old - Fazer Owners Club - old
General => General => Topic started by: FZSteely on 07 August 2013, 01:40:54 pm
-
Hi guys,
I'm planning a 4 day wild camping trip to Scotland, in September. Does anyone have any suggestions as to destinations? I'm hoping to get right into the wilderness, find a loch all to myself, no sign of human life, freedom really. I'm sure you get the idea. Any suggestions would be welcome :)
Thanks.
-
I am from the West coast mate, and I have been in the outdoors for much of my life. It depends what you are after. Are you taking your bike/car? Are you taking your vehicle off road? Or re you carrying your gear? September can be a good month for it as the midges will be dead by that time as it is too cold, however, it can be VERY cold at night, so prepare well. How far north are you planning to go? Remember, it takes less time to travel from Glasgow to London than it does to get from Glasgow to the north of Skye. Although the distance might not look much on a map, it will take you some time to travel. Let me know a bit more and I will point you in the right direction :D
-
As above, Im also from the West coast of Scotland - plenty of nooks and crannies about here, but it depends what your looking for, and how much hiking from the bike you want to do etc.
-
Thanks for the suggestions so far guys. Well first if all I will be taking my FZS600, the plan is to stay in a tent, I haven't wild camped before but I certainly have encountered a cold night or two camping, so I plan to pack plenty of warm clothing. Ideally I'd love to at least keep the bike in sight but happy to camp quite far from the roadside. The West Coast would be perfect maybe midway into Scotland maybe even venturing up as far as Pitt lochry (I apologies if I have Mis-spelt the name)
-
Can you hold a crap in for 4 days!!! :lol
-
Ha ha, no but not intending on having a high fibre trip either :D
-
Can you hold a crap in for 4 days!!! :lol
no need, just let rip then wipe your arse with an acorn, or some birch bark. works wonders:lol
theres some fairly secluded points up at loch long (just beyond arrochar) that are fairly good for camping. some of them right on the lochside. Loch long is a sea loch though so the water is salty. loch lomond also has a good few spots around it, although you should bear in mind that camping is (allegedly) banned on the east side at balmaha/rowardennan - although Ive camped there and its never been a problem.
-
How exactly do you want to feel while you're camping - REALLY wild, or perhaps just a little annoyed? :lol
I noticed a few people camping or with camper vans down the Glen Etive road when I was last up that way. It's a quiet little road with a burn (water source, but I'd advise using a water filter or boil everything you consume). There are a number of small gravelly lay-bys along the first bit as you go down, or you might be able to go all the way down to the loch shore and find somewhere.
-
^^ same story with Loch lomond, there are layby's right next to it (spaced every half mile - mile or so) around 90% of the west/north sides.
-
Mick ive stayed on loch long before, total stunning, i was in a plush lochside lodge though, went kayaking up the loch, really tranquil.
I also visited the worst resteraunt ive ever eaten in - the Jaco bite!!!, or Jaco shite as we call it!it was a total blast from the past & the english owners were completely off their heads & played dodgy 1940's music & looking around you could see that everyone that came in wanted to go back out but couldnt be rude enough to do it.it was so bad that it was good & it's now a running joke in my family :D
My dad tells me that its now been demolished thankfully :b
-
Mick ive stayed on loch long before, total stunning, i was in a plush lochside lodge though, went kayaking up the loch, really tranquil.
that will be the lodges just past arrochar at ardgarten. Ive stayed in those too, they are very nice :)
-
Mick ive stayed on loch long before, total stunning, i was in a plush lochside lodge though, went kayaking up the loch, really tranquil.
that will be the lodges just past arrochar at ardgarten. Ive stayed in those too, they are very nice :)
Dornie lodges, massive glass fronts, quite modern, far supreme!!!,my folks go there every year the foccers but it's a bit far from wales for me.
-
Great thread, I'm really interested in the discussion as I've been considering a bit of wild camping.
Reading I've done suggests you can camp most places, but not too close to the road.
Ideally I would want to have the fazer on camp site for security, but wouldn't want to go off-road with it.
