Hill climbing

[zizou]

I'm new to the list. I've researched these (and lots of other) climbs in Scotland for a pair of books I am writing for Pocket Mountains. Cairn o' Mount from south will be in the Highland edition; Crow Road from south was in the Lowland edition.

My data is based on multiple trips using a Garmin Edge 705 and definitive start/end points from the Ordnance Survey. Cairn o' Mount from the south is the daddy!

Cairn o Mount from the south starts and ends tough; the challenge from the north is that of climbing, dipping and lots of muscle/gearing adjustments. Crow Road from the north is steepest at the start, but is more often approached from the south.

However, my favourite climb in Lowland Scotland has to be The Serpentine in Rothesay. The name says it all!!!! Can't make up my mind whether the Mull of Kintyre or the Pass of the Cattle is the toughest in the Highland collection. There is also something special about Saxa Vord (the northernmost climb of the most northern of the Shetland Isles - Unst).

Feel free to contact me about the books - johnmckendrick@blueyonder.co.uk / http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scottish-Lowland-Roads-Cyclists-Hillclimbs/dp/1907025251. Let me know what you think about the book ... and any suggestions for the Highland version! Feel free to post an Amazon comment.

Looks a good book, was a bit disappointed with the lack of Scottish entries in the '100 greatest cycling climbs' by Simon Warren so this looks like a good alternative instead!

 

[John H McKendrick]

Yes, there are plenty of cracking climbs in Scotland. In fairness to Simon Warren, there is a fair coverage of Scotland for a UK-wide book. I really struggled to limit it to 36 climbs in Lowland Scotland ... and am now struggling with my limit of 36 climbs for Highland Scotland!

Any feedback on the book would be warmly welcomed. I am keen that the books deliver what cyclists' need.