Following with interest on behalf of Mrs Felltop. 61 and planning an on and off road ride the length of Norway next year.

I’ve got a Strael 2. It’s pretty special…. Ordered it in January, arrived in June and definitely worth the wait. Ridden extensively in Norway this summer. Climbs ok, very stable on descents – yet still feels like a bit of a hooligan, I think thats because it encourages me to corner a little on the fast side!  Was also pretty comfortable on some long sections of gravel road. Biggest day out was 95 miles, 11,000ft ascent. The comfort really helped towards the end of the ride.

Planning a ride from SW Portugal to Cap Wrath next year,  and really can’t think of any bike on the market right now that I would target use.

Sorry if I come across as too much of a fan, but after 1200 miles I just can’t find fault with it.  James Hayden had won the Trans Continental 2 years running on a Strael, so it’s not just me.

Accept the wait, you will be glad that you did.

How can you say that about one of the best ridges in the UK?!

Fleet of bikes. Turning 50 this year was a good excuse to replace an old Tricross with a Fairlight Strael. Not a money pit though, really good value for a top end steel frame – that’s how I justified it anyway!

I always like to follow the maxim (paraphrasing from Gwen Moffat) of packing all the things you need, so that the coroner can’t get in that final dig about being ill equipped, and old enough to know better. Always loved that line, from the Quiniag chapter in Classic Walks.

Maybe, just maybe the MRT members you were trying to cadge a drink off have been called out once too often to help someone who was I’ll equipped, and should have known better. The OP may now have learnt to take enough water for his ride.

BTW, I did 10 years in MR.

I’ve given up with Lezyne lights. 2 rear and one front failed to date. Poor after sales. Now use Hope oir Exposure. No issues with either.

Not much in the way of places to eat – either Dundonnell Hotel or Aultbea Hotel are within reach. Both ok.

Surprisingly, not too bad! Cold winter flowed by dry spring/ early summer have helped. Avoid dearly morning and evening, and hope for a breeze.

I’d offer to show you around – but I’ll be out of the country.

Another couple of suggestions:

A track known locally as Kenny D’s, heads inland from the road just after toy crest the climb out of Gruinard Bay, heading to Laide. Pretty easy,  but good views.

Leave your car in Laide, and explore out to Mellon Udrigle and Slaggan.There’s a handy layby on the minor road in Laide.

Wave to the Postie if you see her,  she’s  working 6 days a week to cover for me while I’m away.  Laide Post Office has all the supplies and local knowledge you will need. Have a great time!

From the door, head up by the Gruinard River to Loch na Sealga. Vehicle track, but quite fun, and a great place to spend time. Drive down to Dundonnell, ride over to Strath na Sealga. Also vehicle track, but quite techy in places, and fantastic views.

When do you head up? I’ll put some more suggestions on later, at work right now!

Lots to do…. What shorty of riding are toy looking for, will help to narrow down my recommendations. Also, where are you staying? Sure I can offer you some “straight out of the door routes”.  for info,  I live near Laide.

Lovely minimal facility campsite at Mellon Udrigle, near Laide. Plenty of space to run around, including the beach. Pretty quiet right now (can see it out of the window). Usually enough of a breeze to keep the midges down

We have the Grand version. Never had a problem getting the front seats far enough back, I’m 6ft with long legs, so think that I would have noticed! I unbolted and removed the 3rd row of seats from ours, the extra headroom makes it much easier to get bikes in. Have had no problem fitting 2 ful suss 29ers,  2 road bikes, and a weeks luggage in. Drives nicely, and reasonably light on fuel.

Javi is having tracker problems, since it fell off his bike and got damaged…. He lost the nut from his rear axle just before Kinlochewe. Carried on with a proper trailside bodge of DT RWS cable tied to frame, to stop the axle falling out. Hopefully he has managed to sort a more secure fix now!

OMM Rotor Smock?

Summer Isles, Coigach, An Teallach. All complete with lots of snow.

Usually stop at the Inchbae on my local road bike circuit, about 45 miles in, with 70 to go. Shortest circular route from home! Drove past this afternoon, the road was ‘interesting’!

Got myself a Verenti Substance Apex 1 from Wiggle recently. Really not bad for the money, if a little heavy.

May well pass you between Braemore Junction and Laide on Thursday. If you get waved at by a bloke in a Rapido Motorhome I’m not an idiot tourist I live there!!

I use 52/36 And 11-32 In the Highlands. Works for me. I didn’t go for a 50-34 as I was pretty sure that I would constantly making front shifts.

