Scotland in 2 weeks

[22camels]

I think you'll find the OP is a she .

By the way I absolutely loved your photos of Iceland. I am going there in August and hoping to do something similar. Good luck with the Scotland trip!

[jamesgilbert]

Wow, those Iceland photos are really good!

Here's my alternative suggestion for the start of the route, leaving directly from Edinburgh airport and avoiding travelling to Glasgow (unless you really wanted to go there!):

Take cycle route 76 along the south side of the Firth of Forth towards Falkirk (the Falkirk Wheel is worth a look), there are a couple of off-road sections, some canal towpaths and some tunnels. Leave the route at Bonnybridge and head into the hills, past Carron Bridge and the Carron Valley Reservoir, then onwards to Drymen. When I did this, I then rode up the east side of Loch Lomond as far as the Rowardennan youth hostel before catching the tiny ferry across the loch to Tarbet. It was two days cycling from Edinburgh airport to Tarbet for me.

[Janus]

Jamesgilbert, thanks for the suggestion. The reason I planned to take a bus/train to Glasgow was just to save some time. I hardly ever find urban/suburban areas interesting and would rather save some time for the highlands/islands.
Regarding the tiny ferry to Tarbet, do you know where I can find the timetable? What does the WHW trail up to Rowardennan youth hostel look like? As I mentioned I have a mountain bike, but it has no suspension (rigid fork) and, more importantly, I'm no professional or ironman

I looked at the link posted by LollyKat describing the West Highland Way (thanks for it!). According to the track description, only Stage 3 (Rowardennan to Inverarnan) is not suitable for bikes, with stages 4-7 described as fairly easy. This contradicts what stu1102 wrote (that he/she would never ever want to do it on a bike). stu1102, which parts exactly you consider too difficult? Which did you (or any of you) find the most scenic?

PS Glad you like the Iceland pictures:) Iceland is out of this world! So is the bloody Icelandic wind, to be honest, but still it's worth all the effort.
If you want, here are some photos from the South Island of New Zealand: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 9377ea12e0

[jamesgilbert]

Here's the information for the Rowardennan ferry, it leaves from in front of the Youth Hostel every day at 16:45 - http://www.cruiselochlomond.co.uk/ferri ... nan-ferry/ The boat in the photos looks a lot bigger than the one I used in 2012!

I actually took the road from Drymen to Rowardennan as I was on a normal touring bike, it was nice and quiet.

[LollyKat]

Regarding the tiny ferry to Tarbet, do you know where I can find the timetable?

Google again gives the answer: Waterbus timetable 2015. One ferry per day, departs 1645. Alternatively you could take a ferry from Balmaha to Luss, with slightly more options.

[Janus]

Thanks for the links!
Now would you recommend cycling to Rowardennan and taking the ferry to Tarbet or cycling all the way along the east coast instead? The first option seems quieter, further from the main road.

[rualexander]

Photos from three separate trips to Mull can be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/rualexander/sets/ two were in March and one was in September.
I'm just recently back from another week there, photos not online yet.
In my opinion, miss out Skye and go to Mull, if you must do the WHW.

[Therealsouthstander]

In my opinion The Outer Hebrides off Scotland's West coast is among the best cycling you'll find anywhere...

Get the Ferry from Oban to the Isle of Barra , cycle around the island then get another ferry to Eriskay,then cycle South Uist,Benbecula,North Uist then the magical Bernaray.. Ferry from Bernaray to the best bit ,the Isle of Harris and Isle of Lewis.. Then ferry from Stornoway to Ullapool.. All ferries will cost about £30 in total and these islands are a cyclists dream,really quiet roads with a great surface - Did you mention nature ? You'll be in heaven


Do not miss The Outer Hebrides..

[irc]

Thanks for the links!
Now would you recommend cycling to Rowardennan and taking the ferry to Tarbet or cycling all the way along the east coast instead? The first option seems quieter, further from the main road.

