Bikepacking: gravel biking through Scotland

Weather

‘In the Highlands, you’ll often experience all four seasons over the course of a day – but we were honestly so lucky with the weather.’

The rain was beating down on us: we’d left Edinburgh just 45 minutes ago. We sought shelter under a bridge and changed into our rain gear. On we went. We were navigating with our smartphone, but a few hours went by before we noticed that the rain had magically added new stops to our route, so we’d been going in circles somewhat. That’s reason enough to use a GPS device!

Apart from the damp start to our tour, there was only one day when we had a few rain showers. Some of them were heavier than others, but they didn’t last long. Otherwise, it only rained overnight – luckily for us.

Route

‘The Badger Divide takes you through some of the most beautiful landscapes in the heart of the Highlands.’

The gravel-loving Scots had recommended the Badger Divide to us. This route runs to Inverness and actually begins in Glasgow, but we started in Edinburgh and joined the Badger Divide in Callander. The trail gets really rather challenging from Killin onwards: you’re climbing lots of altitude, there’s no mobile phone signal, and you’ll sometimes travel a good 100 kilometres before you find the next place to buy food.

When coming back from Inverness to Edinburgh, we followed the more moderate Pictish Trail, passing disused railway lines and whisky distilleries. We travelled through the purple haze of the heather flowers on old military roads, flanked by sheep: a picture-postcard view of the Highlands.

You can take your bike on trains free of charge in Scotland if you book via an app in advance. We took the train from Dundee to avoid getting caught up in the increasingly heavy traffic on the roads. We’d recommend avoiding large, busy roads: even though you might have to cover a couple of extra kilometres and climb a bit of extra altitude, you’ll be calmer for it – and safer from accidents.

Food and drink

‘When you’re cycling, and especially if you’re carrying luggage, it’s only a matter of time before your stomach starts rumbling and you feel sapped of energy.’

From previous tours, we knew that you should always have a few snacks with you when bikepacking – and that every little supermarket was worth a stop. There wasn’t much in the way of supermarkets on either of our routes, though. That said, there were a few cafés where we could buy simple meals and snacks. In the evenings, we usually heated up a pre-made freeze-dried meal on our mini cooker. If you have a water filter, you’ll find regular options to top up your bottles en route. However, it’s crucial that you carry enough food with you when in the Cairngorms national park.

Larger towns and cities are home to every kind of cuisine under the sun, from fish and chips to Indian and Middle Eastern dishes. In terms of price, food and meals out are above the EU average.

Mosquitoes

‘Midges: it’s said that these little blood-suckers are part of the reason why the Highlands are so sparsely populated.’

Midges, tiny insects that are part of the gnat family, often appear in huge swarms – and feed on human blood, among other delicacies. Before we set off, people told us that there would be far fewer of them around from mid-August onwards. We nevertheless bought ‘Smidge’ as soon as we arrived: this cream containing essential oils is the Scots’ preferred way to keep the insects at bay. Every morning, we slathered it onto any patches of bare skin.

These little pests gathered in great numbers at dusk or in moorland areas, but our repellent meant we hardly got bitten. We wore a head net when the situation got really bad, like when we were putting up the tent. The net needs to be finer than a regular mosquito net, as the midges are so tiny. Midges don’t like wind, rain and people in motion, so we often just kept going or ate our snacks while walking. You can track their current spread on a map from spring onwards (www.smidgeup.com).

People

‘We were fascinated by the Scots’ down-to-earth, direct, friendly and helpful nature.’

We got to the café in Courror late in the day. The kitchen had already closed, but they didn’t leave us to go hungry, serving us refreshing drinks and a delicious hot meal. People were overjoyed to see our bikes: most people who went there were locals. The café was lovingly – and thoroughly – revamped two years ago and is still not so well-known. Not satisfied with simply providing us with food at such a late hour, they also invited us to spend the night on our camping mats in the café itself. We gratefully accepted, as the swarms of midges on the horizon outside were visible to the naked eye.

Sleeping under the stars with the ‘right to roam’

‘This is the Scottish version of the “everyman’s right” common in Scandinavia.’

The campsite in Ballater was fully booked, and we couldn’t get a room anywhere either. After two days in a tent, we fancied a shower – but there was no joy to be had. So, we left the town again. We met a farmer and his children on the cycle route. In his red overalls, he reminded us of Pettersson from the children’s tale ‘Pettersson and Findus’. We asked him if we’d be able to camp on his land, between some pretty trees on a hill. ‘Of course,’ he said, and pointed to a little gate in the fence where we could access the land. ‘What damage could you do here over the course of one night, anyway?’ We were only too happy to accept his hospitality.

In 2003, the ‘right to roam’ was officially enshrined in Scottish law. This says that every person is entitled to free access to undeveloped land and inland waters, and that everyone should act responsibly when in nature.

Sleeping in hiking huts (‘bothies’)

‘These hiking huts are a common sight in the Scottish Highlands, but you can find them across the whole of the UK.’

Bothies come in all kinds of sizes and are usually found in breathtakingly rugged landscapes: they’re the only real protection against the unpredictable Scottish weather in many remote, uninhabited regions.

There was a bothy on our route at the Badger Divide, and we were extremely grateful for this simple shelter during a very rainy night. More info on the huts: mountainbothies.org.uk

Heather in bloom

‘When the heather’s in bloom, the landscape is studded with vivid flashes of purple – the sunlight makes the riot of colour even brighter.’

In Scotland, the heather blooms from August to late September and creates a stunning natural spectacle. The flowering period depends on the region and altitude.

Unfortunately, though, the plants pose a risk to cyclists, as many Scots are only too aware: the heather’s long, soft stems can get wrapped into your gear shift as you cycle past, and they’re so robust that your bike will sometimes even end up damaged. This is exactly what happened to us – there was a thump, then Jochen’s entire gear shift was twisted out of shape. No phone signal, and the nearest road was ages away. Our bike insurance did offer breakdown cover. Would they...? Probably not...

With a steady hand, we bent and pulled the gear shift back into place. There was a screw on the ground and a small part that had broken off the gear shift. It looked as if we’d be pushing our bikes for the rest of the day, but, amazingly, after spending an eternity fiddling around, three of the middle gears started working, and Jochen cycled on with them. A few hours later, he even managed to get five gears going and used them for the rest of the tour – there was no chance of getting replacement parts.

Scottish towns

‘The towns and villages along the route are a welcome change to the rugged expanses of the Highlands.’

We found the coastal town of Nairns particularly charming, with dunes, a pretty harbour and lovely people – like everywhere in Scotland. We took a rest day there. As in most towns, life plays out along one long-ish street with shops, cafés and restaurants. We really liked Callander, Ballater, Dundee, Inverness and Killin, too. You’ve simply got to spend a day in Edinburgh when you’re in Scotland. We did this at the end of the tour, as the annual Edinburgh International Festival, which takes place in August, had finished by then: during the Festival, all the accommodation is either booked up or overpriced.

What’s gravel biking in Scotland like?

‘Gravel bikes are very popular and widespread in Scotland.’

We saw lots of keen Scottish cyclists en route, and most of them were riding gravel bikes. They were delighted to share their experiences and check out our bikes. The more passionate they got about a topic, the more regional slang they used – until we hardly understood a word. But, as the Scots are so polite, they usually noticed quickly and catered to our level.