Route guides Devils Staircase
How to get there::From Balloch, head North up the west side of Loch Lomond. Follow signposts to Fort William Approx 2.5 hrs from Glasgow.On the A82 About 7 miles before Glencoe you will pass the Kingshouse Hotel on The left.Just past the Hotel there is another little car park off the main road. Park here. There is a small signpost on the opposite side of the road marked Devils Staircase. See Multimap
Caution - This ride is best undertaken in fair weather. DO NOT UNDERTAKE IN MID WINTER LIKE US FOOLS!!!
From the very bottom of the hill there is a steep climb, however you should be able to climb 80-90 percent. About 45 minutes later you will come to a peak. Keep on the military path and head for a smashing little downhill section. After you have hammered this section, you will then again climb (Not nearly as bad as the first climb). After a while you will come to the start of a brilliant series of short climbs and descents which remind you why you are there in the first place. This should keep you amused for while. Well it kept us amused!!!
Eventually you will pass a loch. Shortly after this you will see the town of Kinlochleven in the distance.
LET THE FUN BEGIN.
The descent towards Kinlochleven is tremendous. Real 30mph crazy stuff at points.
There is even a couple of quality berms chucked in just to attempt to slow you down, but all this does is spin you through 90 degrees and fire you out the other side even faster.
Eventually you will arrive in the town itself where a swifty (or cup of tea) can be had at The Tailrace Inn.
Get Well Fed, YOU WILL NEED IT.
Once you have dragged yourself from the Boozers, Head out of Kinlochleven on the Glencoe road B863. This is Approx. 7 miles of fairly quiet road.When you eventually descend into Glencoe Take a left BEFORE the petrol station on the A82. You will pass a little shop on your left keep heading straight on. This will take you on a quiet road past the Youth Hostel.
You will soon reach the A82. Now my personal hell begins.
Take a left on to the main road and get your mind set for a hard slog back to the car.This is in my books ABSOLUTE F$*CKING TORTURE. Now please be very careful as this road is very busy and therefore very dangerous. We would advise that if you are in more than one vehicle, park one of them in Glencoe itself and use use the transport to shuttle back to the start.However if you are hard like us boys then just keep climbing and climbing and climbing until you get back to the car park.
Hard work done.
Overview
Although not one of the most exhilarating rides we have had, it is one of the most demanding. Especially the road sections after Kinlochleven. We tackled this at new year . This added a totally new dimension to the ride with snow and ice everywhere. It led to the camelbacks and gear cables being frozen almost immediately after leaving the car . The boys must seriously recommend that you do not undertake this ride under these weather conditions. This can be potentially life threatening SERIOUSLY. Even the best of equipment does not keep you totally warm and dry. Take a mobile phone as there is a fairly decent signal. Take spare tubes as the sections are extremely jagged in places.