After a week of disappointing weather in Mallorca, while Scotland was bathed in sunshine, we were relieved when the good weather at home held on just long enough for us to get in a sunny cycle on our return.
I’d been looking for a chance to do this particular route for quite a while, which includes a 5-6 mile offroad stretch near the end where the state of the track was a bit of an unknown. So I was looking to do it after a decent dry spell, where the chance of getting bogged down in any mud would be minimised. The time was right, so we grabbed the chance.
Arriving at Callander shortly after 9am, the sun was up and the wind was down, but it was still pretty chilly. We put on all our layers, shared a small flask of hot coffee and set off from the riverside car park. We headed north along the familiar cycle path, both riding our gravel bikes.
Shortly, we reached the south end of Loch Lubnaig, where everyone seemed to be packing up and leaving the holiday cabins after a sunny weekend. After passing through, we came out onto the lochside track, which seemed to be less potholed than the last time we were there. A bit further along, there was a team at work relaying the gravel surface on the track. It seemed right to be riding a gravel bike.
Further along, we came to the zig-zags that lead steeply up to meet the road to Strathyre. I wasn’t certain that the gears were low enough on my new bike, but I managed to get to the top in one go. We continued on National Cycle Route 7 through Strathyre and up along the winding track towards Lochearnhead.
At the appropriate point, about half a mile before the outskirts of Lochearnhead, we joined the (thankfully deserted) main road and descended for a minute or so, before turning right onto the south Loch Earn road. This road is a minor single track road, with a speed limit of 40, and designated as cycling and walking friendly.
As the morning wore on, the sun got higher and we got correspondingly warmer, meaning that it was time to shed the outer layers. The ride along the loch was very pleasant, with hardly any traffic to be seen. Although at the starting point for the climb up Ben Vorlich, there must have been at least a dozen cars parked.
The south Loch Earn road meets the main road at St Fillans, at the far east end of the loch. When we reached that point, we could see cyclists on the separate cycle path that leads from St Fillans to Comrie. It was our plan to use that cycle path but we had to turn right onto the main road for a while before we found a right turn to get us onto it. It looked like it went through somebody’s drive, so we missed it at first.
Once on the cycle path, we found it surprisingly busy with other cyclists, plus a few walkers. It followed the line of an old railway for a few miles before coming out at a T-junction. The cycle route to Comrie from there was right, and we would have followed it, but for the fact that it was a Monday, and all the cafes in Comrie are apparently closed on that day of the week. Our alternative was the Tullybannocher cafe, to reach which we needed to rejoin the main road.
The cafe was a bit of a find. It is quite large, serving a caravan park over on the other side of the road, and has a good range of hot food, reasonably priced and quickly prepared. We just went for filled rolls, but couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a side of hash browns as well. Perhaps that was a step too far, as I felt more like having a lie down afterwards, rather than jumping back on my bike!
Soon, we arrived in Comrie, where a right turn off the main road took us onto the B827. We were now heading back in the direction of Callander, along what was at first a straight flat road. However, our route took us onto a minor road at Cultybraggan camp, after which the flavour was definitely up, up, up!
An older couple passed us, as we struggled with the gradient – the wonder of e-bikes! The payback for our effort was the remote and beautiful scenery of Glen Artney. I wasn’t sure how quickly we would lose the tarmac, but it went on for quite a few miles. This would certainly be a very worthwhile dead-end to visit on a road bike.
When the road finally ended, we went through a gate into wild looking moorland. There were paths leading left and right. The one to Callander was to the left and looked both steep and rough. No place to take a skinny-tyred road bike, but with a gravel bike you could pick a reasonable route through.
I was sure that I’d have to get off and push at some point, with the gradient going over 12% at times, but amazingly, the gravel bike just kept on rolling over the gnarly track. Colette was getting tired and had to push up the long steep section that came at first, but I think the view after reaching the top lifted her spirits and she got a second wind.
The scenery on this calm and sunny day was amazing, with picture postcard views up the valley towards snow-capped Ben Vorlich. We passed over the Water of Ruchill on a substantial wooden bridge, and further on, two more such bridges took us over Keltie Water.
I’m fairly sure one of the peaks in the distance is Ben Vorlich
One solitary walker was the only other soul we saw on this perfect stretch of off-road track, which was exceeding my already high expectations. It was exhilarating to let myself go on the downhill bits, perched over the saddle and now and then, loose gravel would go pinging off the underside of the bike or my feet.
Finally, we reached a farm, and shortly after that, a tarmac road. This undulated for a mile or so, until it began a very sharp descent into Callander. We came out near the Co-op. Colette popped in to get some much needed cold drinks, then we pedalled back to the car for the drive home. It had been a glorious day out – the best of the year so far and it will be very hard to beat!