Hi folks, after some inspiration please. Looking for ideas for some proper big days out on the gravel bike. By proper big I mean 150-200km ish, ie something that takes a full day but ideally gets you finished before the pubs close! Needs to have a bit of a purpose such as a point to point (with easy ish logistics), or a big committing loop that isn’t just a route that is just long for the sake of being long.

These are the types of rides I mean that I have done before…….

Cairngorms outer loop
Fife coastal path
John Muir way
Moray way

Looking forward to your suggestions!

Cheers

Moray triangle.
Start anywhere but say, for example:
Grantown on Spey – Dava Way to Forres, Moray Coastal trail to Spey Bay, over the old railway bridge and south on the Speyside Way back to the start.
@100 miles.

Great Glen Way and bus back.
Caledonian Way from Campbeltown to Ft Bill.
Badger Divide.
Perthshire Drovers route from Markus Stitz on Bikepacking Scotland.
East Highland Way + Speyside Way, so Far Bill to Buckie. Train home.

Dalwhinnie – Pattack – Corrour – Rannoch – Loch Garry – Dalwhinnie. 120km and lunch at Corrour. You can extend it by starting at Kingussie, then using the Wade Road south to Phones Lodge and up past Loch Cuaich to get to Dalwhinnie.

https://www.komoot.com/tour/400342055?ref=atd

I did the Badger Divide last year, I reckon a section of that’ll work for you.

Pictish Trail

I’d not bother with the fife coastal path, there’s some good bits but far too many stairs. From Kirkcaldy to Queensferry is good though, especially when extended to Edinburgh via Dalmeny estate and Cramond.

The Pilgrim way is so much better in my opinion, I rode it last year and will be riding it again this year. I rode it from Leuchars back home in Linlithgow via St Andrews and South Queensferry.

Another good one is to ride into the Lammermuirs down to Whiteadder reservoir then can pick up the new train station at Reston. You can start in Edinburgh or Longniddry and use the Capital trail route until you hit the Lammermuirs.

13thfloormonk will be along shortly no doubt as he has plotted some great routes, including a nice loop around Fife.

There is so many routes in Scotland, as long as you are a bit loose on your definition of gravel. And it includes a bit of road, woodsy singletrack with the occasional river crossing and hike a bike.

I’m doing the Badger Divide at the end of the month. It’s over 300km so like above, just pick a section of it.

Check out Markus Stitz’s routes he has on Komoot or on his bikepacking website

https://bikepackingscotland.com/tag/gravel/

Also look at the Gravelfoyle site for routes around Aberfoyle.

Cairngorm outer loop requires some decent mountain bike skills, especially the top of Glen Tilt (try not to hit this bit in the dark) but is easy enough to push along. So chapeau for riding that on a gravel bike.

I also rode the Lomond Trossachs route last year (well I had to deviate the last bit as I was running out of time), but did it on a mountain bike. Could be managed on a gravel bike with chunkier 50mm tyres but is pretty rough going in places with some steep downhill trails along the way.

Some short, some longer gravel routes around Perthshire.

https://perthshiregravel.com/routes/

The Capital trail around Edinburgh could be done on a gravel bike with big tyres. I’d maybe skip out the Glentress loop out though, unless you fancy getting a few cheeky MTB trails in as well.

The Capital Trail

I’m generally not a fan of sportive type events but enjoyed a Glorious Gravel route last year in the Lake District.

They do a few in Scotland.

UK Rides

There are some estate roads up in the north east that have always piqued my interest as a gravel ride.  Head north est from Dunbeath on the A9 and there are estate roads for miles connecting thru to other roads.

13thfloormonk will be along shortly no doubt as he has plotted some great routes

You’re too kind! 😉 I rarely plot 200km days out though, I have a long year of gym work and physio ahead before I’m even close!

However two routes based on a mix of stuff I’ve ridden or just researched very thoroughly as parts of smaller loops:

Ardnamurchan Loop from Glenfinnan. Mostly gravel on the way out with an unavoidable hike-a-bike near Oronsay, then quiet tarmac on the way home. Only really on and off gravel for the first 100km.

