The Loop. 110 miles around the far north-west Highlands of Scotland, starting and finishing in Gairloch.
When Ewan suggested this for his first-ever 100-mile ride, I wasn’t entirely sure whether to be impressed by his ambition or concerned by his judgement!
Watch the video of our Highland Cycling Adventure
With so few roads in this corner of the Highlands, The Loop is the shortest road circuit you can ride from Gairloch and return without simply turning around. A day of spectacular scenery, long climbs, fast descents and mile after mile of quiet Highland roads.
We rolled out of Gairloch and headed north along the undulating coast road, sea lochs sparkling in the sunshine and mountains rising all around us. Before long we passed Gruinard Bay and looked across to Gruinard Island. Today it appears a peaceful, uninhabited island, but it has one of the strangest histories in Britain. During the Second World War, it was used by the government to test anthrax as part of a secret biological weapons programme. The contamination was so severe that the island remained quarantined for almost fifty years before finally being declared safe in 1990. Looking across the water on a sunny Highland morning, it is hard to imagine its darker past.
Beyond Gruinard, the road climbs onto a stretch known as the Destitution Road. It is an evocative name and one with a sad history. The road was built in the 1840s and 1850s as a famine relief project, providing employment for local people left destitute during the Highland potato famine. Today, cyclists ride it for the magnificent views towards An Teallach and Little Loch Broom, but its origins are a reminder of the hardship endured by Highland communities.
From Dundonnell, the road turned inland and a long climb began to Corrieshalloch Gorge which is worth a stop. Carved by meltwater at the end of the last Ice Age, Corrieshalloch is one of the most dramatic gorges in Scotland. The River Droma plunges through a narrow chasm more than 60 metres deep before disappearing beneath a Victorian suspension bridge that seems to hang in mid-air above the torrent below. There is now a National Trust café at Corrieshalloch Gorge serving excellent cheese and ham toasties and doughnuts — exactly the sort of fuel a we needed to keep us going for the remaining 65 miles.
From there, smooth roads, sweeping descents and spectacular views carry you towards Garve. Ewan and I decided this was cycling nirvana: smooth tarmac, gentle descent, the joy of a tailwind, glistening lochs and reservoirs created as part of the Highlands hydro-electric schemes, and views of mountains stretching to every horizon.
From Garve, 65 miles in, your legs have to start working again as you make the gradual ascent to the top of the Heights of Kinlochewe. Initially, we found ourselves riding alongside one of Scotland’s great railway journeys. The railway running from Inverness through Achnasheen towards Kyle of Lochalsh was built in the late nineteenth century to connect the west coast with Inverness. Construction was a huge undertaking through such remote terrain, and even today the line feels wonderfully improbable, threading its way through empty moorland, lochs and mountains on its journey towards Skye.
Eventually, we reached the summit of the Heights of Kinlochewe, where we stopped to admire one of the most photographed views in the Highlands. You look across Loch Maree towards the mighty bulk of Slioch, often described as one of Scotland’s most beautiful mountains. The viewpoint sits on the watershed between east and west, and for many visitors it provides their first truly panoramic view of Wester Ross in all its glory.
By now, Ewan had decided he’d reached his MMR — Minimum Magnum Requirement. Apparently, after 90 miles on a bike, a Magnum ice cream is no longer a treat but a requirement!
Twenty miles to do, starting with the ride along the shores of Loch Maree with the imposing Slioch looking over us (the destination for mine and Iona’s Munro Bagging adventure the following day). As we rolled alongside Loch Maree, it was easy to see why many consider it the most beautiful loch in Scotland. Then it was up the long climb through Slattardale, before heading down the twisty, bumpy, single-track road through Kerrydale, and a last couple of “lumps” brought us back into Gairloch.
A fabulous day’s cycling and a perfect route for Ewan’s first century ride.
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