Bikepacking Ireland: A Three-Day Gravel Adventure from Dublin to DonegalIreland has no shortage of incredible cycling routes, but few combine quiet gravel tracks, winding country lanes, dramatic mountain passes and spectacular Atlantic coastline quite like a bikepacking trip from Dublin to Donegal.When we launched Fustle back in 2019, one of the first people we called was our good friend Sandy Plenty. Sandy travelled to Ireland to capture the photos and films that introduced Fustle to the gravel cycling community, and we've been sharing adventures ever since.Fast forward to 2026, and our latest Irish adventure looked a little different. Alongside his business partner, Matt Duley, Sandy was travelling to Ireland to visit the Bridgedale Socks factory, located just ten minutes from Fustle HQ in County Down. Rather than simply fly in and out, we decided to make the most of the trip.Sandy and I would spend the weekend playing a few rounds of golf while Matt would ride his loaded Fustle Lakelander from Dublin Port to Cruit Island Golf Club in County Donegal, enjoying three days of bikepacking across some of Ireland's finest gravel roads, greenways and coastal lanes.Here's Matt's story.Day One: Dublin Port to Lough Derravaragh via the Royal Canal GreenwayMaking the most of a Marches Parts Co. business trip to visit the Bridgedale Socks factory in Belfast, Sandy and I put together a simple plan. He'd drive north before golfing his way across Ireland with Ali, while I'd leave Dublin Port on my Fustle Lakelander and bikepack across the country to meet them at Cruit Island.With my route planned, camping gear packed and the bike loaded, I rolled off the ferry on Saturday morning.After a quick photo at Dublin Port and a fist bump, we went our separate ways. Sandy headed north in the van, while I navigated my way through a busy Saturday afternoon in Dublin before joining the excellent Royal Canal Greenway.For anyone planning a bikepacking trip in Ireland, the Royal Canal Greenway is a fantastic way to escape the city without worrying about traffic. Smooth gravel, quiet surroundings and miles of uninterrupted riding make it an ideal start to any adventure.Unfortunately, a relentless headwind had other ideas about how quickly I'd make progress. Despite the steady resistance, the excellent riding surfaceranging from smooth tarmac to premium champagne gravelmade the kilometres enjoyable.After dinner at a local pub, I reached my campsite beside Lough Derravaragh, ready for some well-earned sleep.Day Two: Climbing the Bencroy Pass and Riding to BallyshannonA live band at the campsite until 2am meant sleep was in short supply, but there was no time to waste.The day began under low cloud and damp conditions before gradually giving way to blue skies and sunshine. The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the climb over Bencroy Pass. As the cloud lifted, the views became more impressive with every metre of elevation, before an unforgettable descent towards Sligo rewarded all the hard work.Originally, Sligo had been my planned overnight stop, but arriving in good time and feeling surprisingly strong, I stopped for a coffee and a sausage roll before deciding to push on another 50 kilometres.Not every route is perfect. A small navigation mistake left me riding almost 20 kilometres along a busy national road, a reminder that even the best bikepacking plans sometimes require a little improvisation.Thankfully, quieter roads soon returned as the route headed towards the Wild Atlantic Way. Rolling into Ballyshannon in the early evening, I stocked up on supplies from the local Spar before enjoying a hot shower and a much quieter campsite than the previous night.Day Three: Following the Wild Atlantic Way to Cruit IslandWith a proper night's sleep behind me, I rolled away from the campsite just after 8am.The climb out of Ballyshannon soon warmed the legs before one of the most memorable sections of the tripcycling along Rossnowlagh Beach at low tide. Riding across the packed sand with the Atlantic Ocean alongside was one of those moments that makes bikepacking in Ireland so special.After passing through Donegal Town before the cafs had opened, I continued along peaceful back roads towards Ardara. Quiet lanes, stunning scenery and almost no traffic made this one of the standout sections of the journey.A Full Irish Breakfast at a local tearoom provided enough fuel for the final push north.Crossing the beautiful Gweebarra Bridge, I followed one of the best coastal cycle paths in County Donegal before riding through Dungloe and Burtonport. The familiar Atlantic headwind returned, but so did the spectacular scenery.Finally, the bridge to Cruit Island appeared.Rolling into Cruit Island Golf Club just as Sandy and Ali finished their round couldn't have been timed better. After three days crossing Ireland by bike, we'd arrived at exactly the same moment.Following a few photographs and a quick Bridgedale Socks photoshoot, there was only one way to celebratea sausage roll and a perfectly poured pint of Guinness.Why Ireland is Perfect for BikepackingMatt's journey covered everything that makes bikepacking in Ireland so memorable: historic greenways, quiet gravel roads, mountain passes, remote coastal lanes and the unforgettable landscapes of the Wild Atlantic Way.For anyone looking to explore Ireland by gravel bike, the route from Dublin to Donegal offers an incredible mix of terrain, welcoming towns, great campsites and world-class scenery. Whether you're planning your first bikepacking trip or searching for your next adventure, Ireland continues to prove why it's becoming one of Europe's best destinations for gravel cycling.If you're inspired to plan your own adventure, the Fustle Gravel Bikes are built for exactly these kinds of journeyscomfortable over long distances, capable on every surface and equally at home on gravel, tarmac and everything in between.The Lakelander is a little more race focussed, and our new Causeway G2 is the ultimate bike packing adventure bike.https://www.ridefustle.com/collections/causeway-g2/BikesMarches Parts are the UK distributor for many off road cycle brands: https://marchesparts.co.uk/Bridgedale are a sock manufacturer who have been producing outdoor specific socks at the tip of Strangford Lough since World War 1: https://www.bridgedale.com/The Lakelander is our Gravel Race chassis, designed for long distance, high speeds and zero compromise.

