Glentress Forest — 7Stanes mountain biking in the Tweed Valley

Mountain Biking Collection by Katherine Moore

Tours

12:00 h

65.5 mi

8,475 ft

Glentress Forest is one of the world’s best-known mountain biking trail centres; in fact, the Tweed Valley is a Mecca for mountain bikers in Scotland. The trail centre, based just outside of the gorgeous town of Peebles, is one of the 7Stanes, a network of seven mountain biking centres across the south of Scotland, also including the Forest of Ae, Kirroughtree, Newcastleton, Mabie, Dalbeattie, Glentrool and nearby Innerleithen.

The beauty of Glentress is that there are trails for everyone, from easy, flowing blue trails to technical and challenging black-rated sections, a skills park for working on technique, a freeride park for getting air, and even a pump track a short ride away in Cardrona. The red-rated trail is the most popular here, but with so many to choose from, you could spend a whole week in Glentress!

If you’re planning to visit the area on holiday, the Tweed Valley is a great choice for a MTB break, with the nearby Innerleithen trail centre (locally known as ‘Inners’) plus plenty of natural riding. Choose from the many campsites, guesthouses and hotels that cater so well for mountain bikers, not to mention the great cafes and pubs.

The Glentress Forest trail centre has a great set up, with lots of parking across the lower Glentress Peel and Osprey car parks and the higher Buzzard’s Nest car park. You’ll also find a bike wash, showers, lockers, changing rooms and toilets as well as a really fantastic cafe with both indoor and outdoor seating and ample bike racks. If you need to hire a bike, you can do so from the bike shop there, Alpine Bikes.

Unfortunately this part of Scotland is not served by trains, so you’ll either need to arrive by car, or take the X62 Borders Bus which has a rack on for bikes.

Choose from the five Tours proposed here, covering the blue, red and black loops, opt for a skills ride with the skills loop, freeride park and pump track, or try some more natural terrain with a ride south to the breathtaking Gypsy Glen. Whichever part of Glentress Forest you choose to explore, I’ve no doubt that you’ll find it both enchanting and exhilarating!

For more great trails nearby at Innerleithen, head to: komoot.com/collection/1058205/innerleithen-world-class-7stanes-mtb-in-the-tweed-valley

On The Map

Tours & Highlights

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Blue (moderate) trail — Mountain biking in Glentress Forest
Expert
02:02
10.7 mi
5.3 mph
1,200 ft
1,200 ft
Expert mountain bike ride. Good fitness required. Advanced riding skills necessary. Some portions of the Tour may require you to push your bike.
The moderate-rated blue trail at Glentress Forest may be one of the easiest at the trail centre, but dismiss it at your peril. Many claim that this flowy and fast trail network is one of the best here!

Suitable for beginners right the way up to seasoned riders, the 10 mile (16 km) loop starts at the trail…
by Katherine Moore
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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Red (difficult) route — Mountain biking in Glentress Forest
Expert
02:29
11.8 mi
4.8 mph
1,775 ft
1,775 ft
Expert mountain bike ride. Good fitness required. Advanced riding skills necessary. Some portions of the Tour may require you to push your bike.
Although the official red-rated trail at Glentress measures 11 miles (18 km), we’ve added in a run of the freeride park to bump it up to 12 miles (19.4 km). A step up from the blue trail, this red trail is rated as difficult and the trail is 65% singletrack. For more information on trail ratings, head…
by Katherine Moore
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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Black (severe) route — Mountain biking in Glentress Forest
Expert
03:27
16.7 mi
4.8 mph
2,650 ft
2,650 ft
Expert mountain bike ride. Good fitness required. Advanced riding skills necessary. Some portions of the Tour may require you to push your bike.
The Glentress Forest black route, rated as ‘severe’, earns this category for two reasons; the technical features and steep gradients along the singletrack sections, and the length of the route. At 16.7 miles (27 km), with a lot of climbing too, this loop isn’t for the faint hearted!

The black route shares…
by Katherine Moore
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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Skills loop, freeride park and the pump track — Mountain biking in Glentress Forest
Expert
01:25
10.7 mi
7.6 mph
825 ft
825 ft
Expert mountain bike ride. Great for any fitness level. Advanced riding skills necessary. Some portions of the Tour may require you to push your bike.
An alternative to the graded trail loops, this Tour takes in three other great features of Glentress; the green-rated skills loop, the freeride park and the pump track in Cardrona.

Starting at the trail centre at the base of Glentress Forest, you’ll need to start with a climb to get to the skills area…
by Katherine Moore
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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
The Gypsy Glen — Mountain biking in Glentress Forest
Expert
02:37
15.5 mi
5.9 mph
2,025 ft
2,000 ft
Expert mountain bike ride. Good fitness required. Advanced riding skills necessary. Some portions of the Tour may require you to push your bike.
Unlike other Tours in this Collection that mainly stay within the trail centre at Glentress Forest, this route heads south as well to take in the glorious Gypsy Glen before finishing on the trails of Glentress.

It's a fairly easy start from the Glentress Trail Centre , as you head east along a dismantled…
by Katherine Moore
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