 You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
I am shamefully out of touch with developments in my once beloved Pentlands, I'm not really MTBing any more and can get my gravel/singletrack fix closer to home.
Hoping to do a couple of socially distanced gravel loops with a buddy soon, and he's suggesting the Monk's Rigg track from West Kipp (think people call it 'The Swoop') and back over the Borestane track.
My recollection of the Monk's Rigg track was nice rolling grassy ridgeline followed by an abrupt plummet straight down the edge of a field, and Borestane was squashy singletrack followed by squashy landrover track punctuated by logs!
What are the conditions on the ground now, my mate reckons both have been resurfaced??
(if I sound like I'm being a wimp, I am, playing the long game after lower back surgery and not interested in lumpy, squashy thrutchy MTB type stuff, yet...)
All in good nick at the moment, if anything the little bit of rain we've had has softened the top surface a bit to make it less bone shaking! Monk's rig is riding nicely, as is the ascent up to the Borestane from south to north - it's only the northern half (the descent if riding north) that's been re-surfaced.
As an ex but frequent Pentlands rider, that's how I recall them too. The Swoop (named by Gary McGill from when there was a welcome pub at the bottom) had a surprisingly boggy bit about 1/3 way off the top too, and a wall that could catch you out near the end. Used to be a good loop to link the two together, round the reservoir. From Nine Mile Burn, up the road to Spittal Farm and drop down to North Esk. Not sure if you still can.
Used to be a good loop to link the two together, round the reservoir. Not sure if you still can.
That's exactly what my friend is suggesting I think. Now's the time to try it I suppose when everything is relatively un-squashy!
Enjoyed Thieves Road when I did it last year but was on an MTB with 38c gravel tyres. The grassy descent towards Harperrig still caught me out with slick treads...
The climb to Spittal is/was a bugger - pretty steep (in my memory, and I was younger...) and quite loose farm/landie track. The descent to North Esk is/was quite sketchy in much the same way.
I've not been there with the mountain bike recently but have been walking the dog out that way a lot in the last couple of months. The tracks around the Borestane are about as rideable as I've ever seen them. I even got passed by a mountain biker riding from the Borestane to the top of East Cairn Hill, and it look like he was able to ride the majority of that (he was a lot younger and fitter than me!).
I've seen quite a few mountain and gravel bikes along the yellow brick road as well - used to be very rare to see anyone using that.
I assume the YBR has worn in since I was last there and is less of an eyesore these days?
I assume the YBR has worn in since I was last there and is less of an eyesore these days?
It's still a bit of an eyesore but quite a useful link route so I'm finding I've been using it a lot. My dog likes it as well because of the sand.
My pal will be one of the Gravel riders you see Steve, he's gone from ultra-rapid roadie to gravel obsessive in very short order, lives in Balerno.
I quite like the look of the above, compared to miles and miles of unbroken grouse moor at least...
My pal will be one of the Gravel riders you see Steve, he’s gone from ultra-rapid roadie to gravel obsessive in very short order, lives in Balerno.
Pretty sure I will have seen him around as I've seen a couple of gravel bikes on the YBR and heading up and down from the Borestane- although still mostly mountain bikes. Quite a lot of gravel bikes around generally in the Pentlands at the moment.
I quite like the look of the above, compared to miles and miles of unbroken grouse moor at least…
It's very useful for making loops out towards the west of the Pentlands. When walking the faint path that follows the wall along the top of the ridgeline from the Borestane to the Red Road beside Hare Hill is nice in dry conditions. Not much fun on the bike though (which is why I've only ever ridden it once!).
As others have said - nice loop. If you are riding from top of Exponential to W Kip be aware the landowner trashes the nice climb to the saddle and the second climb to the 9mb track was reinstated after logging - all good now. Watch the frisky cattle at N esk, they crowded me the other week, I must have smelt nice. YBR nice and dry.
Given what the YBR once looked like, I'd say that's a huge improvement.
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49939362447_a6fc2af15b_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49939362447_a6fc2af15b_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2j5YhAt ]PICT2419[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/druidh2000/ ]Colin Cadden[/url], on Flickr
I've delayed a return trip to Edinburgh for too long. I'l be popping down post-Covid to meet up with some old friends and a spin around the Pentlands