Cycling the Southern Upland Way - Pt 1 Portpatrick west to Moffat and the watershed...

This blog post is an ongoing  post of cycling the Southern Upland Way (SUW)
Link here;  Southern Upland Way
It starts with  an aborted attempt in June 2014 to cycle the whole SUW non stop,
I bailed half way at Moffat on day 3 after 3 hard days and 2 of which was in biblic sideways rain,
I enjoyed the scenery but it was long hours sweating in some biblic wet weather conditions and with not enough of the right food to rehydrate and energise would see me bonk on day 3 after  2 real hard 14 hour days! lol

It was still fun and i learned a bit about my self and the importance to keep eating and drinking, I still intend cycling the full route in detail in the future and blog it until the whole route is detailed in completion into this post for anyone considering cycling the whole 212 mile (340km) route that opened in 1984,

Ever bitten off more than you can chew?, well i did over that first weekend!, Read on...

Cycling the SUW?;
People have ridden the whole Southern Upland Way (SUW) route already, friends of mine know people who have cycled it years ago when it first opened.
Not much info is available on line of cycling the whole route end to end self equipped-except for shop stops for food, so i thought it would maybe make a good source for future cyclists interested in Bike packing the SUW.
I have been going to do this famous Scottish Coast to Coast route since i first got my Surly Pugsley Fatbike 6 years ago. With it being originally set out as a walking route a lot of the way from its western end to mid way has some rough moorland paths, often wet and indeed the Official SUW website does not recommend cycling some sections due to the severity- i thought it may be possible using a fatbike, but and i have also read on some cycling forums and seen some pictures of pretty wet areas. I have cycled similar areas on the Cheviot Hills and Pentlands with my fatbikes and got on ok so maybe it would be viable?, though not a walk in the park.
Some forum pages have had better options of trails instead of the SUW route, but i wanted to do the whole SUW route as laid out so planned to stick to the original route. I could probably work out a coast to coast route using other easier routes incorporating some of the trail centres too, but it was this route that many years ago i wanted to try and ride,

West to the watershed..
So if i can ride to the halfway point at least i thought then i will have cycled nearly all of the route with the sections ridden east of Moffat to Dunbar here in East Lothian over the years. That for me would be satisfying enough. I can add future rides east on the route to this blog post in the future. Maybe it will be some use full reference for anyone else interested.


It all starts with the guide book;
The official guide book has all the information you need including two excellent double sided OS maps, distances of each section, available shops and accommodation etc...

The guide book is a bit too bulky to carry cycling so i noted each section`s distance and shops, interesting stuff i would like to see etc...the 2 maps will go in my waterproof map case...

No better time than now;
Finally i bought a bike packing bar and seat bag to compliment my frame bag and so was ready to go!...
Each summer holidays has seen other stuff and the idea has kinda got shelved , until this year and after a trip to the Netherlands with Francis in the first week i could squeeze the trip into 4 or 5 days over the weekend and into the second week before helping mark the Seacliff horse endurance ride for Francis.

29+ fatbike-maybe the ideal tool for the job?
With the coming of a new fatbike wheel width and tyre concept which could possibly i think be the ideal combination of fatbike float for these sections of soft wet moorland trails, and superb grip and comfort for climbing and rolling speed on the rough gravel tracks a lot of the route follows on it`s eastern end it looked all good on paper. more on that ideal bike in a bit...

Time for a plan;
So with the SUW finishing 14 miles east of my home all i had to do was book a through train ticket from nearby Drem station to Stranraer. £22 later and all was booked via Scot rail with only one change over at Ayr, perfect...

Friday June 6th 2014; 
Seen me on a train for Stranraer, it was June the 6th, the 70th year anniversary of  the Allied invasion of Nazi occupied Europe` code named Operation Overlord... it was Operation Overland for myself...
As the next few days panned out maybe this will take a year to document,  but so did Operation Overlord...
Massive respect to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice 70 years ago for Victory in Europe...

Guidebook sections;
Section 1; Port Patrick to Castle Kennedy - 13.5 miles

7 mile cycle by road to Portpatrick, a quaint little harbour full of day visitors...

Leaving the harbour it was along a cliff top single track. This was nice but i knew their was hike a bike sections to come having read the guide book...

The trail got techy but was still ride able as it dropped down into a cove...

Buff single track but not for long...

Next section took a bit huffing and puffing to carry a bike with a frame bag up some steps...

Soon onto more open ground  and past the 1900 Killantringan light house...

Inland and past a leaflet box, you can read about the leaflet boxes and hoards to be found on the website link above...

Inland now across arable land...

2 km and over the A764 road and past Knockquhassen reservoir then past the nearby village of Castle Kennedy and through  the estate around the White Loch...

2; Castle Kennedy to New Luce - 9 Miles

Leaving the gardens of the estate it was uphill across soft arable land and low gears required...

This was actually a wrong turn, but a nice woodland trail!, i back tracked to the correct route...

