Cycling Loch Tay

Day 2 of my 3 day Perthshire trip was a washout but thankfully today the weather was back on track. The forecast was for a dry cloudy morning with temperatures picking up after noon. Perfect for a bike ride around Loch Tay. I drove around this area a few months ago and which inspired me to want to cycle round this beautiful loch.

Loch Tay from Kenmore

The trip around the loch is roughly 35 miles and I decided to start from Kenmore and cycle clockwise. Without a doubt this was the best decision as most of the undulating work is on this southern half of the loch leaving you more time to enjoy the views from the northern side. Today is about enjoying the ride and the views, no time pressures, just making the most of the day. Overall the road is in very good condition and there is no need for mountain bike tyres on this route. There are plenty of options to extend this ride and I will describe some of them later.
I arrived in Kenmore just before 10am and was surprised to find I was the first car in the small Kenmore carpark. I even had a look around to check it was actually open and it seemed to be, everyone else was obviously enjoying their breakfast or a long lie. Kenmore is a lovely small village and as you can see from the boats moored here that Loch Tay is popular for water-sports and fishing. The salmon will come up the river Tay from the North Sea and enter the loch at Kenmore. The view looking down the loch is a grand start to the day.

Crannog Kenmore

A right turn out of the carpark takes you to the end of the loch and another right turn sets you off. If you turned left at the junction you could climb a very steep hill and do the Aberfeldy circuit first. Personally looks like a cardiac event for me. A few hundred yards up the road on the right hand side is Kenmore's biggest tourist attraction, the Scottish Crannog centre. You can see in the picture the Crannog itself. The site is designed to educate you about life in Scotland around 2500 years ago. It is a pay to enter event but not sure how much it costs.

Looking across Loch Tay to Fearnan

After a mile or so you start climbing. A mountain biker is ahead of me, the first cyclist of the day but I suspect not the last. The climb rises steadily at times totally covered by trees, very nice. The right hand side is opening out to give views of Loch Tay and the hills beyond.
Throughout the route you pass many big houses with great views, some of them renovations and some new builds. Money is clearly not in short supply around this loch. 

Ben Lawers summit peaks from behind

For most of the ride the views to your right look down over the loch and give you a pleasant surprise at how high you have climbed but as you know when you climb you normally have a descent and this section is full of ups and downs. The views also take in the mountain range containing the impressive Ben Lawers which sits behind the main hills. Many casual walkers think they are looking up at Ben Lawers when starting their walk but the reality is that this is a big big hill and the main summit sits behind as this picture shows. This is great hill walking country.
The mountain biker has disappeared to the left. When I reach the spot it is a track heading off into the hills presumably to come back to Kenmore or Aberfeldy.
I was now into the fastest downhill section of the route where the speedo clocked 42mph.

This is the tarmac that you have to be wary of particularly as some bad cracks are on fast corners. Thankfully the south stretch had minimal car traffic today. It is very narrow in places. When encountered most cars slowed down to let us pass each other safely but as always there was the odd exception so keep alert. Another fast downhill takes you into Killin in the Trossachs. 

Falls of Dochart

This is a charming little town with plenty of eateries if you want to take a break. Probably its most famous 
feature is the Falls of Dochart where two rivers meet at an old stone bridge. I stopped to take a picture to find the arm of my sunglasses falling off and had just snapped, cheap rubbish. Hopefully there would be no insects in my eyes for the rest of the trip. 
There are guaranteed to be photos being taken here at the falls on any day of the week, avoid the tourists!!
Killin is popular with day trippers from the central belt and can be very busy at weekends. There is an old watermill here which is now a craft shop. It has a scenic golf course but no time for that today. My stop was at the local Co-op for a can of coke and a giant Aero bar for my nutrition. Well that's my excuse.

The quiet north road

As you leave the town there is a gradual climb of about 4 miles. It is easily done without coming out of the saddle but I was not expecting it to be so long. I had thought that the north side of the loch was the lower of the two but not at all. Most of the climbing is gained via this climb and after the effort you can then enjoy the views. The north stretch is more of a traditional 2 lane road and is busier than the south side but in reality it was still fairly quiet. You pass on your left the road to the start of the Ben Lawers walk and this road also takes you into Glen Lyon. This is one diversion for hardy cyclists that takes you to Bridge of Balgie where you can go on to Kenmore via Fortinghall. I think this adds on another dozen or so miles but does involve climbing.
Mainly to the left and down to the lochside there are quite a few caravan sites dotted about, plenty to choose if you wanted to stay in this area. From time to time there a good views of the south side that you have just cycled. Once I passed the Lawers junction the road went very quiet again. 

Quiet enough for the local wildlife, in this case a red deer to be only slightly interested in my passing. The views of the hills on the left are still spectacular. When I stopped to take the photo with my bike in it a buzzard was perched on the lamppost behind me, one eye looking at me but not the slightest concern for its safety. Normally a buzzard would take off when you stop close by.

Red deer hind

The loch is now opening up and you can almost see down to the finish at Kenmore. The one surprising thing is that how little boat activity there is today. They say that parts of this loch are deeper than the North Sea, impressive.
Now into the final run and for the most part it is a gentle descent. When you go through Lawers there is a rather welcoming inn but not the time for beer just yet. When you reach Fearnan the new and renovated properties come thick and fast until you get to Kenmore.

View from north road towards Kenmore

I decided to keep going for a while and headed to Weem before returning by the same route. This is flat all the way and eases the legs back into gentle activity. There are some good views of Scheihallion on this stretch. You could continue on this road to Aberfeldy and return via the main road to Kenmore. This does involve a serious climb, particularly if you come from Kenmore. Again this would add 16 or so miles to your trip.
When I got back the carpark was now full, the sun was beating down and the place was in full holiday mode, great to see. The Crannog centre was very busy so revenue for the area.
I had a great day out, around 45 miles in total and another new bucket list item ticked off. Time for that beer.

The mountain biker headed up that glen

Loch Tay from the finish at Kenmore bridge, no salmon yet