Kerlock in the clag

[Alastair S]

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Due to a scheduled power cut a work I had a bonus morning off. So decided to tackle local Marilyn: Kerloch. The day was pretty claggy so wasn't expecting great view but Kerloch is the highest hill visible from Banchory so it has been on my radar ever since I had moved here (two & half years ago). But the main reason I wanted to tackle this on my MTB was that I came across a Flickr group called People standing on top of mountains holding bikes above their heads and wanted to post one of me doing said activity (although I've never done this in my life before).

So had to be in work for 12:00 so was off by 8:00am. The route above doesn't include the bit from & to my home but including this the route was 32km, 858m of ascent & took 3hr 15min. But there is room by the side of the road for a car or two so is a feasible walk route.

As it was I spent a lot longer time off my bike than anticipated due to the very rough nature of the track once the steepness picked out. Probably pushed for the last mile on the way up & nearly as much on the way down. There was also a steep section on the way back that wasn't rough but where my fitness wasn't up to it. I was worried I won't make my noon deadline but in the end had it home in time for a shower & bite to eat. Only 3 photos due to the clag, so here they are:


Too steep & rocky for this MTB novice



Person standing on top of a mountain holding a bike above their head - mind you from this photo it could be any trig point almost anywhere



Bike swallowing rut - one of several encountered on the way down

[malky_c]

That's a big hole

Good to have a hill like that so close to home. Rural Aberdeenshire is full of sub 2000 Marilyns that I've only the vaguest or no idea about.

[classicac]

Nice one Alastair I had the exact same view when I ran it in September. dont know if you know about the mountain bike club in Aberdeen but they do this route and many more around the north east heres there website http://www.ecurieneep.co.uk

keep up the good work

[foggieclimber]

The path up this one is seriously eroded. Wouldn't have fancied taking a bike up it.

[Alastair S]

Nice one Alastair ... keep up the good work

Thanks 'classicac'. Not really looking to join a MTB club at the moment but I checked out your site & was interested to see that you have quite an active forum - which may come in handy for queries about local routes.

I was a bit of a roadie before I moved up to Scotland but advancing years & weight + the bigger hills up here has resulted in me walking up the hills rather than cycling. But last summer got a good MTB through the Ride to Work scheme and have enjoyed some good days on my bike. When I first got my MTB I had a good search of the net for MTB equivalent sites to this one, mainly for route finding. But found very little & none did decent maps. I think it is the latter that really makes this site stand out. Unfortunately the ridiculously expensive OS licensing policy prevent excellent local sites like your one from displaying decent maps. So the next best thing is local knowledge - which is where your forum will probably come in useful.