Mountain Biking Scotland

What do bikes have to do with basking sharks – zero!! But our big fishy friends are only around for so long so we do a lot of different things to make ends meet outside of the short summer. Our owner, Shane, is obsessed with mountain bikes and is a qualified British Cycling Mountain Bike Leader.  Although Shane has to spend all of his time on the boat during our busy summer, he’s out on the trails  all through the winter, night rides with the local cycle club and racing XC. So, at certain times of year we can offer mtb / gravel /road cycling tours along with a combo of bikes, boats and ferries!

Bikes, Boats & Islands

As good as Calmac are, our stealth RIB is always going to be quicker! Based from Oban we have easy access to many of the islands which you couldn’t visit in a day via ferry. We can do a combo of wildlife watching, a cruise around the islands and a cycle.

Here are some ideas….

• Tobermory Day Trip

Take a the 90min tour through the Sound of Mull, cruising through the fjord-like scenery. Catch a few wildlife sights such as seals, porpoises and eagles (whales & dolphins if lucky). Then stop in Tobermory for an explore and cycle. The local woods at Aros can be a fun mtb adventure, along with options for a road cycle loop to Calgary & Glengorm (a few hills on this one!). Great viewpoints for a sea watch looking for whales & dolphins too on these routes.

• Isle of Muck, Eigg, Rum, Coll, Tiree

Out west of Mull lie the Inner Hebrides & Small Isles. Each every different with lots of wildlife, diverse geology & landscapes. The white shell sand of Coll & Tiree to the volcanic remnants of the small isles, our full day trips there could involve a cycle & lunch without having to do a number of overnights and ferry journeys. Coll is the closest at about 2 hours one way so be prepared for a mission!

• Glencoe

Another great location with sea access, on the way to Fort William we can access Loch Leven where we can step ashore to Ballachulish and Glencoe. There are some great hotels and pubs like the Clachaig nearby, along with Glencoe Lochan and nearby trails for all abilities.

• Fort William

There is an excellent small marina next to the Caledonia Canal. We can spend an hour cruising up Loch Lihnne to reach Fort William where a number of options await. A cruisy gravel ride up the canal, take in some of the forest tracks or even up to Nevis range trail centre.

• Crinan

Head down through the the Slate Isles, passing the Corryvreckan and end up landing at Crinan. The easy going Crinan canal is a fantastic beginners cycle, but it also gives access to intermediate mtb trails at Achnabreac Firetower trails too.

Calmac Ferry & Bike

Some of the closer islands to Oban are much easier to jump on the local ferries to explore for a day trip rather than use our boat.

• Kerrera

Our closest island served by two ferries. A fantastic loop in good weather with stunning sea views from Gylen Castle. Some good options for snacks & lunch at the Tea garden or Waypoint at the marina. There is an easy east coast or more rugged west coast route to tackle with the option to add in some extra Oban trails too.

• Lismore

Another great island adventure accessible from Oban served by two ferries. Again there are a number of different route options, whether an out & back ferry from Oban, or cycle north to catch the Appin ferry and then back to Oban in a loop. Kerrera can be a road/gravel bike route or a mtb one with some great cafe & lunch stops too.

• South Mull

Craignure is 45min away by ferry from Oban and there are some nice road & gravel loops around Torosay, Duart Castle, Fishnish forest or down to Grass Point.

• Multi-Day

We specialise in multi-day boat adventures around the islands so we can easily bolt on a cycling adventure onto our snorkeling, wildlife watching, paddleboarding, hiking adventures. An adventure holiday with a difference.

Oban Mountain Bike & Cycling

Shane’s home turf. Whilst Oban is not that famous an area for Mountain Bikes, we do have some bike royalty that grew up here. Pink Bike’s Ben Cathro built a number of trails just out of town and thrived off the tricky conditions to build himself the skillset for the World Series.

There are a number of natural trails close to Oban. Around Pulpit Hill, Dunollie, Ganavan, Glencruitten Woods. There are lot’s of short cuts and hidden trails so taking a guided tour means no faff in trying to find the right place.

Bike Hire

Whilst we don’t have bike hire ourselves, there are two good shops in Oban which can hire out quality mountain bikes and hybrid style road bikes. If we head to some trail centres like Nevis Range then there are options for really great mountain bikes there too. You can hire from the shop yourself and then we can agree a meet point or we can make arrangements for the hire to make life easy for you too. Bike Hire direct costs ~£30/day for a MTB.

Prices

With so many options it’s hard to choose. Almost all we offer is bespoke organised tours with up to 8 people.

Boat trips are based on distance & time. Full day charters start around £850 per charter inc landing fees. Boats & bikes are priced at charter & guiding. Depending on the location you can bring up to 12 onboard but we are limited to 8 cyclists.

Guided rides will depend on start point, transport & distance see below for some examples.

Oban 1/2 day ride

1-2 people – £125

3-4 people – £180

4-8 people – £240

Oban Full Day Ride / Boat Based Trip

1-2 people – £185

3-4 people – £240

4-8 people – £300

Inner Islands Ferry Full Day (+ client ferry cost)

1-2 people – £210

3-4 people – £265

4-8 people – £325

Road Trips

Upon request based on transport costs & client numbers. Generally it will be full day rate as above + travel.