Meet on Saturday after breakfast walk along our high street with Jim to meet the local shop owners where we will collect our provisions for the weekend. Back to base to organise, share and pack all our kit, personal belongings and provisions for the two day ride before a full briefing about what we to expect over the next two days. Then we will rideawaybikepacking…Our first stop is not that far away where we will have coffee and a scone and collect a delicious sandwich. After this we will ride north on a variety of simple tracks and trails beside river, farmland, woodland and open moors. Continuing through and around the spectacular Dava Moor to our campsite with fire pits, toilets, showers and kitchen/dining area with a leavenotrace theme. There we will share the preparation and set up of our dinner then enjoy some time around the fire to get to know one another a bit better and talk about the ride. Your tent for the evening comes free of charge from Jim as he is an ambassador for SixMoonDesigns shelters.

On Sunday morning enjoy freshly brewed coffee with breakfast before packing up and then riding south back to Grantown on Spey on an alternative route which will be chosen based on your experiences and enjoyment of Saturday. Back in Grantown on Spey to de-rig the bikes, pack everything away and reflect on our trip. Please take the opportunity to explore the area a little more, eg. visit the new distillery a short walk from Grantown on Spey or browse in our lovely book shop or florists.

An ideal introduction to bikepacking we ride north on the Dava Way often taking the chance of a detour through the grounds of Castle Grant. The avenue of trees up past Castle Grant are beautiful in the autumn and can provide shelter from the heat of the sun in the summer. Once established on The Dava Way the landmark peak of The Knock of Braemoray is passed on our left as we start the descent towards Dunphail. Here we take farm roads and tracks towards our own campsite for the night with the final approach through delightful forest.

On the second day our route heads south towards Kerrow with a possible river crossing before passing the lovely chain of lochs in this secluded and peaceful area. We briefly rejoin yesterday’s route on the Dava Way for 2 or 3 miles before starting our wooded climb which opens out to spectacular views of the local and Cairngorm Mountains. Depending what time of year we are riding this route there is the option of taking an alternate section of singletrack which has been created by the local sheep!

day 1 : c. 20 miles and 775 ft ascent

day 2: c. 18 miles and 1050 ft ascent

On this intermediate route we will ride by the mighty River Spey then take a hidden route through farmland and woods to access estate tracks in an area known as The Braes. As we make our steady ascent there is quite a change in the landscape as it becomes quite craggy for a wee while. At the top of our climb we can often see all the way to The Moray Firth and beyond to the north coast. An exhilarating descent now follows and takes us down to an important junction before we negotiate woodland, a possible river crossing and farm tracks to our own campsite.

On day 2 the farming theme continues as we take an elevated traverse on a good track through abandoned farms. This is a special part of The Dava Moor and has been the feature of an exhibition at our local museum, it’s hard to believe that at one time this was home to many families. After a fun section of downhill there is then the option of continuing on remote tracks to Glen Beg and back to Grantown on Spey or rejoining the Dava Way if conditions suggest so.

day 1 : c. 23 miles and 1400 ft ascent

day 2: c. 19 miles and 1150 ft ascent

Our most challenging route aims for an important junction and small river crossing on the Dava Moor. We can ride there through Anagach Woods with a short section on a quiet road or take a route beside the Spey - the choice is yours! After the junction the next mile most of the time we will be pushing our loaded bikepacking rigs towards a block of trees which mark the start of the trail again. From there we take quiet farm roads and forest tracks to our own campsite.

In the morning we get quickly onto the Dava Way and ride for the sometimes moody Lochindorb. Good tarmac estate road leads to the south end of the loch before our long and challenging climb which can give spectacular views over to The Monadhliath Mountains and north to The Moray Firth. The descent back towards Glen Beg is exhilarating, demanding care and attention. It leads us to an important junction where we can traverse back to Grantown on Spey, or if there is still energy a hidden singletrack descent through the heather to Glen Beg before heading back to Grantown on Spey.

day 1 : c. 20 miles and 1025 ft ascent

day 2: c. 23 miles and 1525 ft ascent