….. 🙂

Not sure if this was answered, there is a bike wash in the main car park.

I’d skip Cool Runnings, which is the first downhill and off to the right after the upper car park, the bike park and blue trails, such as Berm Baby Berm which you could loop that as it’s fun and ends up back in the upper car park.

To rejoin the red after going past Cool Runnings, continue up the fireroad until you get to the picnic bench. The red climb is off to the left here. Keep following the red route and you’ll get to the top of Spooky Wood. It’s then all downhill back to the car park from here.