Cairngorms Loop
Bike
6 Sep 2022
The Cairngorms National Park is Britain's largest National Park, at over 4500 square kilometers, and encompasses Britain's largest mountain range - The Grampians, which extends from southwest to northeast Scotland. The National Park is named after the Cairn Gorm mountain, with a summit elevation of 1245 metres, and is the seventh-highest mountain in Britain. Ben Macdui is in fact the largest mountain in the Cairngorms National Park, standing at 1309 metres, and is the second-highest mountain in Britain, after Ben Nevis.
The National Park is filled with vast lochs, fast-flowing rivers and expansive pine forests. The rocky plateau in the center contains huge granite lumps and is Britain's largest area of arctic mountain landscape and the only place where snow can lie throughout summer, from one winter to the next. There are no roads that cross the National Park, so a bike is an ideal way to cover the ground effectively and explore the variety of terrain throughout the interior. It is a committing place to ride, though, due to the remoteness and weather unpredictabilities, therefore demands that you carry everything needed for multiple days and a wide variety of conditions and eventualities.
The Cairngorms Loop is a mountain biking route that connects two circuits around the National Park, one around the outside and a second through the centre. Being a loop, you can start and finish wherever you like, although if you want to take the route on as more of a race, the Individual Time Trial (ITT) start/finish point is in Blair Atholl to the south of the Cairngorms.
I planned to tour the route at a steady pace, starting in Aviemore to give myself a more established town to hang out in before and after the ride. I went fairly lightweight on the trip to keep weight to a minimum as I expect to be carrying my bike a lot. I did pack a hooped bivvy bag for emergencies but planned a route to allow me to stay in a different bothy each night. To facilitate this, I will come off the Cairngorms Loop route at points to reach some of the bothies, plus I have planned to add in an extra loop, heading further east, picking up the Deeside Trail route to Ballater. From here I will feed back into Braemar where I’d rejoin the Cairngorms Loop route.
Bothies, by definition from the Mountain Bothies Association (MBA), are “simple shelters in remote country for the use and benefit of all those who love being in wild places”. They are generally old, ex-farmers outbuildings, built for shelter from the elements. They’re common in Scotland and vary massively in size and comfort levels, and I’m keen to see as many as possible and experience some interesting Scottish history.
I’m weary of taking on multiple river crossings on the route on my own, as there's a lot of water in the Park, plus the rivers can be up to waist height, or higher with increased rainfall. River levels are critical for this trip and they can change rapidly in heavy rain, making them impassable. So this will be a key consideration throughout. Carrying a 25kg bike overhead whilst wading through freezing water that’s moving at pace can easily create a worrying situation if you roll an ankle or slip into the water.
After a nine hour journey north from London, I arrived in Aviemore, a small mountain town on the north-western outskirts of the Cairngorms. The following day’s weather was looking good, so I decided to head straight off on the ride.
Day 1: Aviemore - Glas-Allt-Shiel. 105km | 1600m+ | 7/10 hours
I woke to clear skies at 07.00 and got my bivvy packed away dry, hoping I wouldn’t need it for a good few nights and the bothies would have space for me when I arrived each night. It was nice to be back in Aviemore, I hadn’t been since I spent the day here after I rode the NC500 three summers back. The town was surprisingly busy at 07.30 and thankfully the temperature quickly warmed up. I picked up some food for the next day or two and headed off on a few sections of nicely linked-up bike paths and the NC7.
The route was straightforward all morning, moving through a mix of drovers roads and singletrack lanes in pine forest and quarries alongside the River Spey. It was lumpy though, and my legs felt sluggish from the eight hours spent sitting on a train yesterday. There were a few fun sections of tight singletrack, which I took slow and concentrated as I adjusted to my loaded bike which moved slower than usual. The trail was covered with wild mushrooms of all types which distracted me and kept drawing my eye away from the line I was riding, leading to a few early close calls!
Later in the morning, the trail opened up to double track and so I could pick up the speed. The wind also picked up and the ground became sodden as I moved east, but still no rain. Into Dorback Estate with more pine trees and double track, with a steady climb and natural flowing descent. I was soon into double figures for river crossings, but so far all low enough to keep my feet dry. However, gentle spots turned to rain, then the heavens really opened. I descended down to the village of Tomintoul and stopped in at the village store for some food, taking shelter to eat a macaroni pie and a banana in a phone box. Glam! I only allowed myself a quick stop despite heavy rain, as I was weary of getting over the main climb of the day. I knew I was unlikely to see a shop now until tomorrow, so stocked up.
