Our route to Gargunnock went out via Lennoxtown, Fintry and Kippen, and back via Cambusbarron, North Third, Carron Bridge and Kilsyth.
To get out of Glasgow in the first place, Ellie & I followed the Forth Clyde canal as far as Kirkintilloch, then branched onto the Strathblane disused railway line to Lennoxtown. After that we cycled up over the Crow Road to Fintry and branched off for Kippen, which we reached in 2 hours. We had a short stop before tackling the few miles of race track A811 along to Gargunnock, and arriving about 1½ hours before the race.
After the Gargunnock Hill Race we re-joined the A811 eastwards before turning off for Cambusbarron. From here we took a shortcut along the west side of Gillies Hill on very rough quarry tracks. It wasn't the best choice for a road bike with skinny tyres, but luckily we made it through to Bannock Burn without any punctures. From the point you reach Bannock Burn there is an almighty climb up to North Third Reservoir, rewarded with stunning views across to Lewis Hill and its wall of dolerite.
It was with some relief that we reached Carron Bridge to face the final climb of the day over the famous Tak Ma Doon road to Kilsyth.
I was getting tired by this stage, but couldn't be bothered to stop in Kilsyth, so we re-joined the canal towpath a bit after Twechar and forced the pace back to Glasgow feeling a bit wabbit.
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