Can you get away with camping roadside? Or are there places easy to find where you can camp with access for the bike?
Andy
-
ah. thats a different loch long! thats the one near inverness, the loch long im referring to is about 15 miles outside helensburgh :)
-
Great thread, I'm really interested in the discussion as I've been considering a bit of wild camping.
Reading I've done suggests you can camp most places, but not too close to the road.
Ideally I would want to have the fazer on camp site for security, but wouldn't want to go off-road with it.
Can you get away with camping roadside? Or are there places easy to find where you can camp with access for the bike?
Andy
there are layby-s/offshoots from the road to the loch, so your not strictly on the road, police dont seem to mind, not in the 40-50 times ive camped around loch long/loch lomond anyway. this for example:
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ll=56.210729,-4.699693&spn=0.012793,0.042272&t=m&z=15&layer=c&cbll=56.210729,-4.699693&panoid=NSCM5SYaQ_P8K2cxBxpGFg&cbp=12,154.42,,0,9.14
just off the road, so ok to use :)
-
ah. thats a different loch long! thats the one near inverness, the loch long im referring to is about 15 miles outside helensburgh :)
Ha ha!!! Well one must be shorter than the other so one should be called loch longer :)
Sorry for messing up the thread :rolleyes
-
Glenshieldaig Forest, out towards Torridon has a real in-the-middle-of-nowhere feel. Very wild, rocky, bit barren. Challenging little road to get there, not far from Torridon village and loch, also near to Applecross on the west coast. I think I would top up with fuel before heading up there, nearest garage on Shiel Bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh road? Not sure about water sources out there, but could fill a couple of bottles before you go. Torridon village has a small grocery store. Ground is very rocky and uneven, so might be better to bivvy rather than tent, if you can rig up decent midgie protection. I very much doubt that anyone would disturb you on that road, didn't see much traffic even in the middle of the day.
-
Glenshieldaig Forest, out towards Torridon has a real in-the-middle-of-nowhere feel. Very wild, rocky, bit barren. Challenging little road to get there, not far from Torridon village and loch, also near to Applecross on the west coast. I think I would top up with fuel before heading up there, nearest garage on Shiel Bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh road? Not sure about water sources out there, but could fill a couple of bottles before you go. Torridon village has a small grocery store. Ground is very rocky and uneven, so might be better to bivvy rather than tent, if you can rig up decent midgie protection. I very much doubt that anyone would disturb you on that road, didn't see much traffic even in the middle of the day.
I love this idea, shame about the rockyness
-
Loch Lomond is beautiful, but being the largest body of fresh water in the UK, it gets more visitors per annum than Alton Towers! So, for me anyway, its as wild as camping in Morrisons car park :lol . Not that you can't have fun there though... Loch Long has a great biking road running along side it, but again, its not exactly wild. And Pitlochry is a town. If you are after a truly "wild" experience, and by that I mean you will not talk to anyone for days, the Cairngorms is a good shout, as is the stretch between Fort William And the Isle of Skye. The further north you go from there, the more remote it gets. I toured Scotland on my 125 in 09'. I went all around the coast. Cape Wrath is stunning, but traveling there is going to be measured in days from your location. If you are after something a bit closer, try the brig-o-turk (https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?oe=&q=brig+o+turk&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x4888f08ccb8be6db:0xe74d2962e1158f61,Brig+o'Turk,+Stirling&gl=uk&ei=tWICUrH8Jazd7QaL5IHYAQ&ved=0CKIBELYDMA4 (https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?oe=&q=brig+o+turk&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x4888f08ccb8be6db:0xe74d2962e1158f61,Brig+o'Turk,+Stirling&gl=uk&ei=tWICUrH8Jazd7QaL5IHYAQ&ved=0CKIBELYDMA4)). There are wee loches dotted around it, and if you go off the road onto the track, and keep going, you will find yourself lost in the wilderness. Dumfries and Galloway forest park is another one pretty close to the boarder. No mountains though, but the best views of the night sky in the UK.
