Scotland 2024 day one ; two lochs

The seeds of my first ride on the Scotland 2024 trip were sown almost 50 years ago, when I received a Railway World (or Railway Magazine, I can't really remember) Annual for Christmas. In it, there was a story of a cab ride from Glasgow to Fort William, and it included a description of the line over Rannoch Moor which sounded really interesting and worth visiting. Cue a stopover at Pitlochry and, courtesy of a 2023 Christmas present, a ride to Rannoch from Pitlochry. I was joined on this ride by my friend Lawrence, who does a great job with Cycle Crieff and who had also helped with the loan of a road bike for the ride, rather than my heavy mountain bike.

We set off from my B&B downhill into Pitlochry (mental note made that a climb would be needed at the end of the ride) and turned right along the main street, the A924. Pitlochry looked a lovely town, and apparently is very popular with the tourists in summer. The A924 also is part of National Cycle Network route 7, and we followed this out of town and under the A9, passing Faskally Caravan Park to turn left over the River Garry on the B8019. The river looked surprisingly dry, given how much rain we have had recently.

The dry River Garry

The B8019 followed an undulating route, with woodland on either side which eventually gave some teasing glimpses of the River Tummel below us. The River Tummel soon became Loch Tummel, and after a few miles we reached Queen's View which gave a superb view over the loch, although as the day was grey and overcast, with some low cloud, the view was not as spectacular as it could have been. It was spectacular enough though!

The view from Queen's View

Continuing on, it was hard to keep concentrating on the road, as the views over the loch, and of the steeply banked woodland on our right, were just stunning. As well as this, the road was very quiet too, with very little traffic indeed. We passed the Inn at Loch Tummel, and then the Errochty Power Station, a lovely stone building with three very tall windows. We rode past the Parkdean Resorts Tummel Valley holiday park, and passed through Tummel Bridge. At the junction with the B846 we came across the original brickstone bridge which is nearly 300 years old and formed part of the old Military Road network in Scotland. From the bridge we had a great view of the roaring River Tummel, and indeed for the next few miles the river could be seen on our left through the trees, white in places as it spilled over boulders. It was certainly one of the most spectacular river displays I have ever seen.

The steeply wooded banks of the Tay Forest Park had by now given way to flatter agricultural lands, no less scenic than the trees. On our left the large expanse of Dunalastair Water appeared, affording more gloriously scenic views. We rode through the pretty village of Kinloch Rannoch, which had a lovely church, and then came to the eastern end of Loch Rannoch.

Lawrence contemplating Loch Rannoch

We followed the road round the north side of the loch, again on deserted roads, and eventually reached Killichonan where we came across a unique piece of hedge topiary in the shape of a dog on top of a tall hedge. Not finished with the surprises, a little further on we came across a small old cemetery which seemed totally out of place in the sparsely populated surroundings. A couple of miles on, we passed Rannoch Power Station, another power station utilising the plentiful supply of water to be found locally. We frequently came across abundant displays of snowdrops in flower, and daffodils just about budding, and fields full of sheep ready to lamb. At one point we came across a couple of women swimming in the loch, and at the western end we saw some anglers who had set up and were sitting waiting for a bite. Occasionally the sun would try to break through the clouds which gave some nice effects through the slate grey sky, and the occasional view would open up to the top of the mountains to reveal pockets of snow still in situ.

At the western end of Loch Rannoch, we decided not to continue on and do the stretch to Rannoch Station as the cafe there didn't open for the season until Saturday. This turned out to be a good decision in hindsight, and didn't spoil the ride in any way. As we turned back eastwards for Pitlochry, we found the wind was now into our faces, and shortly after we came across a group of four highland cattle, three black and one white, and one that looked only a few months old, lying together around a straw feeder. We also passed a lovely looking church. The ride now gave us some different views of the loch, including a view of the higher building of Rannoch Power Station and the pipeline feeding the lower building. We seemed to be riding alongside the loch forever, but eventually we came to Kinloch Rannoch again and continued towards Tempar and the climbing that meant we had reached Schiehallion. 

Schiehallion is a Munro (rising to 3,553 feet), is near the centre of mainland Scotland and in the 18th century was used in an experiment to estimate the mass of the earth. All of this meant nothing to us as we toiled up the steep road at its base. We were climbing at gradients frequently in double figures, at one point passing one of the locations used in the filming of Outlander. The views from this heights were tremendous, although we weren't concentrating on these at all. We passed through some bleak moorland countryside and passed Braes of Foss car park before descending down to Loch Kinardochty and the junction with the B846. A left turn here took us back towards Tummel Bridge and a near two mile descent at around 5-9%. Just before reaching Tummel Bridge we turned right along a narrow road to Foss. This turned into a very undulating road running alongside Loch Tummel, and following the exertions over Schiehallion each climb was really sapping our legs, with the subsequent downhills not really giving any time to recover before the next rise. We passed the sights we'd seen on the opposite shore, and when I saw Queen's View I knew we weren't too far away from Pitlochry.

On the south side of Loch Tummel

Eventually Loch Tummel disappeared, the road became better surfaced and the River Tummel appeared on our left, growing in width as we neared Pitlochry. For the first time since we'd left Pitlochry we heard fast traffic as the road ran alongside, and ultimately led onto, the A9. Fortunately there is a cycle path by the side of the A9, so we took that and left the company of the A9 by the inviting Fonab Castle Hotel (and Spa - what I wouldn't give for a massage right now!). Shortly after we turned left on NCN7 and crossed the River Tummel on the Iron Suspension Bridge, looking down on an angler waist deep in the water. This led us back onto Pitlochry main street and then up the final hill to my B&B. 

It had been a long day, a tiring one, but ultimately one I will look back on with an immense amount of satisfaction. Personal highlights for me were any of the multitude of glimpses of rivers / lochs / falls, the stunning countryside, some wonderful buildings and the incredible solitude when we stopped, broken only by birdsong and water. And a bonus - it stayed dry, despite the rather gloomy conditions.

Thanks to Lawrence for the loan of the road bike. Later in the evening I heard that Cycle Crieff had been successful in a bid for some grant money for a cargo bike initiative to support local business in Crieff. Well deserved.