Out of Tomintoul, I rode south and the heavy rain eased up and I made steady progress. I moved on to double track for many kilometers, slowly making my way up, passing Loch Builg and finally up and over the pass, with the 900m Culardoch peak on my left. There were some chunky sections but mostly on steady gradients, but it was slow progress in the conditions, with heavy rain all the way until the top, but over the other side of the valley, it was bright and clearer and I had a smooth descent which helped to blow my clothes dry. On the way up, I pushed through countless river crossings (over 15 in the last two hours) and sections of bog that required dragging and heaving my bike to keep moving. The riding was mostly easy rolling double track on either side of this, though, so I could continue inching my way towards the bothy.
I descended towards Braemar where I came off the official Cairngorms Loop route and began to head northeast to the outskirts of the National Park. I rode on tarmac for a short while and then came off into the hills to head for the bothy. I crossed the River Dee to Easter Balmoral which often houses the Royals, but was still shocked to see a heavily armed group of police officers. I hadn’t realised that Queen Elizabeth was currently here, and that she had passed away this afternoon. The car park down the road was full of lorries and vans from TV reporters, all of which was a bit of a shock having just ridden on my own through the remote countryside in lashing rain for the last six or seven hours. I had to detour due to some roadblocks by police, and continued on long undulating sandy and rocky double track that was now dry and fast rolling. A sharp right turn joined me to the road that leads down to the bothy alongside Lock Muick.
The rain subsided for a while and then an easy few miles blew my clothes almost dry for a second time. I pulled up to the bothy at 17.30 and there was no one else here, so had plenty of room and no need to get my bivvy bag out. I had a quick look around, washed my bike, cleaned and lubed the chain and got settled inside as the heavens opened again. I sat down to relax and was glad to be inside.
The Glas-Allt-Shiel bothy is a hidden quarter in an outbuilding in the back of the Royal Balmoral Estate lodge, on the west end of Loch Muick, previously used frequently by Queen Victoria as a holiday retreat, but not used by the Royals much anymore. The dark courtyard room had two floors and plenty of space, plus a stove and thankfully had multiple chairs and hooks to hang my wet gear on.
It continued to rain heavily all evening, with the sounds of the gusts echoing around the bothy. There was even some lightning which lit up the room through the bothy skylights. I had a dinner of cocktail sausages, pastry rolls, pork pie, yogurt and an orange I’d carried all the way from London. I read a few pages of The Living Mountain and called it a day and blew my mattress up at 8pm. Early to bed, early to shred! I was wondering if there’d still be more rain falling in the morning.
Day 2: Glas-Allt-Shiel - Callater Stable. 81km | 1030m+ | 6/11 hours
Retracing my steps back along Loch Muick on gravel tracks, I enjoyed a gentle hour or so of either flat or downhill riding heading north to Ballater. The weather was surprisingly dry when I woke! But that meant the odd midge about. I left at 7.30, in no major rush as there was no point in reaching town before the cafe opened. More debris on path than yesterday - last night's storm was clearly powerful.
I cruised into town for a haggis and egg bap and coffee, then kept moving. As I ate I could hear the local radio reporting the prolonged and heavy rain there had been and which would continue. Rivers were in spate after recent downpours and would continue to stay high as they were topped up from showers. The day has still been dry for me for the time being, though.
Riding solo I have decided to avoid the larger river crossing for safety. This would include the crossing of the River Gairn, a 30 metres crossing of knee to thigh-high water. This comes after Ballater, north after Bridge of Gairn. There is a road that runs alongside the trail on the other side of the river. For me this trail was fairly pointless, there’s no need to be on the trail and get very wet coming over the river for no reason, I stuck to the road which is just on the other side of the river and span my legs to keep warm.