-
cant sayi disagree with any of that ^^. good advice there :)
-
Cheers Mick. If you are patient enough to sieve through the drivel, you will find a nugget of gold :) .
-
Hi guys,
I'm planning a 4 day wild camping trip to Scotland, in September. Does anyone have any suggestions as to destinations? I'm hoping to get right into the wilderness, find a loch all to myself, no sign of human life, freedom really. I'm sure you get the idea. Any suggestions would be welcome :)
Thanks.
Do you know what? You can't do this on a bike, cos if you're camped near a road you're right next to a sign of human life. For the best wild camping experience, leave the bike at home and take to the hills on foot. If you've never done it before, it's a wonderful experience you'll never forget. :)
-
Not too far north,, or you have to watch out for Polar bears..
I went to Scotland once with my girlfreind,, i came back with a wife,,,,thats what Gretna Green can do to you,,thats true too :)
Have raced downhill mtb'sat Fortwilliam , that,s ace there. also Ae forest ,Dunfries,, and also lots of times to, umm , it will come to me in a minute,,ummm, oh bugger :z
-
Well I'm very grateful for all the ideas guys, I didn't expect such a rapid response. I think what I will so is take all these suggestions and discuss them with my mate who will be joining me. It does sound tricky to truly wild camp with a bike but I do think it will be a hell of a great time anyway. I'll take plenty of pics! :D
-
Steely, your bike will be safe. I stayed in Ullapool a few years back for 2 nights. Arrived at about 3/4pm and parked outside the B & B. Took the gear off the bike and headed in. Never touched the bike the whole time. When I was leaving, I cold not find my keys anywhere. Panic set in. I headed out to the bike to find they were in the seat lock :o . Point is, nobody touched them. Good folks up in the heelins (Highlands to you I guess :lol ) You can leave your bike by the side of the road for days mate, no one will touch it. Just take the keys with you.
-
Steely, your bike will be safe. I stayed in Ullapool a few years back for 2 nights. Arrived at about 3/4pm and parked outside the B & B. Took the gear off the bike and headed in. Never touched the bike the whole time. When I was leaving, I cold not find my keys anywhere. Panic set in. I headed out to the bike to find they were in the seat lock :o . Point is, nobody touched them. Good folks up in the heelins (Highlands to you I guess :lol ) You can leave your bike by the side of the road for days mate, no one will touch it. Just take the keys with you.
That's good to know. I've always liked Scotland although I've only discovered a small part of it so far. (I was 23 when I first stayed there, I'm 27 now) I can't wait to take in the scenery really, sit by the tent, get a coffee going on a stove. Simply speaking I don't think there's anywhere else that can compare or offer that experience.
-
It is a pretty rugged wilderness and is nothing like the rest of the UK. The highlands are as geographically north as south Alaska, which subjects the landscape (and people) to some fierce weather. That makes for some jaw dropping mountains (and rough faces :lol ). The best of them are from 15 miles north of Fort William, mountains that is. If that is what you are really after, up the West coast is the way for you. You can PM me if you like, and let me know when you are thinking of doing it and I can tag along for an hour or two and show you a few roads.
-
I just got back from Scotland last night , if your looking for a wild camp you could pitch up by the lake halfway up Ben Nevis , joking aside I found Glen Nevis campsite at the foot of Ben Nevis wild enough for me , and an idea base to ride out from.
-
Did you climb Nevis?
-
Yes , I made it to the top and back down in 7 hours , the average time is between 6 -8 hours I thought I was pretty fit until I saw people running up the mountain pass me , I got really bad cramps in my thighs about 900m up but I still made it up , I didn't have the right footwear though , it was a choice between canvass shoes or motorcycle boots so I wore the boots , glad I did it though .
-
Next time u come to us
-
It is a pretty rugged wilderness and is nothing like the rest of the UK. The highlands are as geographically north as south Alaska, which subjects the landscape (and people) to some fierce weather. That makes for some jaw dropping mountains (and rough faces :lol ). The best of them are from 15 miles north of Fort William, mountains that is. If that is what you are really after, up the West coast is the way for you. You can PM me if you like, and let me know when you are thinking of doing it and I can tag along for an hour or two and show you a few roads.