Check out this route on Strava: https://www.strava.com/routes/3077332552103109220 — Ardnamurchan Loop

Oban – Dalwhinnie. Just an excuse to ride through Glen Kinglas and work it into an extended route with no unpleasant hike-a-bike. Reversing it could be nicer, I might be biased but finishing in Oban for fish and chips and train home would be nice.

Check out this route on Strava: https://www.strava.com/routes/3077333000574035556 — Oban – Dalwhinnie

I’m sitting on what looks like an awesome 200km loop in and around St Andrews and Perthshire, but I’m not sharing as I want first ascent, even if I split it over two days 😎

Just to echo didnthurt’s suggestion of the Pilgrim’s Way – really enjoyed this when I did the St A > Culross version last year. 120km for me from train at Leuchars > home in Falkirk. Can add another 20km by starting/finishing in Dundee instead

“Make gravel great again” might suit, amazing views, mix of terrain, hardly any road maybe a little less than the distance you are after but check the elevation. I’ve done it a few times, always an epic, if you want it to be even longer, go the other way round Loch Venachar and round Glen Finglas…

https://www.strava.com/routes/3078313911169291986

Unsure where you are based – and I am no gravelist – but there has to be plenty options in our Galloway Forest area. There seems to be plenty gravel roads heading into some quiet areas. We had a stunning 45km out and back at the weekend without even spending more than 10 minutes looking at the OS map.

This sort of thing…

I watched this the other night and thought it looked pretty good

@vmgscot is that the Kirroughtree black? 🙄

@squirrelking – bit further away – its a valley running between Loch Doon and Loch Dee – we were searching a way through that day but the north/south tracks stop a km short of each other – for now, at least, I am sure they will connect once that part of the forest is harvested.

That particular shot was heading south from Loch Doon, Rhinns of Kells to the left, Dungeon Hill to the right.

Nice, that’s the path north from the Southern Upland Way out of Clatteringshaws? That’s annoying that it doesn’t link for the want of 1.5km! The aerial view on OSmaps shows a trail through the fire breaks, I take it that’s not really there or a complete mess? The 25k and 50k maps are different as well, 25k shows more paths.

Looks good on the right bike. One built for a Glentress black, not so much. Will hopefully get time to check it out, would be nice to find a good connection between Ayr and Whithorn

@squirrelking – that’s the one. The old forest road ends and it does look like a argocat or similar has been down the fire break but it was very long grass and tussocks over firm/bog underneath. Both heading down from Loch Doon or up from Clatteringshaws are still stunning out-n-backs…

Loch Doon end

Dungeon Hill end

There used to be a faint quad bike track linking the two through the firebreak but was boggy and unrideable on a bike in places. Went to try it again last summer coming from the south and couldn’t find the start with all the felling totally changing the look of the place. There are a couple of deep burns as you get nearer the Loch Doon side which did have the remains of wooden bridges in places but otherwise need to clamber across.

When gets a bit drier had been planning to see if there is anything better and less boggy from the higher forest road (which turns off towards carlins cairn).

The other frustrating gap where would be interested to know if there is any tips on is on the east side of loch Doon. On the forestry side there is a rough track which is just about rideable from the end of the forest road up to the boundary dyke. Haven’t been able to find a good crossing point but is then only maybe 50m to a turning circle on the forest road on the far side. Would make linking up with the old mines and windfarm routes around Carsphairn a possibility.

@tom7044 – thats interesting – we rode out to the turning circle from the lead mines a couple months ago and was able to cross the wall and burn no probs and there was a quad track heading straight up the hillside (and skirting the forest and wall). So sounds doable maybe.

Adds to favourites

@vmgscot that is encouraging to know, sounds like the same quad track I was coming down but just didn’t go far enough. Will try again coming from the north side, with a fresh perspective and changing vegetation will hopefully find the way through.
That whole area linking galloway forest to tracks in windfarms, mines, SUW etc has so much potential for proper big gravel rides or multiday trips but just small missing sections limit what is rideable. Gradually working out the linking sections but is a lot of trial and error and hiking through bogs so grateful for the tips.

Tick