Great British Gravel Rides – Cycling the Wild Trails of England Scotland and Wales is the new book by Markus Stitz. Published by Vertebrate Publishing. The book, with the help of gravel cyclists from across Britain, aims to highlight a variety gravel and trail rides.
He has created a collection of routes in Scotland, England, and Wales. Each gravel ride was a favorite of the cyclists who contributed.
Great British Gravel Rides: More information
Both male and female cyclists choose the 26 routes. The cyclists are given background information, including why they chose their route.
The route description includes public transport information, attractions to visit, café and pub suggestions, and a list local bike shops.
Shops and bike rental providers
The routes are suitable for cyclists of all levels, ranging from 20km up to 600km.
Downloadable GPX files are available for all routes.
Schwalbe Tyres, Kinesis Bikes and other sponsors will support the publication of this book on 7 July at a price of 25 PS. See Adventure Books. You can also buy from Amazon. I receive a small percentage of sales made through this site, which helps me fund my writing. )
Markus said: “I wanted to know where gravel bikes took us, but what I was more interested in was the people who make gravel riding so vibrant.
I am grateful to the people who shared with me their favorite gravel routes.
The book’s photographs and interviews show how diverse and colourful the gravel riding scene in Britain can be.
A feature-length film will accompany the book and be released in 2022.
Markus continued: “I have tried to produce the book as sustainably as possible. The majority of trips made to research the book were by train or bus.
Due to time constraints I could not research everything on public transport or by bike. However, I ensured that the majority of routes in this guide are accessible to people who do not own a vehicle.
Great British Gravel Rides: My thoughts
Unexpectedly, I recently purchased a gravel bicycle. I live in a region that has a lot of potential for gravel biking. After I’ve improved my cycling fitness I want to go on a few gravel biking adventures.
When I opened the book , I was surprised to see that the majority of these rides would be in Scotland.
The rides in Scotland begin with the biggie. A 92km coast to coast route from Kyle of Lochalsh until Beauly. Jenny Graham, the record-breaking cyclist who has ridden around the world on a bicycle, is fond of this route. I’m confident that it’s an excellent route.
When I look at the details of this ride, I understand why it is rated “expert”. The ride takes you to very remote areas, but the distance and elevation (979m) seem manageable for two days. I would be pushed to my limits if I tried this in one day.
I think it would be more helpful to have the information about the terrain, the elevation, the distance etc. at the beginning of each ride. The distance is listed on the first page. However, I went straight to the description of the ride to find out what else was involved.
Naomi Freirich, a female cyclist with a lot of experience, is next. She rides In Search of Gravel On The Monega Pass.
The route has a 42km length and 1375m ascent. I read several pages for more information. This is a steep ascent, but after reading more it seems like a great route in Angus & the Cairngorms.
Richard Pearson’s favourite ride is A Tour of Highland Perthshire, the third ride. This route is also a big one, measuring 99km and gaining 1716m in elevation. This would be a great two-day bikepacking trip.
Steven Groom, a gravel cyclist from Argyll suggests a 19km easy ride that has 333m ascent. This sounds like an easy ride to help me get used to gravel cycling.
The Scottish section has also:
- The Lomond Hills in Perth, Kinross and Fife have a 59km ride with 516m ascent.
- The Trossachs is a 67km long area with an 1131m elevation gain. It is located in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park.
- Clackmannanshire Ride of 29km with 555m ascent.
- East Lothian: 169km of riding with 1760m ascent.
- The Scottish Borders offers a 29km gravel ride with 483m ascent.
- Dumfries and Galloway 82km ride with 679m ascent.
Other gravel rides
There are eight additional rides in Southern England. The book also covers Northern England. Two rides are in Wales. Markus has added a 20km Scottish route on the Isle of Jura as a bonus.
This is a beautiful book that has a lot of information, helpful descriptions, personality, and wonderful photos.
I don’t understand what happened to the rides in Northern Ireland and I am sure that there are many more in Wales. It feels like the book started with Scottish gravel rides, but then was expanded to England.
There is only a small nod towards Wales while Northern Ireland was forgotten.
I wonder if it would have been better to write a book that only covered Scottish gravel rides, and then another for England, before writing a third one covering the entire UK.
This book is full of advice and tips for those who are just getting started in gravel cycling. For example, there is information about bike types and tyres. I didn’t know there were so many different tyres!
It’s a great book, and I think it will encourage cyclists to explore gravel roads. I’ll be doing some of the simpler rides to see how well I can handle a gravel bike in rough terrain. I would like to do the coast-to coast route.