A new blue graded trail for Laggan Wolftrax!

The Laggan Forest Trust has been awarded £100,000 towards developing a blue grade mountain bike trail from sportscotland’s Cycling Facilities Fund.

The project at Laggan Wolftrax at Strathmashie has been developed in partnership with Forestry and Land Scotland and is expected to cost around £250,000.

The funding confirmation earlier this week brings a new Laggan trail a step closer to realisation.

Cristian Pizarro, business development officer for the trust, told the Strathy: “This award will enable us to build a long-awaited blue mountain biking trail for Laggan Wolftrax and its community.

“The provision of such a trail should attract more riders, families, less experienced cyclists and provide not only a platform for progression in the sport but also a facility to aid progression for developing general cycling skills within our community.

“Above all, this trail should be fun to ride and provide a great experience for all.”

Colin Simpson, head of visitors services and active travel at the Cairngorms National Park Authority said: “While the Cairngorms National Park is a popular area for visitors to cycle and mountain bike there are still relatively few formal routes to support families and beginners.

“I’m delighted that we could support this project through our visitor infrastructure improvement programme as it not only adds to the range of easier trails available but it also helps showcase one of the less visited areas of the park and supports the businesses in and around Laggan.

“The Laggan Forest Trust has discussed the project with Highlands and Islands Enterprise and is in the process of applying to them for further support.”

The project is expected to start in March, next year. and the new blue trail to be open to the public before the summer holidays by July 2023.

Laggan Wolftrax is a network of mountain biking trails built in 2004 by Forestry and Land Scotland.

The venue is also home to a visitor centre and the headquarters of the Laggan Forest Trust, a community organisation whose aims are directed at conservation, community regeneration and provision of recreation facilities including active travel.

To date, the trails are mainly on the upper level of difficulty within the grading system. There is an easy green trail, two red trails and a black trail, nationally recognised for its technical features and only rideable for very experienced mountain bikers.

A blue trail is an off-road cycling track of moderate difficulty designed for cyclists with basic off-road riding skills.

Interim chief executive of sportscotland, Forbes Dunlop, said: “This is an important fund which has the potential to make a significant and long-lasting impact on sport and physical activity.

"By investing in accessible and inclusive community facilities in advance of the event, cycling in Scotland will be ready and able to harness the enthusiasm generated by hosting the championships next year.

“The local groups and partners who have applied for funding have demonstrated a real commitment to improving the lives of their local communities and we are proud to support their ambitions.”

DMBinS have been supporting Laggan to develop these plans for several years. With our Highland project, funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, we have been able to focus more time to working with Laggan Forest Trust and other stakeholders to commission trail designs and work through the planning and funding process.

Over the next few months, we will continue to work closely with Laggan to bring this project to completion.