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What a belter!!!Fustle Family Ride-Out 26.2 was one of the best, and we definitely got lucky with the weather.25 riders showed up despite the rain clouds hovering overhead, and after a quick downpour on the start line, it was blue skies and plain sailing for the rest of the day.I put together a mostly off-road route, all around the trails and forests that I grew up on, and it was awesome to see the reactions on everyones face as they tackled the terrain.The loop took in the forests and fireroads around Clandeboye estate, along with parts of the Ulster Way off road path, and even small sections of the new Greenway that is opening imminently between Newtownards and Comber.We lost a few riders along the way with punctures, but almost everyone made it to the finish where a well earned ice cold refreshment was waitingThanks to everyone who came out, and to those who also donated for our charity cycle next week, it means a lot!

Its Northern Ireland.If you listened to the weather forecast, you wouldnt do anything!Today was no better proof that if you bring together the right people to the right location, then the sun is guaranteed to shine!A long overdue Fustle Family ride out after what feels like the longest winter on record was a welcome distraction as nearly 20 riders set off this morning around Glenariff(e) Forest and the surrounding area.Huge thanks to everyone that could make it, and sorry to those who couldnt. You missed a belter!And props to those hardcore gravelists who ventured down to the waterfall at the end of the ride while the rest of us dashed for warm coffee and dry clothes in a poor attempt to avoid the final window maker climb back up to the car park!

