Going Home: A Bicycle Tour Through Scotland

By Mike Pribesh

Three years. That’s how long I had been planning this trip and how long I was denied the opportunity due to Covid restrictions. I had every nuance planned, every castle, every mile of my route, every imaginable campsite, every possible eventuality. Guess how that worked out.

Some of my fondest childhood memories are from the couple of years I lived in Scotland, way back in the dark ages of the late seventies. I remember becoming completely enthralled with all things medieval, as evidenced by my current way too expensive sword collection. Biking all over the Dunoon area and up through Sandbank to Glen Massan are indelibly printed in my memories, and I looked forward to revisiting the old haunts.

My planned solo trip became a couple’s trip when my girlfriend, Belinda, discovered that she likes bicycle touring. And she’s willing to put up with me for extended periods on the road. Win for me! Together we made our way across the Atlantic, after some delayed and missed flights and a wondrous night in Dallas, and arrived in Inverness ready to hit the road. Dallas was not quite the overnight stay that we had planned in London, but we made the best of it knowing the real trip had yet to begin. Unfortunately, our bikes did not arrive with us in Inverness, and instead showed up a day and a half later. I hope they at least had a scenic journey.

When at last the bikes arrived, thankfully undamaged, we quickly assembled them and set off on our trip. The plan was to do a big, counterclockwise loop from Inverness, along the Great Glen Way to Fort William, then onward through Oban, south through Dunoon, through Glasgow, with a day off to explore Edinburgh before returning northward through the Cairngorms.

We rapidly discovered the Great Glen Way, at least the version of it we did, was no joke. Steep (very steep, stupidly steep) climbs through rough dirt roads and singletrack trails tested our resolve and our legs. Add in some rain on day two, and we were humbled. But the scenery was amazing with views of Loch Ness and some outstanding riding along the canal. We didn’t see Nessie but did tour Urquhart Castle. One of the must-do’s on our list was