The route from Stonehaven to Inverbervie heads south and is 12 miles long. It has climbing of 853 feet and has been given a difficulty rating of 4.Stonehaven lies in a nature harbour, and fishing was the chief commerce of the town into the early 20th century, with marine services and tourism being the dominant industries today. The most notable building in the town is the Tolbooth Museum, which was historically used as both a courthouse and a jail. Stonehaven is renowned for its Hogmanay fireball ceremony. You head south out of Stonehaven from the market square, before joining a minor road (and route 1 of the National Cycle Network) and passing Dunnottar Castle at mile 1.8. You are heading uphill for the first few miles, reaching the high point of 397 feet at mile 3.5. You join a cycle path alongside the busy A92 at mile 2, before then heading south on quieter roads. At mile 4.4 you will enjoy a descent of 2.2 miles, but you will need to take care as you cross the A92 at mile 5.4 You then head slowly uphill for the next few miles before descending into Inverbervie from mile 10.1. You enter the town from the north and have to navigate half a mile before coming to the finishing point on the seawall overlooking Bervie Bay.
You are cycling on Aberdeenshire roads mainly surrounded by lush agricultural land, but the main feature is the coast, though sadly you will be a wee bit inland. You pass very close to the medieval ruins of Dunnottar Castle, and this site is well worth a visit. The castle, which is open to the public, has a bloody history and played a prominent role in a number of important historical events, including the Jacobite uprisings of 1715 and 1745. It sits in a spectacular cliff-edge location. The names of some of the coastal features on route give a fascinating insight into the history of the area, and the people that helped shape that history: Tremuda Bay; Wine Cove; Hope Cove; Crawton Bay; Trelong Bay; Braidon Bay (and the Todhead Point Lighthouse); Rouen Bay; Crooked Haven; Little Johns Haven; and Big Robs Cove (to name but a few!)Inverbervie is an ancient town and was mentioned in literature relating to Arbroath Abbey in the 12th century. Initially a fishing town, this industry slowly stopped being of importance, despite improvements made to the harbour by the engineer Thomas Telford in 1819. Hallgreen Castle to the south is worth a visit (originally built in 1376, it is now a hotel), and the walk south along the cliffs to Gourdon is wonderful. There are a number of options for food in the town, including the famous Bervie Chipper.By clicking on the play symbol on the graphic below you can see route map. The elevation profile of the ride can be seen via the Hills tab with files for use with a GPS device also available for download. If you take any photos of the route that youd like to share, please submit to neil@velodays.com
Route map for Stonehaven To Inverbervie by Neil Innes on plotaroute.com
