NEW PLACES TO RIDE IN 2022

1 ABERDEENSHIRE, SCOTLAND

Think of great Scottish riding and you’ll probably conjure up craggy peaks on the Isle of Skye, the white stone singletrack of Torridon, or the wild tracks around the Tweed Valley. It’s no surprise honeypots like this draw riders from across the globe, but has it been at the expense of the rest of Scotland? Have we been missing the trails for the trees?

Undoubtedly yes, argues Scottish Cycling’s Anna Riddell, who reckons we should really turn our attention to the east. “Aberdeenshire is one of the hottest emerging destinations that perhaps has seen less traffic than the iconic Tweed Valley and Fort William destinations,” she says.

On paper Aberdeenshire certainly looks good – it’s one of the most mountainous parts of Scotland, let alone the UK, dipping right into