Blair Atholl by e-bike – through Killiecrankie to an old mill
A few hours, from Escape Route, Atholl Road and back.
The route
Hire an e-bike in Pitlochry and ride the old road north through the wooded Pass of Killiecrankie to the village of Blair Atholl.
Lunch is at the Blair Atholl Watermill, a working mill from the 1590s whose tearoom bakes with its own stoneground flour. The electric help makes the hills easy for anyone who can ride a bike, older children included.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
Book Escape Route: e-bike hire
Book e-bikes at Escape Route on Atholl Road online, or by WhatsApp on 07842043075, for about 10.30am on a Tuesday to Saturday from April to October, as the Watermill's tearoom is shut from November to March; bring photo ID and expect a refundable deposit, and have the bikes back by 5pm.
The day
Blair Atholl
A morning in the saddle up the old road through the pass, with lunch at an old mill. Then a ride back down to Pitlochry with the afternoon still ahead.
About three and a half hours
Blair Atholl
Start at Escape Route on Atholl Road in Pitlochry, which hires e-bikes from Tuesday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm. Book online or by WhatsApp on 07842043075, bring photo ID such as a passport or driving licence, and expect a refundable deposit for an e-bike. Helmets, locks and a repair kit are included. It's about 48 minutes' ride to Blair Atholl, out of town on Atholl Road, then the B8019 and the old military road, the B8079, through the Pass of Killiecrankie. The B roads carry some traffic and there are gentle climbs, which the motor makes light work of.
About 1 min by bike
Blair Atholl Watermill
Lunch
Lunch is at the Watermill on Ford Road in Blair Atholl, a stone mill from the 1590s that still grinds oatmeal and flour. Its tearoom serves homemade soup, light lunches and baking made with its own flour, every day from 9.30am to 3.30pm, from 1 April to 31 October only, with tables out on the terrace in fine weather. Then it's the ride back the same way, to have the bike back by 5pm.
If it rains
There's no shelter on the road, so on a wet day leave the bikes and drive the 12 kilometres to Blair Atholl for lunch at the Watermill instead.
Blair Atholl Watermill, bakery in a watermill.