Theres a point on the Big Dog route at the Lakeland Gravel Grinder where it all settles in and you realise exactly what kind of day youre in for. The early buzz fades, you find a rhythm, and it becomes about getting stuck into it, long climbs, fast descents, endless forest tracks, and the occasional view that makes you look up and take it all in before getting straight back to work. Its a properly epic big ride. The kind where the hours stack up, the terrain keeps changing, and you just keep rolling through it, one section at a time.It was also the first real outing for me on the Lakelander, and straight away it just felt easy, in the best possible way. Smooth over the rough stuff, responsive when you ask it to be, and almost annoyingly eager on the climbs. There were moments where it felt like it wanted to go quicker than I could, which was equal parts impressive and slightly frustrating. But thats kind of the point, it just gets on with it. No drama, no distractions, just a bike that lets you focus on the ride. By the end, legs completely spent, I had that solid feeling of having put a proper shift in and enjoyed every bit of it. - CathyThe week before the Lakeland Gravel Grinder I was really surprised to hear that there were 900+ participants over the various distances. When you consider the numbers attending road sportives would be nowhere near this it blew my mind a bit. Who knew there were that many cyclists who love a rattle around the gravel trails?!? After completing the event, which was our first official gravel event, I can now see why the numbers were so huge. It was epic!The event was simply fantastic. The organisation was seamless from Friday night when we turned up for registration, to Saturday morning when almost 1000 cyclists descended on a wee Community Centre on the outskirts of Belcoo, the whole way around the route and right to the finish line and the delicious burger and beer. We made a weekend of it and stayed at Rushin House Caravan Park which we would highly recommend. The facilities are great and its only a 2 minute cycle to registration and race start/finish. Im sure any non-cyclists on the site wondered why the place was coming down with bikes on Friday and Saturday and why everyone was walking like John Wayne on Sunday.We struck it lucky with the weather which was warm and sunny with very little wind. The dusty trails were a far cry from the muck and dirt we were expecting. Although, I must admit to being a wee tad disappointed that I crossed the finish line so clean!The route passed through some beautiful forests but the elevation on The Big Dog route was not for the faint hearted. The Navar Ending Climb had a wee sting in the tail but the amazing view from the Magho Viewpoint and the friendly volunteers up there were worth the climb. As for the last climb in Belmore Forest which we christened the Everest Climbwe managed to stay on our bikes and grind it out. This gives us some bragging rights over a couple of friends (who are much better cyclists than us) but they admitted to taking their bike for a wee walk up the hill. So good to bump into so many cycling chums from all over NI and Ireland but especially Lisburn Triathlon Club, Dromore CC and of course lots of Fustle Family enjoying the day. - GailMy first Lakeland Gravel Grinder! Epic day out on my Fustle. A great route; it had it all: tough climbs, speedy descents. Such a great atmosphere all day! I can't wait until the next one! - PaulAfter retrieving my trusty Fustle Causeway GR1 from the garden shed for the first time since the Five Forest Challenge in the autumn I was really looking forward to getting back in the saddle for a season opening spin.A quick tyre pump, and lights charged I was ready to rock.With my lack of bike fitness I knew the 32km night time werewolf was realistically the best option, and it was fantastic fun. Whilst I started optimistically my lack of fitness became apparent when most of the other 30 odd entrants disappeared into the distance, I could even occasionally hear the ominous rumble of the 'sweeper vehicle' closing in on the climbs, headlights blazing through the forest in front of me.It's somewhat menacing presence behind me definitely motivated me to keep going! Once the climbs were out of the way it was a thrill to hit 50kmph on the way back down to the finish where we all got a much welcome bowl of Irish stew and I realised the only person I finished ahead of had spent a good few extra km lost in the forest in the dark before the aforementioned sweeper vehicle came to the rescue ! Thank goodness I had a Garmin.As always these gravel adventure events we are blessed with on this Island prove to be great craic and the Fustle Causeway is the perfect tool for the job! - AndrewLakelander was my first proper gravel event since getting my Causeway last summer. True to its name, the Mongrel was a mix of everything; 60km of rugged gravel, steep climbs and fast descents. My causeway handled like a dream and didnt miss a beat (unlike my legs on the Belmore climb).Awesome sunny weather and stunning views made for a great day - we even got a wee beer at the end... whats not to love?! - RachelIf youre going to do the big dog, let it be at Party Pace. Me and my good friend Marcus Cromie (not Fustle Fam Famous, but bread Famous!)We took a staggering 7 hours to do the 100km big dog including breaks, punctures and stopping to take in the views. The weather was on our side, so we made the most of it (thats what I'm telling everyone anyway)I was fun to see the route reversed in places, but for those who know me, know I basically live up in those hills anyway. Marcus insisted that we did the big dog, only to change his mind at the last feed stop, so it felt only right that I insist we did the last mega climb of Belmore forest *which is only 15%I was a little gutted not to see Alastair Beckett down as its always fun watching him suffer up the steepest of hills. Maybe October hey! - DarrenThis was my third year taking part in Lakelander, and after previously doing the Mongrel and the Big Dog I thought I would take it a little easier this year and give the Little dog a go to tick off the trio! This was also the first year of the Werewolf night time ride the night before, and having being doing nighttime gravel rides through the winter I wanted to give this a go.The Werewolf was a lot of fun, and even after bit of a spill (my own fault, my confidence was greater than my skill) I had a great night. Little Dog was fantastic as well, and definitely less suffering than the Big Dog, but still managed to test the legs, and I was fading towards the end of the ride. I think the ride being in March this year meant my fitness wasnt quite where it would be compared to October.We were incredibly fortunate with the weather, it was a lovey day, and enjoyed riding dry dusty gravel trails, rather than the usual muddy gravel. - ConnorI took my new Fustle Lakelander out for its debut at the Lakelander Gravel Event & honestly I credit the bike itself maybe the amazing weather a little bit too! for the permanent smile fixed to my face throughout! It honestly felt like the perfect bike for the job! Straight away the bike felt dialled in for the terrain being thrown at it. The frame of this bike I feel strikes a perfect balance between comfort & stiffness so on the climbs responds well & doesnt beat you up on the rough stuff!It felt great on the descents & gave me the confidence to let it roll! The comfort in general over the distance was amazing! Even towards the end I felt good & that I actually really could have ventured on a little further! Overall, seriously impressed! It made me feel capable. - Gillian

"Fustle Causeway - What a bike!"The picture below is of IvanMcMinn, proudly wearing his Vatterunden 2025 medal.The Vatterunden is the worlds largest public cycle event and 2025 was the 60thyear of the event, this year attracting over 24,000 cyclists from all around the world, competing in what is a 315km non-stop event around the massive Lake Vatterunden in the centre of Sweden.Ivanwas 62 when he completed in the event and although he has completed a number of Marathons and many half marathons, triathlons and the likes, he had never undertaken such a long cycle event, his longest prior to Varrerunden being just over 100kms, so quite a challenge.Ivancontacted us to thank us for our help in supplying him with a Causeway. His comments to us were Wow, what a bike!The Causeway was just amazing and got me round the 315kms in just over 15 hours. The Causeway allowed me to cover the KMs with ease and in comfort, including the circa 7,000 ft of climb during the event with some of the climbs lasting a good few KMs. I can honesty say that if someone had said to me at the finish line, you have another 100kms to go, Id have had no problem doing that.Massive thanks to Julie and Alistair for all their help and advice to the novice that I wasFustle Causeway strongly recommended."