Along a lovely old hard track...

which led across a moor...

To an abandoned homestead...

Hit a bog before it though!...

A surreal place to have once lived with the remoteness...

More soft going but at least down hill to a road...

New Luce to Bargrennan - 17.5 miles
Now i wish i had a full 4" fatbike as i crossed the moor here...
This was a hard section...

Aye mastering the land indeed!, was a lot of pushing over the next few miles...

That wore me down a bit, but soon i was cycling again...

Into the forest and the local midges cheered in celebration of some fresh meat!!!...

Been nice to have stopped here for the night but A those midges, and B, i was nearly out of water and i really needed a good drink to hydrate and water to cook...

Least i escaped the swarms of midges up on the hillside in the breeze...

I was now out of water and happy to see this sign at a farm!,

Energy was low now and glad to see this tarmac to follow...

Having been cycling 14 hours and nearly 9pm it was time to find somewhere to camp, cook some food and err pass out!...

The rain came on but at least it made the midges disappear...

In here will do to camp...

Tent up i stripped and jumped into a cosy sleeping bag then got the stove on for boil in the bag Couscous and Med veg, then slept like a log...

Bagreggan to St John`s Town of Dalry - 22 Miles

Refreshed and re hydrated it was onwards and a good start to the day on fast tracks...

Around Glen Troll and Trail Centre tracks were good to whizz along...

A lot of blood was once spilt here...

But no porridge or coffee... :)

Along a cracking trail....

And a climb up a good track...

To a great view...

Things got a bit rougher going again on this `stutter` stalling trail-dunno how this surface was created but i ended up standing up along here as easier...

Then things got smoother but a lot softer, i managed to keep forward momentum for a while...

The rain came on again, but at least it was cooling and broke the muggy air...

It is so different here to the dry East Lothian i am used to although only 100 miles away on the same latitude...

So green and vibrant with moss and algae...

I was wet through now as i reached St Johns Town of Dalry...

A food stop in a shelter as i read up on local history...

I should have booked in the Hotel &B for the evening and called it a day, a warm pub fire to dry my clothes in front of, a cooked meal and a few pints and proper nights sleep would have made sense as i was feeling a bit drained of energy...

But being only mid afternoon i had that nag to keep going and do a bit more...
Following the odd marker post- which at times was not easy as many where missing i continued across some fields...

Things got soft with big grass tussocks that made pushing the bike harder...

Several miles of this cycling, pushing, cycling, pushing went on then i remembered stopping feeling a bit tired and wobbly on my feet....

Next thing i knew i woke up on my side still clipped in on my right foot and was wondering where i was, i really did not know!,

The Bonk;

If your a cyclist, or have read a lot of cycling articles then you may have read about cyclists energies being deleted and they `hitting the wall`, i realised this was happening to me and i did not feel scared or anything, scarily i was not worried!, then i thought `i better get off this hill` and pushed down hill walking the bike.

I was lucky having the marker posts to get me off the hill as i realised i had no sense of direction with the overcast sky and no landmarks to get a bearing on with my map with my compass- oh that map was now also wet!, my old map case having leaked rain water and would not be easy to remove to turn onto the next page...

I remember reaching this hard track and thinking thank F##k i have been saved!...

Back track by road to a familiar place...
The track led to the road and i freewheeled down to the village on Moniaive, it had a pub with rooms but did not serve food until 7pm, it was only 4pm, so i decided to cycle back by road to St Johns Town of Dalry an book in there at the Hotel.
I don`t know why i did not just book into that hotel there and then and have a few hours sleep in my room!,
But the sign advertising `Live Band` i think made me think i needed a good nights sleep and the last thing i needed was a band playing into the early hours,
So i  headed along the road back to Dalry that i think was about 7 or 8 miles but it felt like hours with my energies drained,
I stopped in at the Garage at Dalry  as i had to stop in here for petrol on my motorbike back in the early 1990`s, and the garage forecourt was filled with old Willis Jeeps of various conditions.
Turns out the garage owner is a William Bone   and although the petrol attendant said they do not restore them nowadays as have ran out of Jeeps to restore a customer who came in for fuel said he would catch up with me for a drink in the Pub that evening and happy to chat about the Jeeps restored here...

A top night out-dried off, fed, and well lubricated...
And so i booked a room for £40 B&B in the The Clachan Inn  and with my wet clothes hung up to dry i enjoyed Fish and Chips and some ciders and a roaring fire that refuelled me...
Being Saturday evening the bar soon filled and the friendly locals were asking about the bicycle outside with the huge wheels!, and that they had heard someone was cycling the whole Southern Upland Way!,
When i raised a hand i received some whisky!, even though i told them i was now planning to bail out tomorrow evening at Moffat they said hardly anyone walks the entire route never mind cycle it recently to their knowledge and stops at the Inn...
The fore mentioned chap at the garage arrived and we chatted a while about the Willis Jeeps that had been restored here and he said how some were used in the films `Saving Private Ryan` and  `Band of Brothers`
I hope to one day return here on a road trip in my own Willis Jeep when i eventually can afford to buy one...