At 30km I turned off the road and the sun came out and somehow there was blue skies! This lead me to hope for a dry ride over the main pass of the day. Four river crossings, fast flowing, some deep sections up to and over my knee. But only a couple of metres wide so I didn’t have to hold my bike up for too long. The double track continued ascending gently with a few ramps in the gradient but nothing as steep as yesterday yet. I then found myself back at the wooden house, the crossover point from yesterday. This lead me to a big, deep crossing of River Gairn - up to my thigh, nearly my waist. The water was cold and strong and my toes were stinging by the time I made it through, so I got moving straight away. The trail petered out and I rode on grass as the valley opened up.
I lost the trail altogether after a few hundred more meters. It was washed out. I picked it up again and it had become a stream of off-camber, tight single track. It was tricky to navigate, must concentrate, and exhausting. Countless river crossings, 20+ now. Some deep and fast, some shallow and rideable. Then pushing for half an hour plus. Finally, summit at 14.00 then rocky on/off descent down to a more established pathway.
I’d still not seen anyone for hours! On the way down, I met another serious river crossing. The most demanding so far, as the water was fast flowing and white, so I struggled to see the depth or where to put my feet. Most previous rivers have had clear sections allowing me to pick out big rocks to stand on and to rest bike wheels on. But here the current was much stronger and so I couldn’t let my bike wheels dip into the water otherwise they’d catch the current and pull me off balance. It had been about ten minutes of carrying to different sections of the river now, and my arms and shoulder were aching and feet stung with the cold so I needed a break before I dropped my bike in the middle of the river. Eventually, I went for it and found a line to cross, resting my tire on a big rock just over halfway. For a serious moment I thought I wasn’t gunna make it over that one!
From here, winding single track and then road into Braemar, a smart town with nice restaurants and big cars, including three Austin Martins outside a hotel. I headed to a bar for a few pints, dinner and a sit down for an hour or so. I left at 17.30, reaching the bothy at the end of a few kilometer-long drovers road at 18.45 while just light. The stable sits alongside Callater Lodge, set in the confines of Glen Callater. It’s a cool place, with skis on the wall, Everest base camp photos and Nepalese flags, plus the luxury of foam pads on the sleeping platforms. The bothy is a stone outbuilding on the estate, split into two rooms, a living area and a sleeping room with four bunks, sleeping eight to ten, so I wasn’t in too much of a rush to get there, there’s ample space. There’s no stove or fireplace here though, so not an ideal overnight stop in the colder months.
Today had been more mentally demanding, with much more technical terrain and serious river crossings, due to recent high rainfall. Also, lots of solitude! Another early night, drifting off at 9pm.
Day 3: Callater Stable - Ruigh Aiteachain. 114km | 1350m+ | 8/12 hours
It was a cold morning so I put all my clothes on, most of them still damp. I had a long downhill ride back into Braemar so was going to get cold as I wouldn’t be pedalling. My body was feeling a little tight this morning, my arms and Achilles aching from the hiking and carrying. I pulled into a supermarket and picked up a days worth of food.
There were signs of blue sky in amongst the cloud, but I wasn’t holding my breath. I was also riding away from it, south, into the cloud, although the wind was picking up so I hoped it would blow the cloud off. I rode back through Mar Lodge Estate but continued heading south this time, next stop would be Blair Atholl after a long section of single track following the River Dee up and into the valley of Glen Tilt.
Riding over Linn of Dee bridge the off-road began for the day with a long mellow track, with a few shallow ankle-high river crossings. Onwards for a slow and technical 30km ascent on a rocky track which picked its way around and up the valley. This was on/off riding, carrying over streams and pushing through rock fields, in amongst some short clear sections that were rideable. It was sunny though and there was a gentle breeze, and not too slippy underfoot, so good riding conditions. I was hoping progress would be quicker but there’s a lot of on/off-ing. It was lumpy terrain and concentration was needed as there was now a sheer drop to my left.
When I reached what was the top of the climb, I then had a 20km descent to Blair Atholl town. The profile lured me into thinking I was going to have a nice downhill ride for a while which I could enjoy. But this definitely was not the case and the down was the same as the up so I was back to carefully picking my way down. The path remained rocky and challenging for an hour or so, and the sheer drop intensified, forcing me to walk downhill in between easier bits. The slope was a gentle downhill and I had to pedal the whole time I was riding.
After the most challenging section of carrying my bike over lumps and slippy rocks, I bumped into Stan from Amsterdam who was travelling the other way and was on a big two-month ride. We chatted for a while about his trip so far and I let him know what he was in for, which was going to be really tough for him as he was on a riding bike, loaded up with a lot of kit.