Have a look at Lightwave (T20 Trail XT, I think) – that’s where went when we couldn’t justify a like for like replacement for our 20 year old Hilleberg Namatj. Not regretted the decision yet….

I use it, but only because it’s all we can get here. As others have said, download speed is not too bad – but the lag makes anything interactive glacialy slow. Also, download limits are really tight. I pay £45 per month for 30gb, and can struggle to stay within that (especially when I inadvertently allow a Windows update, grrr.) There’s a community radio broadband busy setting up here. When the Newtown reaches us, the satellite dish is coming down!

Methinks actual reputational damage greater than imagined commercial gain. NTS may learn a valuable lesson – engage brain before engaging solicitor.

Whitestone – the track on the north side does exist further up the hill, but as slowmogirl days, the outflow from Loch na Sealga is very deep.

FOG – yes, the track from Aultbea (from up behind the Drumchork Hotel) can readily be linked yup with the vehicle track high above the south side of the Little Gruinard River, known locally as Kenny D’s road. There’s about 0.5km of pushing over boggy ground to link them. BTW, I prefer to do it the other way round.

Whitestone – Glen na Muice definitely not worth it with a bike. I “ran” down it on a wet day exactly a year ago. Mostly unrideable, and some of the washed out burns crossing the track were “entertaining”!

Tollie path hasn’t got any better. Postie path along Loch Maree was the scene of epics on the HT550, and will only be harder in the wet with head high bracken!!

Otherwise there are some good suggestions on here. Also consider riding from Kinlochewe to Loch An Fada.

Up the road from Poolewe at Gruinard Bay it’s worth riding the track up the Gruinard River.

If you can organise the logistics, the “Trans Fisherfield” from Corrie Hallie to Poolewe is a proper big day out.

Get in touch if you want company on a ride – I’m just up the road from Poolewe.

Yep, Shimano 10sp struggles above 30t – except current (4700) Tiagra. The other solution is to use a Shimano 9sp mtb mech. We use a 9sp XT on the tandem, 3×10 with 11-34 cassette and 105 shifters.

My wife consistently beats me on Strava segments when we are on the tandem – using identical Lezyne GPS units.

Enjoy your trip. If you get stuck around Fisherfield, I’m roughly half way between Poolewe and Dundonnell. I’m through Dundonnell most days.

It’s not the same Fisherfield crossing. It’s not as good TBH, but the “Trans Fisherfield” does set the bar pretty high. The problem you have is getting from Torridon to Poolewe to start the better known route. It’s either a long way by road, or a slog along the Postie Path vis Letterewe.
Trains – no problem with varying your journey, but these days you really need to book your bike on well in advance. There are only 4 spaces on each train, and they go pretty early sometimes.

Day 4 – of you choose to head north, be wary of the HT550 route alongside Loch Maree. It’s good on foot, not so good on a bike! There is a way through from Kinlochewe to Dundonnell, but it involves a fair amount of walking over the Bealach na Croise. It’s a nice route from there on though. There’s a hostel at Camusnagaul by Little loch Broom. Back to Inverness on day 5 is mainly road. I’d aim to catch the train from Garve, using some obvious vehicle track options en route, if time and energy allow.

I passed the one on Dava Moor a few weeks ago, just as the heavens opened. Prompted the thought that I still have an old AA key somewhere!

Had a good one near Spittal of Glenshee on Saturday. Driver of a hired Mercedes (I’m a Postie in the Highlands, you quickly learnt recognise, and be wary of hire cars….) decided that he really had to overtake me on a short uphill, leading to a blind bend/brow. Fortunately for him the driver of an oncoming Discovery was very alert and calmly braked to a halt. I left it to him to discuss the matter with the Merc driver – he was less angry than me! I suspect he was also going to get an ear bashing from his passenger, who covered her face with a map.

I drive many miles on Highland roads, and can honestly say that I have never been seriously held up by a cyclist – just don’t get me onto the subject of badly driven Motorhomes….

The path is pretty steep and scrambly in sections. There’s even a fixed rope just as you leave Diabaig. #climbabike!

Out on tandem.
Nice steep climbs.
Very fast descents.

85%, flying to Nepal last autumn pushed it up.

Hmmm. Mount Keen on Monday MAY have ben motivated by ticking… I have two friends planning to complete on Ben More, Mull in early May. Problem is, I had this in mind to complete my second round. Ten to go now, should be possible!

Sent off a while ago, NC500 say it will go online this month….