Near stirling with my bike and van what to do?

I asked this question a month or so ago with not much but now I’m actually here so I’m asking again.

I’m wanting to go ride in the evenings so no more than an hour drive from stirling ideally.

I rode the trails at carron valley last night and have a trip to corrie planned.

What else is good fun and easy to navigate round?

Callendar Estate trails are worth a couple of hours
https://www.callendarestate.co.uk/activities/cycling

Up in the Perth direction there’s Kinnoull Hill and Pitmedden. Just over the hour will see you in Dunkeld.

Just keep driving through… absolutely nothing here…😉

(I thought several folk replied with suggestions at the time)

Arguably the best riding in the area starts from Stirling itself. North Third, Cambusbarron, Dumyat, Mine Woods etc.

Dumyat is pretty easy to navigate as you just need to find your way to the top. A few variations on the way down.

I’d definitely spend time exploring those before looking for stuff further afield. All excellent places to ride with amazing scenery and history.

It has been raining so the trails will be manky as they are all natural (apart from the tourist path up Dumyat), so be prepared to get clarty!
You got somewhere to clean your bike?

Not Carron valley.

Stirling riding?

Cambusbarron MTB Trails
https://maps.app.goo.gl/pqJy3eLSWi1c9PF47

Park up and climb to the top and then explore.

https://www.trailforks.com/region/cambusbarron/

As already mentioned there is Dumyat too. Great video from a wee while back.

Carron Valley trail centre is pretty close, not ridden this in a few years but from the memory the last jump section was class 👌

You’re also not far from places like Aberfoyle, lots there.

https://www.trailforks.com/region/aberfoyle-1376/

If you still want more then Stirling is well placed for a drive into Perthshire where you have more options than I can list. Have fun.

Dumyat looks nothing like that video now 🙁

The trails at Callander estate are great but pretty tame (apart from the jump park and natural sections), I take my kids there and sometimes ride them on my cross bike.

https://www.moredirt.com/trail/United-Kingdom_North-Scotland/Callendar-Estate-Mountain-Bike-Trails/1528

What’s happened to Dumyat?

We had a family walk up it earlier in the year (but from the Menstrie side) and it was ideal.

Or take the road / cross / gravel bike and go and explore the Campsie Fells. There’s also a couple of iconic road climbs around that way if you’re into that sort of thing.

http://www.thedrumup.co.uk/routes-rides/scottish-climb-tak-me-doon-road/

http://www.thedrumup.co.uk/routes-rides/scottish-climbs-the-crow-road/

Can be ridden as a loop.

Menstrie side is untouched, but the power company had some money they had to spend on doing some community service projects along the way of the new power lines. Stirling Coucnil decide (without consultation) to spend it all on a path ‘upgrade’ from the main tourist car park to the top of the hill – so it is now incredibly featureless and smooth (still a climb) but all the on-going technical stuff has gone.It was apparently ‘wheelchair-friendly’, but I’m not sure everyone has He-man’s arms to get a wheelchair up and over a number of the sections.
It looked absolutely awful whilst they were building it (they brought machines in to remove the rock!) and it looked awful after it was done, it is starting to wear in now though so it doesn’t look quite so bad, but it has gone from a nice wee challenge to pretty much a smooth pedal – providing you can ride up steep stuff. I’ve seen many people riding it all now so it has become far easier (and they have no doubt become fitter/stronger as well).

Or the Dukes pass that is between Aberfoyle and Callendar.

http://www.thedrumup.co.uk/routes-rides/scottish-climbs-dukes-pass/

There is actually road, gravel and mountain bike options up and over this pass.

I’m quite envious of you as you’re coming to this all afresh at a time when the trails are really coming together as well as trail sharing and navigation is so easy now.

That’s a real shame about Dumyat, it was a right bog fest in sections so could have done with a bit of work with the odd ditch and hardcore adding to sections but not totally changing it for the worse. Hopefully a couple of Scottish winters with weather it up a bit.

That’s a real shame about Dumyat

It’s not really, I’ll admit to bemoaning about the build when I first saw it, but in my opinion, it’s improved dumyat as a loop. No one ever came down beyond the boggy bit anyway (which is now not a bog) instead the vast majority veered off towards yellow crag.

The only ‘downside’ is that it’s now a lot busier with families etc, but that’s a good thing in my view. Just need to pick your time/weather window.

No one ever came down beyond the boggy bit anyway

Me and me mates did – all the time.

Had lots of lovely wee rocks and hops and pops.

Now all we have is steps of imported stone FFS.

The good news is that SPEN have committed to replace the washed away bridge at the reservoir.

