Cycling in Aberdeenshire

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Aberdeenshire offers mostly point-to-point gravel and road routes with varied climbing, starting in several towns including Ballater and Newmachar.

Aberdeenshire has 9 cycling routes ranging from 20 to 86 km, mainly point-to-point, with one loop. Routes start from six towns, with Ballater and Newmachar having the most at two each. The majority of the rides are gravel (6 routes) along with 3 road routes. The region features notable climbs such as the 986 m ascent from Ballater to Montrose and the 800 m climb from Braemar to Nethy Bridge, with the longest route being 86 km.

The terrain is varied with an average of 16% climbing and steepest sections reaching up to 24.3% gradient over 500 m. The available infrastructure includes 106 km of cycle path and 16% main roads, while surfaces are roughly half paved and half unpaved. Roads with 80 km/h or above speed limits total nearly 69 km, adding to the region’s diversity of riding conditions.

What the riding is like

The riding terrain in Aberdeenshire is predominantly rolling with some steep sections; 13.1 km of the routes exceed 5% gradient, with smaller segments falling above 8% and 10% gradients. Typical route lengths are moderate to long, with a median of 58 km. The mix of surfaces is about 52% paved and 47% unpaved. Infrastructure includes substantial cycle path km and mainly minor roads with some main roads lacking cycle lanes. The biggest climbs include the ascent to Montrose at 986 m and the Braemar to Nethy Bridge climb at 800 m elevation.

Cycling infrastructure

Across the routes, there are 106 km of cycle path, 16% of the 440 km total are main roads, including 70.4 km of main roads without cycle lanes and 68.9 km of roads with speed limits of 80 km/h or more.