BIKE PACKING IN SCOTLAND
Written by: Emily Mackenzie
I have never done anything like this before. Fairly new to bike-packing and an absolute beginner when it comes to riding a gravel bike. The plan was to ride 4 days, each with a distance from about 40 km up to 90 km, from Edinburgh up north to Tomatin, Inverness. Sounds doable right? Yet the anxiety level was still through the roof. I went into this adventure with an anxious mind and came out with so much more resilience and calmness.
This trip would teach me about patience, about leaving and arriving, and about ‘home’. Being brought up by both a German and a Scottish parent I always knew my heart was in two places. I’ve been here before a few times, and it always felt as if I was exactly where I should be. My emotional language is English, the nature gives me peace and I wanted to discover more of this feeling.
This bike-packing adventure went from a thing I didn’t even think about myself doing, to something I’ve accomplished – I don’t want to say easily because that would make it sound as if it was nothing – with so much joy. We rode from Edinburgh to Perth, Perth to Pitlochry, Pitlochry to Kincraig and then the last stretch from Kincraig to Tomatin. The steadiness of the bike moving beneath me felt grounding, safe.
CYCLING HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE BEST TOOL FOR ME TO PROCESS FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS, TO CARRY ME THROUGH CHALLENGING TIMES AND TO HELP ME GAIN TRUST IN MYSELF AGAIN, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY.
As we started, I felt like my heart was torn between two places, but by the end of this trip the perspective has shifted: I have a home in two places, and I think that’s beautiful.
The people we met were so genuine and loving, warm, and gold. They helped us rebuilding the route, covered us in food, cheered from the car. And even on our third day through the Cairngorms, which was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done so far, there was always this certainty that we would arrive. At some point. And sometimes that’s all you need to know to keep going.
BIKE PACKING IN SCOTLAND
Written by: Emily Mackenzie
I have never done anything like this before. Fairly new to bike-packing and an absolute beginner when it comes to riding a gravel bike. The plan was to ride 4 days, each with a distance from about 40 km up to 90 km, from Edinburgh up north to Tomatin, Inverness. Sounds doable right? Yet the anxiety level was still through the roof. I went into this adventure with an anxious mind and came out with so much more resilience and calmness.
This trip would teach me about patience, about leaving and arriving, and about ‘home’. Being brought up by both a German and a Scottish parent I always knew my heart was in two places. I’ve been here before a few times, and it always felt as if I was exactly where I should be. My emotional language is English, the nature gives me peace and I wanted to discover more of this feeling.
This bike-packing adventure went from a thing I didn’t even think about myself doing, to something I’ve accomplished – I don’t want to say easily because that would make it sound as if it was nothing – with so much joy. We rode from Edinburgh to Perth, Perth to Pitlochry, Pitlochry to Kincraig and then the last stretch from Kincraig to Tomatin. The steadiness of the bike moving beneath me felt grounding, safe.
CYCLING HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE BEST TOOL FOR ME TO PROCESS FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS, TO CARRY ME THROUGH CHALLENGING TIMES AND TO HELP ME GAIN TRUST IN MYSELF AGAIN, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY.
As we started, I felt like my heart was torn between two places, but by the end of this trip the perspective has shifted: I have a home in two places, and I think that’s beautiful.
The people we met were so genuine and loving, warm, and gold. They helped us rebuilding the route, covered us in food, cheered from the car. And even on our third day through the Cairngorms, which was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done so far, there was always this certainty that we would arrive. At some point. And sometimes that’s all you need to know to keep going.