Bridge poorly installed by @SPEnergyNetwork is currently a hazard for swimmers in the @scottish_water Cocksburn Reservoir. Meanwhile path users are making do with a bridge installed by volunteers. @StirObserver pic.twitter.com/LVftLvqkBC

— The Don (@CrispinBennett) July 29, 2021

SPEN lied to me – I don’t like being lied to.

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/work-replace-flood-hit-bridge-24686988

Is anyone near stirling able to help me repair the tubeless tape on my front wheel please?

A prang last night means my most reliable tubeless set up no longer safely holds air!

Payment in beer, good karma and my undying gratitude.

Me and me mates did – all the time.

Where would you tend to go after that? Always strikes me of a very quick, but not very good, way of getting off the hill

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boxwithawindow
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Is anyone near stirling able to help me repair the tubeless tape on my front wheel please?

I’m not local, but I’m sure someone will get you sorted

“Where would you tend to go after that?”
Across the reservoir and woods (RIP: Ten Man Train and Liverflush) and into Mine Woods to the brewery

OP:
Iain at The Bike Works in Springkerse, Stirling will be able to help you.
He is open from 10 – 6 or later (but phone to check as he pops out at lunchtime).
https://www.facebook.com/The-Bike-Works-Stirling-105536017730897/

@Boxwithawindow I have a full, unopened Stans Tubeless kit that I recently bought in error. I’m in the lab at the moment but bunking off early so should be home around 1.30ish. I live in Dunipace, about 8 miles south of Stirling town centre. You’re welcome to pop over this afternoon and fix your wheel.

Craig

Thanks for your help everyone, I’ve dropped the wheel off with Alloa cycles so it getting fixed.

Then of to

strathpeffer

Laggan wolf trax

Fort bill

Glentress

Thanks again,

Alex

Enjoy!

Wow !

None of those locations are anywhere near Stirling.

Yeah, Stirling sunday – friday with work then I have a few days off to do a “scotland greates hits” tour.

Unfortunately I only got to ride from stirling monday night due to mechanical stopping plat tuesday/wednesday and other commitments on thursday.

Wow !

None of those locations are anywhere near Stirling.

Lol, I had the exact same thought!.

Strathpeffer? Not on the greatest hits tour.

Dunkeld, pitlochry, aberfeldy, all reasonably close, all superb. Laggan and the brown stuff is great, ditto fort william, I’d stay up that way and not bother with GT tbh. Keep it fir a proper TV weekend.

Strathpeffer is because I’m coming back for the puffer in January so want to see what the course is like.

Glentress is on my way home and I’ve wanted to ride spooky woods for a very long time.

I’ll be back this way no doubt so will use all these suggestions.

Fair dos, I get both of those, but….

The puffer course will bear zero resemblance to how it’ll be in winter, and spooky woods is a bit ‘no very great’. 😬😂

Go ride angry sheep instead.

Well if you’re looking to travel, I’m up to Ballater on Friday for a big natural loop, but Glenlivet on Saturday for some trail centre fun. The blue has a heck of a lot of riding for not much climbing, and the whole place is just flow. Lovely trail centre.

FWIW an early local rattle around Dumyat/uni/mine/kippenrait/darn showed me that conditions under tire and overhead are just about perfect in Stirlingshire today.

I can’t believe I’m going to say this for about the 6th time this year, but a bit of rain has really helped turn too-dusty trails into grippy fun.

(heck, sorry to the sun gods, please don’t smite us!)

That’s good.

Tuesday night conditions were terrifying.
Last night they were described by my 15-yr old as “grim”.

Aye! Was out on Tuesday morning and boy, it was wet! first ‘proper, soaked through, hose the bike and self down outside before stripping off in the garage’ for ages!

It’s a different kind of fun (first DH corner, brake… oh, wet discs and slimey roots = eek!), but still fun.

I love the Ochils, they’re everything my local Pentlands would be if they were twice as high and half as boring. I like a nice long climb followed by a massive descent and the Ochils do that for me. My favorites routes are: Up Silverglen to Ben Cleuch, back to Ben Buck, down the singletrack to Ben Ever, along the ridge heading SSE that eventually drops you into Mill Glen. Back track up to cross over the glen and down to Tillicoultry.
Second favourite is the descent SE off Bengengie Hill (easiest to reach from Menstrie and Colsnaur). The path S off the top of Wee Torry is like falling off the edge of the world for a bit but soon joins a grassy path zigzagging down the hill (faint at one point and high bracken a seasonal problem) before it cuts back onto the track that leads back up into Alva Glen.Ride down this is pretty exciting too.

Chickenman. Agreed.

Next time you do the Bengengie ridge to Wee Torry try dropping SW.
Superb descent to a very wee reservoir.

The view from just east of Bengengie is on a par with the Grand Canyon (not that I’ve been to the Grand Canyon).