What a Scottish adventure! Despite winter coming in hard and early, we made it 400km across Scotland at its widest point on mountain bikes and packrafts. We knew undertaking a trip of this distance into such wilderness in November would be challenging, but the heavy rain followed by bitterly cold conditions made it a real test of resilience.


Our route took us from Ardnamurchan point across the peninsula until we paddled onto Loch Sheil and then rode the length and onto Fort William. Then heading into through Glen Roy to eventually reach the warm sanctuary of Melgarve bothy, down the Spey and into the Cairngorms.


With a mixture of some riding and a whole lot of hike-a-bike we trailblazed through the iconic and snowy Lairig Ghru, finding the snow up to our knees in places. This long night was incredibly arduous going but it did make the relief of getting to Corrour bothy so much sweeter.


Eventually reaching Braemer, after a quick refuel at The Bothy Braemar we parted ways with Annabel Sill and got our heads down for another 60km heavy rain onto Icey roads. The final grind was upon us, riding the Deeside trail and roads towards our finish at Keith Inch, Peterhead - the most Easterly point of the Scottish mainland.



Battling some of Scotland’s toughest conditions while biking, rafting and trying to keep warm for this expedition was a real challenge.


We saw some held back tears from Emily Scott while she battled with ice-block feet and Raynaud's eventually giving some mild frostbite in her big toes and Annabel decided to call it a day after feeling totally depleted after our Cairngorms epic.


We all learnt a little more about how to prepare for such tough conditions in multidiscipline expeditions, and even when you think you might be done, there is usually something left in the tank.

We didn’t get to ride loads of amazing trails or do as much paddling as we’d hoped, but we did see some absolutely incredible scenery along the way and as always, underestimate Scotland at your peril. Winter is officially here.. #RoamHome 


The British Adventure Collective are a group of like-minded fun finders who believe some of the best experiences can be had close to home. It's an ethos we share here at Genesis and as such, we're proud to support this crew. Give them a follow on instagram:

Nov 30 2019
/
Stories