- 2 days ago
Cycling Weekly set out on the hunt for the best gravel riding we could find and found ourselves in Aberfoyle, just north of Glasgow and we weren't disappointed. With lochs, mountain views and mile after mile of traffic free gravel roads, they thought they found heaven!
In association with Komoot.
In association with Komoot.
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00:25It's safe to say that the last year and a half has been, well, empty of
00:29much in the way of exploration.
00:32Riding has been local, and if you're like me, mostly the same roads and trails over and
00:37over and over and over and over again.
00:39So when Camus asked myself and Catherine Moore if we'd like to ride one of the UK's ultimate
00:43gravel riding destinations, naturally we leapt at the chance.
00:48Bags and bikes packed, we headed a long way north to Aberfoyle, otherwise known as Gravel
00:54Foil.
00:54Now all we needed was a guide, so we met it was Kerry McPhee, a local shredder was an
01:00encyclopedic knowledge of the gravel roads and the trails on offer.
01:04So Gravel Foil has 200km of gravel trails and Aberfoyle is right in the centre of it, so
01:11you can loop the north side and you can loop the south side, you can bale halfway, you can
01:17eat your lunch and go down the south side and there's loads of different types of gravel
01:22as well.
01:22You've got fat gravel, you've got fast gravel, you've got single track, you've got tech,
01:26so this is an ideal place for anyone to come and try.
01:30You can do a massive loop like we're going to do or you can do a tiny little one, so
01:33you're
01:33spoilt for options and spoilt for terrain.
01:36Feeling a little apprehensive to be honest, like I'm really excited about this route, it
01:41looks absolutely incredible what you've put together for us.
01:44But it is going to be a big day and a ride of two halves by the looks of it,
01:48like the
01:49Three Locks Drive and that area that I think we're going to do first looks stunning.
01:53We've seen a little bit about what's in store there, but very accessible from Aberfoyle, whereas
01:57the second half looks properly wild and a bit of the West Highland Way, like really a bit
02:03more remote, so I think that will be really stunning.
02:05It's pretty tough, but it's a good loop.
02:08Pretty tough for you or pretty tough for them?
02:10Pretty tough for them, because they don't know what's coming.
02:16Our route has something of a rude awakening, climbing for the first five kilometres out
02:21of Aberfoyle before winding through the beautiful Trossocks forest roads up to Loch Vinnaker.
02:26We'll ride the southern shore before striking across to Loch Acre before heading south and back
02:32towards Aberfoyle, but not before taking in the sights of Loch Drunky.
02:36But our ride doesn't end there, instead we head out the other side of Aberfoyle and into
02:41the true wilderness of the Trossocks, winding a path between Ben Lomond and Ben Du, it's
02:46here where our ride is at its most isolated.
02:49A steep hairpin descent takes us down to the iconic West Highland Way on the shores of Loch
02:54Lomond and a chance for a break at the Inversnade Hotel.
02:57A short, steep climb takes us up to Loch Arklut, before a long ride in a much needed gradual
03:03descent along the banks of Loch On back to Aberfoyle.
03:07You can of course find all the route details on Cycling Weekly's Komoot account and at the
03:11link in the description.
03:13We're off!
03:15Where are we Kerry?
03:16We have just hit the Jigs Pass, so if you were doing the Jigs Weekendren event this would
03:21be the start line of the Hill Clown.
03:23It is a hill!
03:24It is a hill!
03:26We've started on a hill.
03:27So it won't be long before we pick a ride onto the gravel.
03:31So this looks like this is kind of some of the only tarmac.
03:34We don't do much tarmac on this ride.
03:36Pretty much!
03:36I think this is maybe like 200-400 metres of tarmac and then we'll do gravel after that.
03:41Music to my ears!
03:43Woohoo!
04:26Look at this!
04:29It's very cloudy, very atmospheric, although I think it's going to burn off.
04:35I think we might get better weather this afternoon, which is nice, but these gravel roads are so
04:40cool.
04:40I just don't have anything like this where I ride at home.
04:45None of these like wide open rides that are just no traffic.
04:51You can ride like free abreast.
04:55I carry myself and Catherine able just to ride along and chat.
04:58It's such a refreshing way to ride.
05:34You know when you make crashes, and for a split second, you really want to laugh?
05:40But you shouldn't laugh because you need to make sure that they're okay first.
05:43Once that was all clear, it was just so funny.
05:45It was just like a real slow-mo tumble.
05:48Very embarrassing.
05:50It's just funny when somebody crashes.
