We gathered at a warm and sunny Crieff Visitor Centre at 10am for a 10.15 start. Run leader Ian McIntosh on his shiny new Royal Enfield Shotgun, Ian Ness on his shiny new BMW F900X, Ed Mackey on his Yamaha XJ6 and myself on my Royal Enfield Interceptor 650. But wait! “Only two Ians?” I hear you cry. Luckily we were joined by prospective new member Iain Beedie on his Honda CBR650. So with a healthy compliment of Ian/Iains we set off for Hell’s Glen.
We set off towards Crianlarich on dry roads, perfect for those with new bikes getting a feel for how they ride, then south alongside Loch Lomond, Arrochar before turning off at Rest and be thankful on to the B828 ‘rollercoaster’ road then turning NW on to the B839 Hell’s Glen and our first challenge site – Moses Well. Can’t miss it, it looks like a big stone bidet.
After the obligatory photos were taken and cheery banter exchanged we followed the road to Cairndow and Inveraray, turning north to Loch Awe and our lunch stop at The Cruachan Dam Visitor Centre. Very nice place for a stop off, good selection of soups, paninis and cakes. We even managed to wangle an extra panini. The secret is to ‘accidentally’ eat a panini (similar to yours) but meant for another table then feign surprise when yours turns up. Nice move New Iain.
Fully fed and watered we headed on to North Connel then turned off to our second, heavenly, site, Ardchattan Church. There’s two roads in from the A828 so we tried both of them just for good measure. When we arrived there were three ladies chatting outside the church, thanks to Chief Investigator Ed we found out that two were revisiting places from their youth while the other lady is from California and has bought the church. She and her husband plan to live there and turn part of it into a music venue.
From here it was a spritely dash via Dalmally to the Green Welly Shop. Although we were all heading towards Crieff we said our goodbyes here before heading to Crieff and peeling off in our various directions. Two challenge sites bagged and a good day was had by all.
Run date 25/03/25
Tom Sutherland
Sorry, should have said a huge thank you to Ian McIntosh for leading and Ian Ness for bringing up the rear.
Thank you very much for putting the run report together. Summed up a good ride out in nice weather (March!!!).
Some nice wee stops with the usual good natured banter. Glad you enjoyed lunch but I wonder how many other places we’ll get away with the ‘oh, wasn’t that my panini?’ trick.
Thanks to all for joining me on the run and to Ian ‘Tigerless’ Ness for providing TEC duties.
Had a great day with you guys brilliant banter, will be joining soon. Think I’ll always try the panini trick😊 just for you Ed
Great report Tom, definitely summed up accurately what was an exceptional day out for March. It was definitely just what the doctor ordered for me to really get accustomed to the new bike. Great day, looking forward to the next one 🏍️👍
A magnificent run captured in this report, Tom … the famous five went to hell and back. The bike line-up was interesting in itself, great company, stunning scenery and a well-chosen lunch-stop. I was torn between soup (delicious) and panini … and then, heaven-sent, a spare one landed right on our table. Iain had worked some kind on magic … I’m going to try and sit next to him again 😉