Gary from UK Gravel Collective has been a big part of our journey since the very beginning, and as an off road enthusiast with a background in MTB, his approach to gravel biking aligned perfectly with ours as we both set out to discover this shiny new world of Gravel back in 2018/19.Gary tested the originl Causeway G1 and followed that review (read it here) by ordering a frameset for himself.Jump forward to 2025 and we couldn't wait to send him one of our pre production prototypes of the new Causeway G2 to see how it stacked up against his own pride and joy.Needless to say his review speaks for itself, and you can check out the whole thing right here.Below are a few of our own personal highlights however!"The original G1 frame came in only 3 sizes, S/M M/L and L/XL and some riders found this limiting when trying to get a good fit. The new G2 frame is avaliable XS, S,M,L,XL so should make the frame accessable to more riders. the geometry of the new bike has been teaked and the reach is slightly shorter and the head angle a tiny bit slacker. the wheelbase remains the same. Like for like the new frame is around 700g (1.5lb) lighter than the original""So i guess as I own the original Causeway i should say which of the bikes I prefer. I do love the aluminium G1 it handles great and weve had some top adventures together but if i had he money id definitely go for the G2, same great handling in a lighter package and all that tyre and front triangle clearance, whats not to like!"Shop the whole Causeway range here!

Retirement?These Italian made aluminum and carbon prototypes have served their time and are ready for the archive (aka a cardboard box shoved to the back of the top shelf in our warehouse)The development process of bringing a new model to market starts much earlier than you might expect.When we set about refining and redesigning our Causeway frame, we gathered up notes from our own rides, customer feedback, magazine reviews and made a wish list of improvements that we wanted to address.Then we draw up some data comparisons from other competitors products, focussing closely on those which we have ridden ourselves.Then we design a range of geometry spanning the full size range, and overlay that on top of the previous Causeway to make sure we havent overlooked anything.Often when refining geometry, a small change to one area can sometimes throw another angle or dimension out of whack and into a place that is undesirable so everything gets triple checked.Next we use a small batch frame maker in Italy to produce raw aluminium prototype frames with the geometry that we plan to use and set about building and ride testing those frames.In the cause of the Causeway G2, we went through 2 revisions making subtle changes to geometry, tubing positions and cable routing, then we had a carbon prototype made by hand with all of the refinements to validate everything.The Causeway G2 was released this summer, nearly 5 years after the original model was introduced, and not only is it more refined and better fitting, but it benefits from lighter materials and construction, cleaner cable routing, increased Tyre clearance and UDH compatibility.All of these refinements have the sole goal of making the rider experience better, more fun, and less fuss!Causeway G2 is available now as a frameset, and in a series of complete bike builds.

Our flagship model, and a fan favourite, the 'Causeway' started life as a disruptive 2 fingers up to the cycle industry that tried its hardest to ignore the need for a gravel bike with real life credentials!Originally released in 2020, this 2nd generation Causeway chassis sees a tonne of upgrades, refinement and redesign to offer the ultimate in do it all adventure gravel bikes.The Causeway is the ultimate in versatility. Designed for bike packing adventures, long distance trans continent epics and thrashing along rugged terrain while you channel your inner hooligan!Featuring multiple luggage mounts, aggressive, confidence inspiring geometry, refined from our G1 platform over 5 years of real world testing.The Causeway G2 also features a huge 50mm tyre clearance front and rear to allow you to install even larger volume tyres for added comfort and traction, inspired by some of the most challenging trans-continent gravel races.Features:Improved bike packing luggage carrying capabilities.Refined geometry with wider size range to fit more riders of various sizesIncreased tyre clearance. Fits 700x50c tyres with easeLightweight Toray T1000 full carbon construction saves 700g over it's aluminium predecessor.Carbon 27.2mm seatpost as standard offering compliance on chattery terrain.Integrated cable routing with blanking plates for that ultra clean look.T47 Threaded bottom bracket for ease of servicing and maintenance.Available in 2 colour options. Browse the full range here: SHOP CAUSEWAY

This is Valerie.Valerie is my mum, and aside from raising this budding young cycling-mad toddler who went on to create FUSTLE in his mid 30's, she was as many mothers are, the centre of our family home growing up.Valerie lost her father Billy (my grandfather) to Pancreatic Cancer in 2017, and became curious in 2024