06:02Fifteen kilometres into our ride, after climbing out of Aberfoyle and stretching out along rocky
06:08tracks and winding our way along the southern shores of Loch Venneker, we reach Acre Farm,
06:13the perfect place for an ice cream break.
06:22I was glad to reach Acre Farm because Kerry had told us a lot about the delicious ice cream,
06:27which I can confirm was really delicious.
06:30I think the elderflower one I had had been foraged from the village like two days ago,
06:35which is super cool.
06:36And there's loads of animals here, which I'm really excited about.
06:39But back to the route, yeah, fab so far.
06:43If I said gravel foil, what does that mean to you?
06:47Gravel foil is Aberfoyle.
06:49It's the mecca for gravel in the UK at the moment, I think.
06:55Have you seen an increase in cyclists?
06:57Yeah, very much so.
06:59I mean, lockdown was amazing here.
07:01The number of people who came out of their homes and could enjoy the roads and the tracks
07:07for maybe the first time in a long time.
07:10And the number of casual, recreational and kind of semi-pro racers kind of whizzing around the woods here
07:16is phenomenal these days.
07:18When we came to the farm, we knew there was the Great Trussox Path running through it
07:22and the Felix Weiss Drive adjacent.
07:24So setting up a business that would cater to sustainable travel,
07:28people out, recreational, cycling and walking was key to our business.
07:32And people do.
07:33People stop.
07:33People in cars don't stop.
07:35Everyone on a bike or walking around the loch sees the benefits,
07:41sees the slower pace and can stop and enjoy it.
07:45That's what we're here for, to give them that experience.
07:47Obviously, if we get into new trails.
07:48This is how the
07:48team's gone.
08:06Here is a lot of crashing.
08:09We are going to take a hopeless.
08:12Here's the principles of the building.
08:13I began to take overtime on Pluto.
08:13We get into what we do.
08:16And we're gonna have to leave and ask that.
08:47We'll see you next time.
08:48Kerry McPhee, you've done a lot of plotting on Khmut, haven't you?
08:52Yeah, I love using Khmut for my plots.
08:55How many kilometres of trails do you think you've worked out on Khmut?
09:01Oh, hunners, that's a good Scottish word.
09:03Hunners! Hunners!
09:06Hundreds of trails on Khmut.
09:08Hundreds of trails.
09:09I have got a Khmut collection of my gravel foil routes,
09:11and it goes as far as lots of parts of the West Highland Way,
09:15and then there's South Gravel Foil, North Gravel Foil.
09:17It's massive, and there's stuff that I haven't done yet.
09:19Definitely goes without saying that you should check out
09:22Kerry's Khmut collections,
09:24and all the things we'll post on the Cycling Weekly Khmut profile
09:27if you want to dig out some great routes,
09:29because Kerry, you know them all.
09:31Yeah, I was greedy when I was trying to plot something out for you guys.
09:35We're going on epic today,
09:36because I just want you to see it all and feel it all.
09:39Awesome.
09:40Well, let's crack on, because we have a long way to go.
09:58This is a classic gravel foil section of trail.
10:02We've just done the switchbacks up to the aqueduct.
10:04So, where does this aqueduct go?
10:06So, I think this aqueduct comes from Glen Fingless Reservoir,
10:11which used to be a little settlement, and they flooded it,
10:14so that they could provide water to Glasgow during,
10:17I think there was a cholera outbreak or something,
10:19and they needed some fresh water pumped into this city,
10:23and they came to Abraffal, because it's so lovely.
10:25Of course.
10:26So, we've just gone beneath the aqueduct,
10:29which, whenever you reference gravel foil,
10:32you always see a picture of that.
11:06So, Koma was incredible.
11:08You come round to the top of this amazing balcony gravel road,
11:12round the corner,
11:13and it just opens up to these spectacular views of Loch Lomond,
11:17and all the pleasure boats going up and down,
11:19and it was pretty steep as well.
11:39Following 15 kilometres of climbing out of Abraffal,
11:42with close to 300 metres of elevation,
11:44we reached the summit of the Koma Climb,
11:47which is followed by a formidable descent
11:49down to the shores of Loch Lomond.
11:53It's wicked, isn't it?
11:54What a day we've got!
11:55It's incredible.
11:55It's alright.
11:57You see it all the time.
11:58Hey, lad!
11:59Sorry.
11:59So, what's up next, Kerry?
12:01We've got some descent.
12:03The Komoot profile is showing a pretty steep downhill.
12:06Yeah, so we've kind of climbed like that,
12:08and now we're going to go like that.
