8 years we have lived here and still there are new routes to explore from home. True, there are not many dedicated cycle paths but then I tell our guests that they could sit in the middle of many of the minor roads here and read a book cover to cover without needing to move. If you have a bike with even slightly chunky tires then you have the 300 square miles of Galloway forest to play in, and access to truly remote riding.

As Galloway Cycling Holidays, we have tried to reduce our use of cars and concentrate on Hub holidays to take advantage of the wealth and variety of local routes starting in just one or two places. Coast, moorland and rides that go deep into areas of wilderness are all possible here in Galloway. This variety is unique in Scotland!

“ You can get lost here and have a great day “, I hear myself tell our clients this, and yes it is almost true, as long as you do not see the A75 as an ideal short cut ( why does Google Maps put you on there! ). You can pick a ride to hug the coast and explore a string of unvisited bays and the next day you can be amongst the highest mountains of Southern Scotland. We have bikes for rent for every style of riding: gravel bikes, Ebikes and hybrid road bikes and I know you will have a great day.

Let’s start in Gatehouse. An easy ride would be through Cally Woods to the coast and along to Carrick for some of the best beaches in Scotland. There are at least two things here that people here have an opinion on, “ which is the best butcher in Castle Douglas? “ and “ which is the best local beach? “ A difficult choice unless you are a vegetarian, but there is no terribly wrong answer. I took a group of cycling journalists along the coast here and it was great to see them pulling at their jersey pockets for phones as we biked by stretches of golden sand and mountain views. You make a choice to move here for the cycling and it is great to have that confirmed by a peloton of the not easily impressed. You can continue along this coast of Viking, pirate and smuggler all the way to Kirkcudbright and back through quiet lanes to make a great day of cycling.

Turning inland, towards the forest from Gatehouse and riding a mountain or gravel bike, then you have some of the finest gravel routes in the world. When I first started saying “ World Class Gravel ‘ I only half believed it. But it looked every bit as good as stuff on social media from exotic locations so I kept on saying it.

I sent off a speculative email a little more than 5 years ago, and here we are The Gralloch - UCI World Series Gravel event right here in Gatehouse and the Raiders Gravel Festival too. Dream big I say. Or “ you may as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb “ as they sometimes still say here. We love the power of the speculative email - and this one landed BIG.

Loch Clatteringshaws and back is a great gravel route. Out by the Laurieston Road and back along the National Cycle Route to Big Water of Fleet viaduct and one of the finest views of the mountains to sit and enjoy a cafe break. If you wanted a simple road route with cafe & art you can just continue to the Gallery at Laurieston and on a Spring day be accompanied by Skylark song for most of the way both there and back. It’s a bit of a climb, but views out to sea and the Isle of Man on a clear day and snow capped peaks inland make the effort well worth it.

You do not have to be a great cyclist, not even a good one and you are going to have a great day on a bike here. An eBike or a heigh end road hybrid or gravel bike, a flask and a flap-jack or a pocket full of energy gels and a plan for a cafe stop. You could book us to guide you up into the forest so you avoid navigation anxiety, the whole holiday package of accommodation and routes, we do it all.

We get such a kick out of introducing people to Galloway, hearing their stories of meeting people and loving these quiet unvisited roads and tracks. Get out and do stuff in 2025.

Galloway - the path less pedalled

New Years Coffee in the woods

Galloway Cycling Holidays