On the first night, sitting around the campfire, I start to get an idea why Comrie Croft mountain biking centre is a success. The clue is in the distant flicker of other campfires dotted around an extensive birch woodland on a hillside above a valley. There is a sense of space: the fires are far enough away from one another to muffle conversation and laughter, but close enough for a neighbour to wander over with the offer of a tool to cut firewood, or simply to chat. It feels wild but well-managed. A string of geese flying across the moon is the loudest noise, punctuated by the calls of owls and snipe. We have just arrived. We don’t even have our bikes yet, but the magic has started.
Next morning, we meet Scott, our guide and tutor. I’m with my daughter, Maddy (13), and a friend’s son, Fred (14). My mission is to convince these two teenagers that mountain biking is fun and worth pursuing. Neither has done much of it before. Both are wary and I am apprehensive. Scott doesn’t realise it, but what happens next could be decisive.
We begin with some basic skills training on a course next to Comrie Croft’s headquarters. There are some bumps and cambered bends. Maddy and Fred look tentative. Scott’s advice is short and simple, and he corrects a few obvious errors. We feel more confident and head off up the hill to the Croft’s 16km of trails, all agreeing that a bit of tuition has helped a lot.
The croft is a former 231-acre farm, bought thanks to a crowd-funded campaign and now with over 50 local shareholders, making it something of a hybrid of community project and private enterprise. The aim is to reap both social and environmental benefits, and make a reasonable profit. It sits 15 miles west of Perth on the skirts of the Grampian mountains, looking south across the valley of Strathearn towards the Torlum and Laggan hills. The triumph of the place is to have turned an unremarkable farm into a prize-winning, job-creating, environment-friendly cycling powerhouse. In 2016 it was voted UK Trail and Bike Park of the Year by users of the iBikeride website.
Our first go at uphill cycling, however, certainly seems to lack a little power. Uphill on a bike is a great way to rouse those inner demons that whisper: “You can’t do this. Give it up. You hate it!” Whispers that become screams when you’re on a steep, gravelly slope and hit a small boulder that won’t get out of the way. It’s a battle, but Scott finds several excuses to pause and chat.
At a line of trees, we stop and survey the view: a great sweeping panorama of Strathearn. Around us are rolling hillsides of bracken, patches of trees, and knolls of bare rock. Snaking around this are the bike trails: there are more further up, but we aren’t going to explore those today. In addition, the valley is lined with other routes, making longer rides possible.
We set off down. This is a blue run – moderate – but I’d say it’s at the tougher end of the spectrum. Maddy and Fred cope well, but only Fred says he’s enjoying it. Near the bottom, there are tight bends and jumps, then a loop back to do it again. Fred does that several times; Maddy goes twice.
Next, Scott is taking us on a cross-country ride to the town of Comrie, where we will have lunch. This is a lovely trail through plantations of giant Wellingtonia trees, past a waterfall and along grassy glades. We stop to watch a red squirrel. “I was really enjoying that downhill bit,” Maddy admits. “But then I realised I’d have to ride back up it.”
“No, you don’t,” says Scott. “If you are tired later, I can get the van to pick you up.” This perks her up. The existence of an “escape clause” has changed the entire landscape. We eat a hearty lunch at the Comrie Hotel, then set off up to see the Deil’s Cauldron, a local waterfall. Sticky toffee pudding is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of culinary invention, but I can confirm that it doesn’t help you reach any pinnacles on a bike. The ride down from the waterfall, however, is a wonderful thing: long, shady, golden glades on a trail soft with pine needles and leaves – it’s worth all the effort getting up it.
Back at the campsite, Maddy takes to the hammock by the campfire, while Fred goes off on the bike again. “I think I’ve found my sport,” he says. The experiment in getting teenagers to be active has had some success.
We are staying in one of the site’s Nordic katas, a type of solid-walled tipi with a low sleeping platform, log burner and basic cooking equipment. The extra space and comfort over a family tent make them excellent value. In snow, I reckon, they would be a lot of fun.
Strolling around the site, I bump into a few visitors, some of them seasoned mountain bikers who are regulars, but there are others, too: walkers, campers and wildlife lovers. “I came to try and spot the beavers down in the river,” one man tells me, and then gives some directions.
Next morning at dawn, I head off by bike and then on foot towards the river. Almost immediately, I pick up signs of beaver activity: freshly gnawed trees that have fallen across a drainage channel. Clearly, the animals are here and doing their job. The Scottish parliament has recently declared the beaver a “native species”, which means it is an offence to kill one, something a few misguided individuals have done. There are thought to be around 160 living here, and in areas that have suffered flooding the gentle management of the beaver can only help. Fish stocks, insects and bird life are also set to benefit.
Back at the camp’s cafe, I stand outside, bacon sandwich and coffee in hand. Within a mile of me, the beavers are sleeping, while overhead red kites are soaring – that’s another success story. Not only that, but one teenager is now into cycling, while another has learned to sleep in a hammock. Both are now toasting marshmallows on a campfire for breakfast. In all the havoc of contemporary life, I tell myself, things sometimes do get better, and especially at Comrie Croft.
• Accommodation was provided by Comrie Croft; katas sleep eight, from £499 a week or £229 a weekend; camping from £8; dorm beds £20; en suite doubles from £44. Full/half-day bike hire £28/£22 (under-16s £20/£16) with Comrie Croft Bikes; tuition £35-£150. There are hot showers, a cafe, bike shop and 100 Mile Store selling fresh produce and lockers with charging sockets. Rail travel to Perth was provided by Virgin Trains East Coast, which runs direct trains from London via York
Five more favourite mountain bike parks
• BikePark Wales
A network of trails in the South Wales valleys for all abilities, from family loops to gnarly rocky runs.
• Farmer Johns MTB Park, Peak District
Downhill biking, with a mix of terrains from woodland to meadows.
• Laggan Wolftrax, Scottish Highlands
Over 20 miles of purpose-built trails through the forest on the edge of the Cairngorms national park. Suitable for all levels, and with a new cafe for refuelling.
• Black Mountains Cycle Centre
On the edge of the Brecon Beacons national park, there’s something for everyone, with spectacular scenery.
• Forest of Dean Mountain Biking Trails
From family routes along former railway lines to big ski run drops and new skills area for practising, there’s plenty to choose from, plus a great cafe and shop.