12:10Well, we're going down to water level, aren't we, basically?
12:13Yeah, we are.
12:13We're juggling quite a lot, actually.
12:14So, it's a big descent.
12:16Yeah.
12:16It's like a thousand feet or something.
12:18Yeah.
12:18A thousand feet.
12:19Boiling day.
12:20And there's Loch Lomond,
12:21and you're, like, trying to take in the view,
12:23but you can't, because you've got to hold onto your brakes.
12:26Absolutely amazing.
12:43I think anyone could do the Komoot route, definitely.
12:48And the Komoot descent, although it's gnarly,
12:50it does have switchbacks.
12:52So, you can do one little section and then stop and rest,
12:55and then do the next section and stop and rest.
12:57I wouldn't recommend it in reverse, though,
12:59because it is a stinker of a climb the other way.
13:02And if you stop and rest,
13:03it means you get to also appreciate the views of Loch Lomond
13:05as you descend.
13:06So, yeah, I'd say it's probably an epic sort of loop,
13:09but it has a bit of everything.
13:11real rolling.
13:41oh nearly tell me about that descent Catherine that was tricky I had to walk a couple of meters
13:48there so steep wasn't it it was like rocky moldery sort of washed out background like if you don't
13:57pick your line you're just in so much trouble yeah and then Kerry went yeah it's uh it's pretty
14:04gnarly with just one break Kerry's front brake doesn't work although just three kilometers in
14:12lengths the stretch along the banks of Bonnie Loch Lomond features some of the most unforgiving
14:16terrain we've encountered with stream crossings and rocky scrambles this was true hike a bike territory
14:37we were just walking along and from behind us both we just heard this massive crunch and we look
14:45round and Rupert had had quite an accident so we're just currently trying to work out what we're going
14:51to do next because Rupert does no longer have a rear mech oh that's not ideal so it's not the
14:57hangar that snaps um it is the uh the hangar is yeah the hangar is blown wow you're lucky we're
15:04on
15:04the hike a bike yeah we're walking anyway
15:20the worst handling way is quite hike a bike anyway but he literally had to hike the bike
15:26the whole way along um so yeah for Rupert it was funny but now that i realize we're kind of
15:35quite far away from amber foil i'm a little bit filled with a bit more pity for him
15:46it's only been about half an hour we've been waiting
15:54so i bent my rear mech in the crash and then i snapped it off on the west highland way
15:59and now i need to find a solution so i can do the rest of the ride
16:03i think that solution is going to be stealing uh drone pilot ruben's bike
16:10so sorry reuben but i'm commandeering your mountain bike
16:23after a steep 10 percent climb out of inversnaid we wound our way along the gorgeous shores of loch
16:28arklot and then down to lock on before a welcome gradual descent into aberfoyle
16:34the gravel roads here are what dreams are made of wide open and super fast we couldn't stop grinning the
16:39whole way home
17:00so i'm on rubens mountain bike and uh it's great so comfortable compared to the gravel bike but
17:09is a little bit slow and i have now been dropped by katherine and kerry that puff of dust going
17:18up over
17:19the crest of the hill is katherine and kerry so it's a tough ride
17:43with 85 kilometers ticked off we rolled into aberfoyle caked in dust and baked by the sun
17:50as promised the ride had really featured a little bit of everything from wide open remote mountain
17:55vistas epic hiker biking and fast gravel roads we'd been blown away by the riding on offer and the
18:01community that it had fostered
18:23it's definitely a whole day route that isn't it um full on so worth it i did worry that was
18:30a bit
18:31giddy with wanting to show you everything but i think it was worth it we asked you for the most
18:35epic
18:35ride you could put together in aberfoyle and you did it i think it's safe to say yeah we were
18:45one bike
18:46down but thanks to drone pilot rubens generosity he walked home well three of us have made it back
18:55goes without saying that if you want to see the route that we've ridden today it will be in the
18:59description of the video below and for everything else aberfoyle gravel riding check out kerry's
19:05collections because she's done so much work putting it all together putting aberfoyle on the map yeah
19:10the true queen of aberfoyle always happy to share my knowledge there's so much good stuff on there
19:16definitely to earth taking the time before you come up to have a look and find some absolute belters
19:20of rides and trails if you have enjoyed this video then please do give us a thumbs up and subscribe
19:25to cycling weekly youtube channel and leave us a comment in the comment section below telling us
19:30what you loved and whether you'd come and ride in the amazing place that is aberfoyle now we'll be
19:35back soon with some more great adventure content and we'll see you then
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