Mountain Bike Trails
Remember, mountain biking can be dangerous and you need to make sure you bike is in the right condition for the trails you are using. If you are unsure if your bike is up to the job, why not have us give it an ‘MOT’, just to be on the safe side.
For more local walk or cycle ride route ideas, please visit the Moray Council or Moray Ways websites or our YouTube channel. Don’t forget, if you don’t have the right bike for the journey, we have bikes available for hire, including electric bikes and recumbent trikes.
Culbin Forest is ideal for anyone looking for a friendly cycle along pleasant tracks and paths.
The forest tracks feature fairly level terrain, with a mixture of long, straight tracks, and winding paths among dunes covered in pine trees. The highlight is the Hill 99 Trail which takes in a fantastic viewing tower. Toilets facilities are open during summer months.
Roseisle forest is a beautiful coastal pinewood which lines Burghead Bay and offers the perfect place for a family outing. You can gain access to the beach where you can see WWII coastal defences, including concrete tank cubes and pill boxes, and there are some purpose built BBQs and picnic tables so you can make a day of it. Toilets facilities are open during summer months.
There are no formal cycle trails, but plenty of flat routes, including access from Burghead and College of Roseisle.
A pine clad coastal forest stretching from Lossiemouth to Kingston at the mouth of the river Spey. Hidden amongst the trees is a WWII defence line with anti tank cubes, pillboxes and a six inch gun emplacement.
There are no formal cycling trails, but cyclists are welcome to explore the many tracks through the woods and out to the shore.
Just outside Moray, off the A96 between Keith and Huntly, is The Bin Forest – a mixed conifer woodland which was planted by the Duke of Gordon in the 1840s. There are two Sites of Special Scientific Interest and six trails ranging from shorter than a mile, to four miles.
The way-marked trails are walking trails, but can easily be explored on a bike
Monaughty wood contains magnificent Douglas fir and Scots pine and provides spectacular views of the Moray Firth and the Vale of Pluscarden, including Pluscarden Abbey – the only medieval monastery in Britain inhabited by a working order of Benedictine monks.
There are no formal cycling trails, but there are four way-marked walking trails, and some lesser tracks and trails, which are suitable for cycling. It is worth exploring for some exciting and challenging mountain bike gold.
Quarrel Wood is the site of the ancient, semi-natural Oakwood and Quarry Wood. Near the top is a 4000 year old henge, and there is also a complex of sandstone quarries which has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
There are no formal cycling paths, but there are a couple of marked walking trails which are suitable for cycling. It’s well worth taking to your bike as there have been some great flowing trails built by local mountain bikers.
Sanquhar Woods are just to the south of Forres, between Sanquhar Loch and Dallas Dhu distillery. The Forres Community Woodland Trust is in charge of their upkeep and in 2008, in a project with the Forres Freeriders, some mountain bike trails were set up.
The trails are open year round, and offer something easier and family friendly – the Sanquhar Sanction (blue) – to something a lot more challenging – The Mannachie Mania (red) and the Woodside Wake (orange).
Moray Monster trails are 30km of fun-packed single track mountain bike routes, run by the Forestry Commission and located in Fochabers.
Whether you’re totally new to off-road mountain biking, or an expert rider looking for big thrills, you’ll find something to get you grinning from easy green-graded tracks to severe black-grade trails.
Ordiequish is a pine and heather wood with a maze of old paths and tracks dating back to the 19th Century. It is also home to the steep sided Ordiequish burn, the dramatic red stony ‘Earth Pillars’ laid down by a glacier, and Jean Carr’s stone – the apparent final resting place of the famous child snatcher!
Ordiequish is home to four of Moray Monster Bike Trails: The Soup Dragon (blue), Gordzilla (blue), The Haggis (blue) and the Gully Monster (black).
Winding Walks were originally laid out by the Duke and Duchess of Gordon in the 19th Century. It was part of their garden and they planted several specimens of trees. At the heart of the woods is a dramatic gully and at the top of Whiteash Hill is a monument to the Duchess of Richmond – and a fantastic viewpoint!
As you might guess by the name, Winding Walks is a group of four walking trails, but the woods are also home to The Fochabers Ring (red), and the Fochabers Freeride (black) – two of Moray’s Monster Bike Trails.
Purpose built, fun filled mountain bike trails at the heart of the Glenlivet Estate, hidden in the depths of Cairngorms National Park.
There is a blue trail perfect for an introduction to cross country riding, with climbs and great downhill sections and some exciting features – but nothing too technical! For the experienced rider, there is also a red trail providing something more challenging – taking you to the summit of Carn Daimh and plunging you down a 6.5km single track downhill, packed with features and jumps! This trail centre is well worth a visit and the cafe does a great selection of cakes. Toilets are open with the cafe.