Trails less travelled
With more than 100km of hand-built mountain bike descents, ancient drove routes, forest fire roads and little known singletrack through heather, trees and moor, there is every opportunity to get truly off the beaten path.
Want to strike out far from the trail centres? There are options. Lots of options. Try some of the lesser known forests such as Thornilee and Yair, or head out on full-day adventures that knit together a variety of trails – from hidden singletrack to gravel – that between them offer not just incredible riding but also a taste of the area’s diverse landscape and rich history. You’ll pass ancient ruins, travel through lush, moss-clad woodland straight out of Lord of the Rings and traverse heather-clad hillsides, the narrow singletrack weaving through parts of the valley that few people ever see.
Plot your own route, or join a guided bike adventure run by experts such as Ridelines, Tweed Valley Guides, Go-Where Scotland and Bike Valley Scotland. For a full ride guide to the Tweed Valley, Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland has a dedicated page stocked full of useful information.
And if looking for even bigger adventures, check out some of the bikepacking routes that criss-cross the area, including the challenging Capital Trail established by our friends at Bikepacking Scotland.
For much more on local routes and rides, we recommend WeLoveMountains – an excellent site created by local bikepacking adventurers Ed and Marion Shoote – as well as the cycling pages of Scotland Starts Here. Look out too for Bike Valley Trails, a site that serves as a one-stop-shop for cyclists looking for road, gravel and MTB routes throughout the Tweed Valley. Many of the trails are cared for by the Tweed Valley Trails Association, a charity established by local mountain biking enthusiasts to help sustain and manage the growing network of trails throughout the Tweed Valley.