Thanks for the offer. I might take you up on that mate. I'll spend some time this weekend piecing ideas together. :)
-
i'm up on the west coast next week, so if it's raining, it's my fault. and i'm camping as well but using campsites.
-
Have fun caretaker.
-
Yes , I made it to the top and back down in 7 hours , the average time is between 6 -8 hours I thought I was pretty fit until I saw people running up the mountain pass me , I got really bad cramps in my thighs about 900m up but I still made it up , I didn't have the right footwear though , it was a choice between canvass shoes or motorcycle boots so I wore the boots , glad I did it though .
I climbed up it about 7/8 years ago with my mate. We had shorts, trainers, 20 fags each (a few of which were deconstructed and rebuilt to our liking ;) ), a sandwich, a can of irn-bru and spent the night before in a bob the builder tent (courtesy of his brother-in-law) which we pitched beside a tidal loch with an inflatable mattress inside. Woke up a 5am floating and had to swim about getting our gear back :'( . Beautiful morning though, and the midges had a right good feed on us. Ah, the things you do in your yoof! It was a great day that I will never forget though.
-
That takes me back....minus the early morning dip :lol
-
As long as you are well away from the central belt, as others have said your bike will be fine. Obviously you want to be clear of busier areas like Fort William and Inverness etc.
But if you want to go somewhere remote, then there is no prob parking your bike and leaving it, just be sensible where you park it, ie so it doesn't cause an obstruction. You can park it up, walk off and pick it up a week later if you want.
And if you do head off, don't forget to leave word with somebody roughly where you are heading and when they can expect to hear from you again. If you are going remote you probably won't get a mobile phone signal. Leave them details of your reg number and where roughly it will be parked.
Just give a bit of thought to where you are heading, make sure are prepared and you can navigate confidently. A few folks have gone wild camping or using bothies in the last year and didn't return. In a couple of cases it was a few months before their bodies were located. One of these sad incidents was in an area I know quite well. Makes you think.
Another consideration is midge, and at the moment even worse than that are the clegs. Never mind wild camping, which I've never or have yet to get into, but as a hill walker I haven't been up any hills since the begining of June, firstly due to some very warm weather, secondly the clegs are out in force and trying to eat folks alive. Popped up my local hill and fought them all the way up and all the way back down - foc that, it was miserable.
But with luck things might improve over the next few weeks.
-
Ben Nevis? Not done that one yet, hopefully pop up there at some point.
But the Mountain Track looks like a bit of a drag.
I'd go for this route, probably a good bit more effort but should be well worth it - http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/fortwilliam/carnmordeargarete.shtml (http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/fortwilliam/carnmordeargarete.shtml)
-
I've done Snowdon, Cadair Idris in Wales, Scafell and many other tops in the Lakes region, but not had a chance to do Ben Nevis yet. Don't know if I'll ever get to now as my fitness is not what it was. Scafell I did on a whim, got to the top and realised I had forgotten my camera, and the views were stunning! Didn't have a camera when I did Snowdon either - it was very crowded at the top. Route is a very important consideration to me, cos if you just do the easiest ones, it's bound to be busier. Coming down from Snowdon, the miner's track actually had queues on it, whilst I took the Pyg track - met only 2 other people the whole way down, and as the path stayed higher for longer, much better views, espec. of down the Llanberis pass.
A path with a bit of scrambling I find much more enjoyable than a straight walk, but obviously you need to choose something within your capabilities!
-
Done plenty of good hill walks and not met a sole the whole day.
There's nothing like walking alone and not meeting a single sole all day.
I don't like busy hills.
I'm not the best at getting up in the morning, but some of the more popular hills, the only way to do it is to get up well before dawn and get on the hill before the crowds arrive.
But at the moment I'm, waiting for the cleg population to wane a little before I head out again.