Bikepacking

There are many bikepacking routes in Scotland, which cater to different abilities or riders. Short or long, gravel bike, mountain bike, road bike, e-bike or touring bike, we have selected our highlights below to give you an idea. With the help of Bikepacking Scotland these are our top recommendations.

• The Highland Trail 550 (7-14 days) - Very possibly Scotland’s most scenic and hardest bikepacking route. Traversing the Highlands and starting and finishing at Tyndrum, the Highland Trail 550, which is also an annual event, was devised by Alan Goldsmith and has captured the imagination of many bikepackers worldwide.

• The Badger Divide (3 - 5 days) - Connecting Inverness with Glasgow, Stu Allan’s Badger Divide is a great coast-to-coast bikepacking expedition, including the Corrieyairack Pass, one of Scotland’s most challenging, but super scenic off-road passes. 

• The Alternative North Coast 500 (4 - 7 days) - You can also bikepack the full North Coast 500 route, but this alternative version from Bikepacking Scotland includes the Bealach na Bà, one of the toughest road climbs in Scotland, spiced up with great off-road sections.

• The John Muir Way (2 - 5 days) - One of Scotland’s Great Trails, the John Muir Way offers a unique coast-to-coast bikepacking journey through Scotland’s landscapes, history and heritage, linking Helensburgh in the west with Dunbar, the birthplace of John Muir, in the east. For first-time bikepackers it provides good transport links and can be completed either in one or various journeys.

• The Caledonia Way (4 - 8 Days) - Connecting Campbeltown on the Mull of Kintyre with Inverness, the Caledonia Way is another coast-to-coast journey. Mostly on tarmac, but often on traffic free cycle paths, the route takes you along Scotland’s Adventure Coast (Argyll) and through the Great Glen to the Capital of the Highlands - Inverness. 

• The Wild About Argyll Trail & Bikepacking Argyll’s Islands (7 - 14 days) - Suitable for gravel and mountain bikes, the Wild About Argyll Trail & Bikepacking Argyll’s Islands Trail provide an amazing adventure on gravel tracks, forest roads, singletrail, quiet roads and cycle paths. And if you are not cycling, there’s plenty of opportunity to taste whisky and craft beers, go island hopping, swim in crystal clear water, breathe pure air, watch magnificent sunsets and see starry skies that will take your breath away.

• Highland Perthshire Drovers Trail (3 - 5 days) - An off-road journey steeped in history through a wide variety of Scottish landscapes and small market towns and villages. Starting and finishing in Pitlochry, it features the remote and scenic glens in the Cairngorms National Park, the River Tay, Scotland’s longest river, Scotland’s smallest and oldest distillery, ancient drove roads and some of the best gravel paths that the Highlands have to offer.

• Go East Lothian Trail (1 - 2 days) - Perfect for families, microadventures or a long day ride in all seasons, the Go East Lothian Trail offers a (mostly) flat and very accessible adventure close to Scotland’s capital Edinburgh.