The road up the west side of Loch Lomond north of Tarbert as far as Ardlui is one of the worst places to cycle. Heavy traffic. Twisty. Narrow. The only good thing is the road is so twisty traffic speeds are kept down to 40mph or so. There is no cycle track north of Tarbert.

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3960036

I really would avoid the A82. If you are going to do it camping around Tarbert and doing the worst few miles early morning might make it as good as it gets.

[hufty]

Just to add to the chorus saying avoid the road up the west of Loch Lomond. There's a two-way cycle lane on one side but it's all pretty grim and you can't get away from road noise and litter. If starting from Glasgow my tip would be to get a train out to Gourock (near Greenock) for the ferry to Dunoon then pick your way Northwards.

The "problem" with Skye is that it doesn't feel like an island, just a bit more mainland. The bridge over is well constructed though.

Given your limited time I would miss out the east and concentrate on the west coast. I would suggest getting the train beyond Crianlarich to Tyndrum or similar, doing your loop round and finishing at Lairg, or however far you get.

My other recommendation, while you're up in the Durness area, is Sandwood Bay. The path down might not be completely rideable but a night camping in the sand dunes with a bottle of wine or equivalent is well worth the effort imho.

And my final tip is be prepared for the Sabbath on the North Coast. Last time I was there all the shops were shut on Sundays, including the campsite shop at Durness. It was a few years ago though.

[eileithyia]

You say you are no ironman, but if you are expecting to do that amount of cycling in Scotland over 2 weeks while including tracks such as WHW, then i would suggest you are an ironman... I will look forward to hearing how you get on with interest....

[Janus]

The "problem" with Skye is that it doesn't feel like an island, just a bit more mainland.

Hmm, sounds good to me! I like mountains much more than the sea, so I don't want to spend the whole two weeks cycling on islands, even very scenic ones. Also the problem with the Outer Hebrides is that it would really require some time. I don't want to go there just to ride as fast as I can, with no time to actually enjoy the road and its surroundings. My route is already extremely long, but hopefully doable with some "cheating" using trains or buses. I will of course consider all the tips I've got and perhaps adjust it.

Thanks for all the warnings against A82 from Tarbet to Tyndrum. I see there's a train there, so an easy option would be to simply skip that fragment by train and continue northwards from Tyndrum, without the need of riding on A82.

[bogmyrtle]

The west highland way is a very busy walking trail. If you are travelling in the same direction as walkers, you will constantly be coming up behind walkers who don't expect to be encountering bikes. I have walked it but wouldn't want to cycle it

[robing]

I think you'd be better cutting down your mileage, and concentrate on the West Highlands and Islands, which I think are the best part of Scotland. Why not do some island hopping? I'd get the train from Glasgow to Ardrossan, ferry to Arran, cycle across Arran then ferry to Argyll. Up the coast to Oban, ferry to Mull, spend some time on Mull, ferry to Lochaline, cycle up to Mallaig, ferry to Skye, cross back on the bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh. Then you can either continue up all the way to Durness or return via Inverness.

[khain]

I've tried cycling the West Highland Way on a (rigid) mountain bike with panniers. It's possible but very rough and slow. If your mountain bike has suspension and you're used to off-road cycling you might find it ok. You could try it and switch to the road if it's too rough, which is what I did. However, there are many parts which are really just for walking and will be busy with walkers in summer. Definitely avoid the east side of Loch Lomond.

I've cycled up the A82 many times, including in summer, and never found it too busy. There is a lot of heavy traffic, however in my experience the northwest Highlands, particularly Skye and Assynt, are busier in summer. Many areas have only single track roads which can really slow you down.

I think your route looks pretty good really. It takes in a lot of the best scenery and isn't too ambitious. I would definitely try to see the west coast and if you run out of time get the train back down from Inverness. The east Highlands are less scenic than the west. The prettiest areas are going to be busy in summer so you have to accept that or do a less scenic route or go off-road. Alternatively use the train between major locations and cycle by-roads rather than tour. You can get a Highland rail pass which could make this economical.