East Sutherland Bothy – supporting more people to cycle in Scotland

Joan had always enjoyed cycling around her local area, but she struggled with the hills. She contacted the East Sutherland Bothy project because her son had previously borrowed a bike from the bothy, and she wanted to try one out herself.

“Having got back on a bike the last two years, I struggled with the hill climbs,” she says. “I just got off the bike and walked. Back on the bike, off I would go again.”

The East Sutherland Bothy project is a Cycling UK behaviour change initiative based in the Highlands of Scotland. It supports people to replace their shorter car journeys with walking or cycling.

The bothy offers a variety of services and support to individuals, groups and businesses. These include e-bike loans, better biking sessions, bike maintenance, led rides, health walks and support to become a more cycle friendly community or business.

Joan had a better biking session so she could learn how to use the e-bike properly. She quickly picked up the basics and benefited from a three-month loan. She uses the bike to ride all around the Kyle of Sutherland.

She continues: “I was told about e-bikes so I thought that sounded good – maybe I get can up the hills at last. I took the plunge and met up with Amanda. She showed me how to use the gears and power modes when climbing hills.

“I was hooked. You still have to pedal with the right amount of your own pedal power, but the e-bike is just amazing in making life a lot easier.”

The bothy has a varied selection of e-bikes to ensure there’s at least one suitable bike for each rider’s needs. Often new loanees have an idea of the type of bike they would like to ride.

However, once they’ve tried it, and then seen and tried some of the other cycles available, they get a better understanding of what options are out there and which ones are more suitable for their needs and comfort.

I am now cycling twice a week which is beyond my wildest dreams. The training and encouragement I have received has been outstanding. My overall health and fitness have improved considerably as a result

Caroline W, led rides and health walks participant

This helps them to get more satisfaction out of their cycling experience and increases the chances of them continuing to ride a bike after receiving support. It also invaluable knowledge when they come to purchasing their own bike, as they have the required information to know what to buy.

We offer better biking sessions to ensure participants feel confident on their own bike or e-bike and know how to get the best out of it. Additionally, they gain new skills and can cycle with more confidence on increasingly busier roads. During better biking sessions participants are accompanied on roads and trails to show them the safest routes to travel, and to point out potential hazards and ultimately minimising risk and increasing enjoyment.

Due to the remoteness of the area, many people travel many miles each day to get to work, local shops, dentist and other public services, often on unlit single-track roads with no pavements or cycling infrastructure.

We don’t expect people to change to cycling these distances on such challenging terrain; it is more important to encourage and support people to consider walking or cycling instead on shorter journeys within their local community.

The East Sutherland Bothy is a virtual bothy due to the large area it covers. Going north from Dornoch to Helmsdale, and west to Rosehall and Ardgay, plus all the small townships in between unmarked on the map.

The main access route from the south is the A9, which is a notoriously fast road, narrow in places, with no pavements or cycle paths. The first village it passes through from where it starts at Perth is Golspie, some 161 miles away. To go west from East Sutherland, road users need to access a network of relatively busy B-roads, many of which are single-track roads with a lot of twists and steep ascents These are only suitable for more confident cyclists.

The success of the bothy largely comes down to the fact that it exists in the community that it serves. This means that uptake remains high for sessions and e-bike loans.

One-to-one cycling and cycle maintenance sessions in each location are more successful than group activities due to the distances some folk would have to travel to join the group. The quality of sessions is improved, too, as they can be tailored to the needs of the individual.

The Golspie Bothy LED rides are a safe and friendly way to enjoy cycling. The e-bikes have enabled me to enjoy cycling again after having given up for some years. I now cycle regularly in addition to the LED rides. For me it has been a life changer

Steve W, led rides and health walks participant

A good base of volunteers supports the bothy to deliver rides, walks and pop-up events. Volunteers can choose to work in their local area or support the wider East Sutherland area.

The  bothy offers weekly health walks and led rides, which are held all year round. The rides have different meeting points in different villages which is arranged on a rotational basis to ensure we capture everyone in their local area.

The led rides are up to two hours long and the group always rides at the speed of the slowest riders. This is achieved by having a ride leader at the front and another at the back to keep the group together.

Anecdotally, riders have said that they feel safer in a larger group, having somebody taking the lead and guiding the way. This serves as a good method of exploring other places while building rider confidence so that they are happier when riding alone.

Kate Kirk is recovering from a stroke and can’t walk far unaided. Prior to her stroke, she loved cycling and hill walking. She joined one of the bothy’s health walks and we chatted about her love of cycling and her newfound fear of falling off.

Kate says: “I gave up riding my bike after I had a stroke – my balance isn’t good and I have lost any fitness I once had.”

I suggested a one-to-one session in which she could test out an e-trike. Kate wasn’t sure but agreed to give it a go. After a nervous start she has now borrowed a trike and feels she can cycle independently.

She adds: “I thought riding a trike would be easy, but it is something that has to be learned. However, Amanda was brilliant – she is a great teacher. She was kind and patient and obviously knew her stuff. We had a great time once I got over the initial fear and I really enjoyed our lessons. I am now able to go on short rides on my own and I really appreciate the freedom this has given me.”