Gravitate North East
What is proposed
The car park, toilets, two downhill trails and managed uplift, in plain terms.
Pitfichie Community Mountain Biking Proposal
Gravitate North East is seeking a lease from Forestry and Land Scotland to provide managed visitor facilities, including a car park, toilets and two downhill mountain bike trails, at Pitfichie Hill.
Where the project is now
Nothing has been approved yet. The request is being considered, and planning permission would still be needed.
- Community Asset Transfer request submitted In progress
- Feasibility and consultation In progress
- Planning application determined Not started
- Construction approved Not started
About this proposal
This is a community-led project seeking a lease to formalise mountain biking that already happens at Pitfichie, through a small car park, toilets, two downhill trails and managed access arrangements. It is not a major bike park development.
This website is a single place for the facts: what is actually being proposed, who Gravitate North East is, where the project sits in the Community Asset Transfer and planning processes, and what still needs approval.
Who we are
Gravitate North East is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO), set up to support mountain biking, biodiversity and community development in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. It is not a commercial developer.
What is not proposed
- No explosives or dynamite. Trails would be built with conventional trail-building and earthworks methods.
- No ownership of Pitfichie Hill. The request is for a lease over defined areas only.
- No change to public access rights for walkers, runners, horse riders or anyone else.
- No large-scale woodland clearance, and no building outside agreed construction corridors.
- No approval yet. The request still has to go through assessment, consultation and planning.
More answers are on the questions and answers page.
Find out more
Project timeline
What has happened so far, where the project is now and what comes next.
Planning and approvals
Why the Community Asset Transfer is separate from planning permission.
Biodiversity
The forest as it is today, and the plans to monitor and improve habitats.
Community involvement
How local people and riders are already involved, and how to have a say.
Questions and answers
Answers to the concerns raised, from traffic and access to wildlife and water.
Read the documents
The application, constitution, biodiversity plan, maps and consultation material are published in one place.
Go to the documents