Was a great night in the pub...now that`s a fish!

Day 3;  Moniavie - Sanquhar- Wanlockhead- Beattock; 53 miles!, time to ride for home...
After a big breakfast it was time to hit the road on a quiet Sunday morning.  The climb out of Dalry confirmed that my legs were a bit shot and after 2 days of wet weather riding had also took its toll on my backside and sitting was too pain full to contemplate keeping going-my fault as wrong saddle.
The 53 miles would take me from 9am to 7pm that evening with 3 stops of a good half hour or so to buy food at shops at Sanquhar and Wanlockhead, again some hard sections where it was soft going so i pushed a few sections, but did feel better and less tired on the walking sections than before,  getting into the groove perhaps, anyways i would still be calling it a day at Moffat that evening,
So i phoned Francis-my phone the only dry thing in its Shower Pass cover and we arranged for her to pick me up from Moffat that evening...

I took these following pics with my phone as my camera had given up being un usable with a misted lens, luckily it would dry up a few days later at home!...

A fish supper while sat in the park beside the memorial to The WW2 RAF genius Dowding was a nice end to my `battle against the odds`... as i  summoned up todays going;
Having reached Wanlockhead by late afternoon i had now reached for myself a half way point on the SUW. As well as Scotland's highest village being a watershed i have cycled most of the SUW east of the village in sections to East Lothian over the years,
The tracks got easier as i refuelled with more food, the tracks at  Daer Reservoir and up through the forest roads to reach Beattock where better, maybe as my mindset was on the up the nearer to Moffat i got...

This is a tough route to cycle!, a lacl of maintenance through a lot of agricultural lgrazing  and moorland leaves rough going for any bike, though my choice worked well enough,
To be continued from Moffat...


An ideal bike and set up;
29+ fatbike-the perfect bike for the SUW?
My Surly KramPug is my original Surly Pugsley with a set of Surly 29+  wheels grafted on. These wheels are 50mm wide 29" rims with 3" tyres and they can be found on Surlys two 29+ bikes- The original 29+ trail bike the Krampus, and the newer adventure tourer trail bike the ECR.
My KramPug is a kind of bastard hybrid of the Pugsley and ECR, it does have the fatbikes wider 100mm Bottom bracket and cranks, but it does also have loads of tyre clearance, ideal for wet moorland peat.
A 1 " higher BB than a regular 4" fat tyre wheeled Pugsley also gives good clearance on single track through heather. so i hoped this will be a good rig for the trip. Time to kit it out...

Bike packing spec;
Epic Designs (now named Revelate) original frame bag for non drop tube MK1 Surly Pugsley,
Epic Designs tank bag,
Alpkit Handlebar bag,
Alpkit Seatpost bag,
Hi Gear  waterproof handlebar map holder, - cannot find a link to buy these now, over 15 years old,
Fork mounted water bottle using stainless P clips (18mm upper, 15mm lower) from ebay,

What was packed on the bike;
The map holder takes two OS size maps, one opened out, compass carried too in case of mist while on the Hills...
I have since boiught a new map holder but it is not a bar mounted holder...

Compact Canon camera with Tesco sandwich bag for rain, and Jobe Gorrila pod in the tank bag as usual...

Upper frame bag has the Alpkit Ti Mug with lid. Inside is the MSR Pocket Rocket stove and instant coffee and flint and steel,
Gas canister and wind shield,
An Instant porridge,
Small lock for on train, shops etc.
Craft paclite 100% waterproof jacket,
The tent poles...
With a 750mm bottle of water on the bike and all this i always have breakfast stored on the bike in case i do not have any food in backpack and decide to camp mid section. Good to start the next day with some food and coffee!...

Lower Frame bag has two 29" tubes, tools, two small bottles (eye droplets) filled with Squirt dry lube...

Vango Force 10 Helium Superlite 100 1kg tent minus the poles in the Alpkit Seat post bag;

On my back;
Alpkit waterproof dry bag rucksack -  although water proof everything is wrapped in waterproof (Tesco snap seal sandwich) bags, this is Scotland!,
Camel back for daytime drinking water,
Daytime food bought on route from local shops, ie the Soreen loaf,
Mosquito net for midges,
`Skin so Soft` for Midges,
Spare merino socks and full finger gloves ,
Mobile phone in Showers Pass case,
Wallet with spare camera battery and assorted plasters,
Travel toothbrush and toothpaste,
Pack of baby wipes for washing,

And that's it!

Clothes worn;
Endura single track 3/4 shorts with Lycra liner,
Merino wool ankle socks,
INOV 8 scree gators with Shimano SPD mtb shoes,
Gore base layer,
The North Face quick drying cool max short sleeve top,
Altura track mitts,
MET helmet,

So minimum kit but some comfort;
So plan for the worse weather imaginable- pouring rain!,