Start/Finish Cyclehighlands, Ballater town centre, NO 369958 Total distance 40.4km (25.1 miles) Total Time 3-5 hours Maps OS Landranger Sheet 44, Ballater & Glen Clova and Sheet 37, Strathdon & Alford. Or Garmin GB Discoverer 1:50K Scotland (GPS) Summary A terrific route with a bit of everything in, from high hill tracks to nadgery forest singletrack winding through the Caledonian pines and local lochs. Turn right out of the front gate of Cyclehighlands, then right again. Take the second left, at the entrance to the golf course. Follow this road to where it swings left slightly, and take the footpath going straight ahead on the right side of the road. Follow the railway line for around 1km past the picnic area, keeping an eye out on your right for a narrow singletrack climbing the banking sharply back on yourself. Climb this to the road and turn left for 200m, then take the singletrack road on your right. Follow up Glen Gairn to Lary Farm, where the road turns to track and swings right up into the hills. Go through the gate and begin climbing. Around 1km short of Morven Lodge take the track on your right, through the river then climb the hill. Stay on track for 6km until junction of several tracks. Turn right here, up the hill for a short time before beginning to descend to the east. Drop down through a gate and onto the road. Turn right, then join the B9119. Turn right for 500m and look for a grassy trail forking off on your left. Take this trail into the wood. After 700m take the trail cutting sharply back on yourself. Follow signs on woodland trail to Burn O’Vat visitor centre. At the visitor centre you can continue the route, cutting out Loch Kinord, or ride the singletrack round the loch. To cut out, jump to point 8. To ride the loch cross back over the road from the centre onto the trail, and turn right. This takes you down through the trees and begins the circuit of the loch. The trail is sometimes on grassy singletrack, others on old estate tracks. Keep to the lochside where any options arise until the trail takes you to the small loch at Clarack. Here there is a little observation platform. The trail is a faint singletrack leading directly away from it, through the woods. It gets a little indistinct but eventually leads on to another track. Turn left up to New Kinord Farm. Go through the gate and turn left. Look out on your left for a grass trail dropping down to the loch. Follow this down and through the silver birches before rejoining track to Old Kinord. Turn left – this is the junction you’ve been to before. Retrace steps to visitor centre. At the visitor centre look for the obvious path heading up the hill to the right of the buildings. Follow this until it meets another track. Turn left here for around 700m, before forking right onto another trail. Follow this to meet the track climbing up to the quarry. Turn right here and climb for 100m before taking the singletrack to your left, up a short climb and over a small burn. The trail then gets more defined and drops downhill past a small loch and into the back of Tullich Farm. Go through the gate and onto road, turning right for 500m then forking right onto B972. Ride for 1km, taking first small road on your left. Follow it where it swings right, then ends at a singletrack signposted for Ballater. Follow along the side of the football fields then take the ramp to the right. Cross the road, through the path and onto the railway line. Turn right and you’re back into town.by Matt_Skinner
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