Drumlanrig
- 7stanes Ae Forest
- 7stanes Dalbeattie
- 7stanes Kirroughtree
- 7stanes Mabie
- Carrick Forest
- Clatteringshaws Loch
- Drumlanrig
- Drumlanrig Castle to St Johns Town of Dalry
- Glentrool and Clatteringshaws Loch
- Lochinvar Circular
- Lowther Hills and the River Clyde
- Lowther Hills Circular
- Newton Stewart to the Isle of Whithorn
- Stranraer to Dunbar
- Stranraer to Newton Stewart
- The Merrick Circle
Experience some of the best mountain biking in Scotland at Drumlanrig Estate and learn about the man who created the world's first bike.
Drumlanrig offers (along with the Highland Wildcat Trails in Golspie and the Comrie Croft Trails near Crieff) a unique mountain biking proposition in Scotland: dedicated trails on a private estate. And right on the doorstep of three of the 7stanes centres, at Ae, Mabie and Dalbeattie.
The trails at Drumlanrig have been designed, crafted and slowly cultivated by Rik Allsop, who runs a well-stocked bike shop in the courtyard adjacent to the magnificent Drumlanrig Castle.
As well as Rik's Bike Shed, there is also a good tearoom (and a restaurant in the castle), a row of small shops and studios selling arts and crafts, and a cycling museum that pays tribute to Kirkpatrick MacMillan. MacMillan works as a blacksmith at Drumlanrig and in 1839 created the world's first bike.
When MacMillan rode his contraption all the way to Glasgow he was referred to as the 'Devil on Wheels' - and he would doubtless have loved the tight, twisting single-track that weaves in and out of the woodland on the Drumlanrig estate.
The development of mountain biking trails at Drumlanrig was a long-term project but there is no doubt that all the hard work is paying off. What exists now is a big - and still growing - network of quality single-track trails which, because of the almost organic methods by which they've been created, are highly resilient. Tight and twisting, the trails feature lots of routes and other natural obstacles which provide a welcome challenge to keen bikers.
In the course of building the trails, old Victorian footpaths have been uncovered, many of them built by the 80 path builders who were employed by the estate at the start of the 20th century.
The red route quickly darts from a main path into the trees - and the sections of other paths or fireroads to link the single-track all tend to be similarly short. The trails are all well signposted but after a few kilometres you have a choice: continue on the red (a 15.5 km loop, but with lots of shortcuts back to base) or take the black diversion, which adds an extra 8 km.
As the trail weaves intricately through the trees, skirts open hillside and passes small lochs, with forays into deep bomb holes, over log jumps, up short, steep climbs and longer hairpins.
An uplift service to the nearby Lowther hills is available, with guided 15 km rides dropping from an elevation of 725 to 90 m. A real wilderness experience suitable for novices as well as experienced riders, which can be extended to 35 km, including a 1,200 m climb and a 1,800m descent.
Other Info
Routes
Green/Blue – 6 routes way-marked from Drumlanrig Castle
Red – 15.5 kms
Black – 23.5 kms and ever extending!
Bike Shops/Hire
Rik's Bike Shed 01848 330080
Getting There
Drumlanrig Castle is signposted off the A76, between Sanquhar and Thornhill in the south west of Scotland.
Distance from
Thornhill - 4 miles
Carlisle - 51 miles
Glasgow - 61 miles
Edinburgh - 62 miles
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