Routes near Oban / Loch Awe / Melfort

Heading up for a week next week, staying near Cuan Ferry. Will have car and bike. Can anyone point me at some decent routes in the area? Bit worried about midge attack, but would like to get out on the bike for at least a couple of days if it’s windy. 30-40km ish would be good, but even just some areas/hills to look at would be handy.

Thanks,

I was up there a couple of weeks ago and did 2 of the rides that were in a Scottish Forestry comission leaflet, they were excellent. Sort of rocky fire road/normal road mix but excellent scenery and I’d do them again.

https://scotland.forestry.gov.uk/images/pdf/rec_pdfs/MidArgyllCyclingLeaflet.pdf

If you look on Strava there seems to be sections people have ridden in the area but we needed something that our touring bikes would cope with.

We did some riding in Barcaldine forest when we stayed near oban. Simple forest roads but nice. Google throws up a few results on here if you search, e.g.

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/any-biking-near-oban/

There’s also the Wild About Argyll Trail which makes its way as far north as Oban. It’s targeted at gravel bikes but the bits we did at Easter further south got some good views and terrain in. Nothing technical.

http://bikepackingscotland.com/argyll/

There were no, repeat no, midges there a fortnight ago.

This may have changed, a bit….

Be wary of that older Singletrack thread, I’m fairly certain most of the DH stuff on Beinn Lora has now been flattened.

That being said, Strava Segment Explore still throws up some of the singletrack stuff above Barcaldine (Glen Dubh), look for the small reservoir sitting ENE of Barcaldine village. You can  even ride to Barcaldine via Beinn Lora, which is a stiff climb but steep fast descent. Less driving that way.

Should be able to circumnavigate Loch Etive.  Bit of road, bit of fire road, bit of hike a bike.

There were no, repeat no, midges there a fortnight ago.

That’s when we were there! We might have said hello to each other at some point on the bikes….

The locals were saying that the midges were due the weekend we were going home. Not sure how they know that but I think they were spot on from what I’ve heard the last week or two.

What were you riding? We were on road.

Plenty midges and ticks in the trees in the singletrack bit of glen Etive last week

, bit of hike a bike.

You forgot the bog. I did the north shore of the Etive last September and it was good going until about 3-4Km from the top of the loch and then turned pretty boggy. No idea what the south side is like.

Pretty though.

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Day one. Hard day. Long day #howiescape #scotland #bikepacking

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I am the (currently) tubby one on a Genesis TDF with flat bars, my wife has a very very small Spesh Vita.

Touring style more than anything else (pannier with sandwiches, bar bags etc). 🙂

up to barrs on the north shore of etive its easy fireroad, then about 3km of singletrack, and then about 2km of bog.

Thank all. Think I’ll take the Vaya and stick to the (fire) roads, save the proper bike for Torridon next time.

Some nice roads near where you are, the wee back road from Kilmelford to Loch Avich is quite twisty and hilly, but also gives you options to explore around the Falls of Avich, and also to follow the ‘String of Lorne’ over to Scammadale, which is mostly landrover track apart from a fiddly wee bit in the middle.

In fact, the more I look at it, the better it looks, you could head south after the ‘Bridge over the Atlantic’ as if heading to Ardmaddy Castle, then follow landrover tracks (I have memories of walking here as a kid, think they are good tracks) to Kilchoan Bay on Loch Melfort, then to Kilmelford, over to the Falls of Avich, String of Lorne to Loch Scammadale, then follow minor roads back to Cuan. Looks like an awesome 60km and just the sort of ride a Vaya was meant for 😉

Actually think I might try this one when I’m home next…

Apologies for the self promotion, my old blog with some stuff about Loch Avich/String of Lorne about halfway down…

http://ianezzi.blogspot.com/2010/11/like-fool-to-his-folly-loch-lomond-to.html

We did the Avich road last week – a stunning little valley and woods. I couldn’t persuade middle_oab to take the forest track cycle route instead, but the road was stunning anyway.

Another famously nice road is the Glen Lonan road, you could go

Cuan Ferry => Kilmore => Musdale (steep and twisty singletrack road) => Loch Nant (fireroads/wind farm access tracks) => Kilchrenan => Taynuilt => Glen Lonan => Kilmore => Cuan Ferry

Although I think that route might ride better in reverse, better views of Cruachan as you descend Glen Lonan to Taynuilt, just watch some of the corners as there was a lot of loose gravel on the outside when I rode it on the road bike last!