Stan’s photo of me
I got going after 20 minutes or so of chat, looking forward to some warm food in town. Stan and I made a loose plan to meet again at another bothy, so we could continue chatting then. There are two routes into Blair Atholl from here - the tougher ITT route and the more friendly touring route. The ITT route includes a section known as ‘the sting in the tail’, as this is just before the end of the ITT which starts and finishes in Blair Atholl. It’s a steep, sharp section of hike-a-bike in the opposite direction you want to be going and sounds fairly demoralising.
Or you can continue on the singletrack south and have a more direct and rideable route to town. I stuck to my planned touring route, and continued on the singletrack down Glen Tilt. Crossing a black iron bridge at the Falls of Tarf, I cruised down double track down to town. Phew! I was glad to have made some quicker progress.
In town, I sat on a cafe terrace in 16-degree sunshine, fueling up, and eventually left town around 45 minutes later. From here I headed west on the A9, skirting the south of the Cairngorms. I was glad to turn off the busy road and onto the National Cycle route 7 which was old disused road that runs parallel to the newer road. Turning right, heading north now, I locked my suspension out and cruised up the tarmac, climbing gradually back into the mountains. After an hour or so I moved over onto Gaick Pass and was back on off-road double track heading for Loch an Duin.
The double track continued for a while until I had a boggy slog in high wind to get up alongside the loch and a short shower made sure I didn’t stay dry for a whole day. A few short river crossings alongside Loch Bhrodainn and then the road turned to tarmac to link up Tromie Dam and Loch an t-Seilich.
I descended into the valley and there was warmer and settled weather on this side, but therefore also prime midge conditions, I made a very quick change out of rain gear and set off up the next steep climb, swatting the midges away as I picked up speed. It had now just gone 17.00, so late in the day and I was keen to find the bothy, this was the main one I’d been looking forward to so wanted to be able to explore it in daylight and enjoy an evening there.
Another few kilometres of track through rivers until I joined another service road and pushed hard on the pedals for the last few kilometers. I was presented with one last hurdle, which I new about and hoped it would be too deep.
I needed to be on the other side of the River Feshie to reach the bothy. There used to be a bridge here for this crossing but it got washed away in a storm back in 2009, so I had the choice of crossing here or heading further north to the next bridge and coming back down, which would take a long time. I went for the crossing as the water looked fairly steady, although was just below my waist.
Over the river and riding again, I took a wrong turn in haste and got a bit lost looking for the bothy, as it wasn’t where I’d thought on the map. All the paths I rode or looked down were dead ends or overgrown. I eventually retraced my steps and headed in a different direction and found the bothy, arriving relieved at about 19.15 and ready to eat and warm up.
I initially thought I’d walked into someone's house rather than a bothy! Ruigh Aiteachain is certainly a 5* hotel by bothy standards. The bothy is on two floors with a proper staircase and sectioned attic bedrooms, and two large living room downstairs, both with wood-burning stoves, plus toilets in an outbuilding. The bothy sits in the valley of Glen Feshie, which is considered the smartest part of the national park, and the bothy is often referred to as The Feshie Bothy.
There was a couple from Edinburgh and another Scottish chap in the bothy, so finally I’d have some evening company. We lit the fire too so I had a warm night and didn’t need to sleep fully clothed.
Day 4: Ruigh Aiteachain - Ryvoan. 44km | 650m+ | 3/10 hours
Day 5: Ryvoan - Aviemore. 19km | 50m+ | 1/1 hours
I got up, packed the bike and was off at 07.00. I took an alternative route to try and avoid the overgrown trails and dead ends I found yesterday, but didn’t have much luck and this just brought me back to the same trail but further along. This time though, I continued bashing through the shrubbery, down the bank of a river, along the river, and onto a short trail that finally lead me to the Pony Bridge.
It had been a drizzly morning, overcast and a gentle wind and I wasn’t feeling too motivated! Over the bridge, I made quicker progress north on some smooth tarmac before heading into fields and over Feshie Bridge and into the pine forest that traversed around the Chalamain mountain to my right. The forest riding was fun, with dirt paths and rooty single track up to Loch en Eilein along the Rothiemurchus path all the way up to Glenmore.
