New gravel route unveiled in Dumfries and Galloway

Kesteven, who helped plan the route, said they had worked hard to take in “traffic free paths and quiet back lanes, linking trail centres, craggy coasts, smugglers coves, seemingly endless forests and wild mountainscapes”.

“Despite being the closest part of Scotland to England, the area remains largely overlooked and undiscovered,” he said.

“It’s somewhere you can experience the wild solitude of Scotland’s dark sky parks, whilst also taking in deep history, delightful towns, villages, remote farms and stunning scenery at every turn.

“In short, it really has been the perfect biking area to build a route in.”

Routes are free to download from the Cycling UK website as a GPX file, ready to use with a cycling computer or smartphone.

Alongside the file, riders will also receive essential safety tips about how to ride responsibly and respect the countryside.