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Uncategorized / January 1, 1970

Staff trip diary: Wilderness Mountain Biking in the Scottish Highlands

Day 9: A "Proper" Scottish Ride

The initial plan for today was to ride in Torridon. However, today’s forecast for Torridon included words such as, “blizzard,” “hail,” “thunder,” “lightning,” “winds in excess of” and negative signs in front of numbers pertaining to temperature.

Euan’s response to this report was that “it didn’t look ideal for riding” and that we would most likely be “quite a bit wet and cold.” This news was a bit of a bummer. I had really been looking forward to Torridon as it boasts some of the best single track in the whole world. But this is Scotland -- where the weather is always good somewhere. Euan called up Tim and Tim agreed to take me out on a ride, somewhere.

After breakfast I walked around Inverness. I really like this town. I enjoyed a macchiato at a café called Velocity. Velocity is a café, bicycle workshop and social enterprise. That’s right, you can get some gourmet coffee while having your bike wrenched on. Or even better, you can learn some new bike wrenching skills while sipping on some delicious caffeinated creations. Yes, my caffeine-and-bike-loving friends, this is a small slice of heaven.

Tim picked me up around noon and we headed out. On our way out of town, we discussed riding options. We could go back to the Cairngorms and ride the 2009 single speed world championship course. Or we could go ride the race course of a popular 24-hour race. Or we could head a little further west to Glen Affric and go on a wilderness ride.  However, the weather reports in Glen Affric sounded less than optimal.

Decisions. Our initial decision was to head to the 24-hour racecourse, but once we got close, we both simultaneously decided to challenge the weather and head to Glen Affric. Wilderness, here we come!

We drove down a windy road for another 30 minutes that lead us to a parking lot situated neatly above a loch, or lake.  We got out of the car, excited like kids piling out of a van in the parking lot of an amusement park. We hopped on our bikes and headed out.

Wendell Berry once said, "Always in the big woods when you leave familiar ground and step off alone into a new place there will be, along with the feelings of curiosity and excitement, a little nagging of dread. It is the ancient fear of the Unknown, and it is your first bond with the wilderness you are going into." This sums up exactly how I felt as we set out.

We rode undulating double track that, for the first several miles, was quite tame and quite fun. The landscape was absolutely breath taking. We were riding alongside the hills in a long valley between towering snow-capped mountains with blue lakes below. The clouds and sunlight moved around like oil and water, always twisting around one another without ever properly mixing.

We made our way down a hill and passed a small hut on the side of the trail. Tim informed me that it was a bothy, which is a hut or shelter that is available to be used by anyone traveling through the area. There are many of these bothies all over the highlands, which are used frequently by hikers, climbers and bikers.

The further we went, the narrower the trail became. It also became rockier and more technical. The hills became a little steeper, both up and down. And what started as a small puddle here and there became large puddles around every corner and multiple stream and river crossings. After blasting through a few of the deeper streams, Tim and I were both soaked from the waist down. It didn’t matter though. Apparently no amount of age can take away the joy of splashing in puddles.

After another hour of riding we reached another bothie. Tim pointed at the hills ahead of us and told me that on the other side was the way to Torridon and Skye. The general color of that area was dark grey to black as if, for all you Neverending Story fans, the Nothing lurked around the hillside. Tim and I sat on a bench outside of the empty bothy and enjoyed some energy bars and cookies. We considered going further but then saw that the Nothing clouds were moving in the general direction that we wanted to go, so we decided to head back.

The route back took us around the other side of the valley and featured several short technical pitches and several long, unforgiving rock gardens. It was a full-suspension paradise. We stopped along the way to take photos of one another blasting through streams and standing by waterfalls.

By the end of the ride, we had ridden in sunshine and fair temperatures, cloud cover, snow and cold temperatures, rain, a ferocious headwind, an equally strong tailwind, no wind, and everything between. There were times when I took off my jacket and was still quite warm and times when I had my jacket on and was quite thankful it was waterproof. But the weather never bothered me at all. Maybe I have Tim’s joyous attitude to thank for that. I’m not sure. But it all just seemed to add to the overall experience.

When we pulled back into the parking lot, Tim exclaimed, “Now that’s a real Scottish ride! That is the kind of ride I love!” And I completely understood. We had ridden miles and miles away from pavement which was miles and miles away from the nearest home, which was miles and miles away from the nearest store of any sort which was then more miles away from the nearest town. We had ridden out into the vast expanse of the Scottish highlands, through all manner of trails and weather, and with smiles that never once left our faces. It was the kind of experience that is locked away, never to be forgotten.

After a nice warm shower, Catherine, Euan and I went down to Loch Ness to the Dores Inn for dinner. I searched the body of water for several minutes, determined to find some evidence of a beast. But the only beast I was able to find was the one in my stomach making beastly noises. So I headed in to feed the monster. We had another incredible meal and even better time talking and laughing about the day’s events. This was my last night in the Highlands. The train back to Glasgow awaited me at lunchtime the next day. 

I had high expectations heading into this trip. Leading up to this trip, I had seen pictures and video that had left me drooling.  But unlike the commercials for steaks and seafood that we are bombarded with on television, this trip far exceeded the expectations I had built from the videos and photos I had seen of this trip.

Even though there may not be a monster in Loch Ness, Scotland is quite a magical place.  From the dramatic landscapes, to the ancient castles and rich history, to the storied whiskeys and supremely underrated cuisine, it offers everything an adventurer could hope and wish for.

But the most impressive part of Scotland for me is the people. The Scottish people are kind, funny, laid back, adventurous and extremely hospitable. They can joke and offer a rip-roaring time, provide a wealth of knowledge and history, and offer timely words of wisdom. Within the first day they feel like old friends.

This trip goes down as epic. I am truly looking forward to returning.

 

See more details about H&I's tour in Torridon. 

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