I decided to stop at a cafe for a fry-up at 10.45, with just 30km done but I needed a proper meal. I now had a decision to make - whether or not to push on over the Fords of Avon (pronounced A'an) on a long and challenging hike-a-bike which would allow me to look at the main river crossing that’s the crux of the route. It’s a long slog to get there and everyone I’ve spoken to says it’s not going to be passable with the recent heavy rain as the river is deep and strong. The rivers I’d passed so far were currently much deeper and stronger than usual as they were spate, so I was anticipating this one to be much more challenging, something I wasn’t too keen for on my own.
I knew the Ryvoan bothy was just up the road, so decided to hang out at this bar for a few hours to chew it over, then head up there for the night. I could take on the rest of the route tomorrow if I was up for it and feeling motivated. After a few beers and food, I headed up to the bothy at 16.15, which only took half an hour. The bothy is popular as it’s so easy to access, sitting on an old thieves’ road running between Glen More and Nether Bridge. It’s a single room, with newly added porch for wood storage. There’s just one sleeping platform that can sleep four, plus a fireplace, so it can be warm and cosy in the winter.
As I hung out there in the evening I heard a few bikes rattle past, but not many people over the last few hours of daylight. Being a Friday night I expected to have company in the bothy but no such luck! The weather cleared though and there was a pink sky sunset. Then later at around 20.00 when it was dark, a group of five arrived and pitched tents outside. I spoke to them briefly as they cooked their dinner, exchanging previous day’s reports and future plans. They reported musings of a landslide in the valley from the recent rain and lightning and said I’d have trouble making the inner loop I’d planned. That swung it for me and my decision not to head into the plateau in the morning and so I went to sleep thinking of a relaxing day tomorrow.
The following morning was bright and warm but extremely midgey around the bothy, so there was no hanging around once outside and I was quickly rolling down the hill. I left at 08.00 and headed back down the path into the valley, through a cloud inversion and blue skies. It was cold though, so I span quickly back to Aviemore and headed straight for breakfast. Then for my first shower in five days which felt good!
Additional thoughts
The few river photos here don’t show the strength of the water, how wide and deep they are, or how cold your feet get! If you ride in the Cairngorms there is so much water you will have wet feet for the duration of your time there, so there’s no point fighting it or wasting time trying to keep them dry.
As is the norm in Scotland, the weather changes quickly and I had hot sunshine and rain in a matter of minutes. So keep riding and the sun will come, eventually!
I think you can easily be lured into making decisions when the weather is suddenly looking good, but just as quickly as it changed for the better, it can change back to being much worse than before. You, therefore, need to be prepared and commit to your decisions, making them as sensibly, especially if you’re riding solo like I was, as help is a long way away!
I’d enjoyed a few days in the wilderness, explored a new part of Scotland, slept in some cool bothies and put together an interesting route. So, I was feeling content on the train back down to London and am looking forward to coming back and riding the inner loop, plus exploring more of Scotland’s unique bothies. If I’d have had one more day until my train back I would have headed into the inner loop as two consecutive dry days meant the river would have lowered. But I’ll have to wait until next time to find out what the inner loop is all about!
Further info
See more at: cairngormsloop.net, cairngorms.co.uk, deesidetrail.com,
Useful links: The Complete Guide to Bikepacking Scotland, bikepackingscotland.com, mountainbothies.org.uk, Cairngorm Wanderer bothy guide, Bikepacking.com’s route guide for Cairngorms Loop & Deeside Trail, Gutsibikes 2017 CL ride report, In Between Spokes’ Ride the Cairngorms Loop! trip report, JKB’s CL ride report, Huw Oliver’s Navigating Internally: going off-topic on the Cairngorms Loop, Pannier.cc’s Living Wild: Bikepacking the Cairngorms Loop.
Short films: Mind over Mountains, Riding the Cairngorms Loop, The Cairngorms are Calling, Bikepacking the Cairngorms (A father and son fatbike adventure), HOOKS, The Uncertain Path.
Related reading:
- The Living Mountain, Nan Shepherd
- Mountain Days and Bothy Nights, Dave Brown & Ian Mitchell
- The Scottish Bothy Bible, Geoff Allan
- The Book of The Bothy, Phoebe Smith
- Grand Bikepacking Journeys - Riding Iconic Routes around the World, Stefan Amato
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