Jan Kjellström
International Festival
of Orienteering 2026
Perthshire
3rd April - 6th April
Perthshire 3rd April - 6th April

Rannoch Forest

Middle — Saturday 4th April • Long — Sunday 5th April

After 26 years I'm really looking forward to being back for the JK in one of Scotland's best forests. Rannoch provides classic Scottish orienteering.  With its wealth of contour detail and extensive forest running, whoever wins here across the two days of racing will have truly earned their title as JK Champion

— Andy Kitchin, M21E champion at JK 2000

For the Middle and Long, the competition moves into Highland Perthshire to the mature Scottish pine forest of Rannoch Forest, venue for a day of JK 2000 and for the 2010 Scottish Championships. Close to the picturesque village of Kinloch Rannoch at the east end of Loch Rannoch, these two days share the same finish arena adjacent to the forestry campsite at Kilvrecht.

Travel

Residents of Kinloch Rannoch had a very bad experience with event traffic in October (not orienteering), and we have worked extremely hard to build good relations and put in place a system which we hope will leave a much better impression. This relies on all of us being well-informed and courteous drivers, so please read carefully!

Driving in rural Scotland

Many roads are single track with passing places. If you are not familiar with how to use these, please read the Scottish Government guidelines

You MUST NOT PARK, even briefly, IN PASSING PLACES. This will annoy local residents immensely and will cause havoc with our traffic flow for the event.

Along the south loch road, our shuttle buses must have priority so if you see one coming towards you, please pull over into the nearest passing place.

Traffic Management

In the middle of the village of Kinloch Rannoch, there will be a temporary traffic light system in operation all day on Saturday and Sunday, and on Monday till 1200. This is at either end of the single-lane bridge. We expect a heavy flow of traffic to approach Kinloch Rannoch from the north side, coming from the A9 via Calvine. Operatives will be on hand to adjust the sequence of these at peak times.

Approaching the village from the North, there is another small bridge by the Cornerstone Café. It is narrow, so if traffic is queueing back from the main bridge and traffic lights, please stop well back from this small bridge to allow north-bound traffic to cross.

On arrival in the village, follow signs to CP1 or CP2 – see details below about Car Parks.

Approaching Kinloch Rannoch from the south-east on the Schiehallion Road, you must follow signs into the village, even if you have a permit for CP2. It is FORBIDDEN to use the small, very narrow short-cut road which misses out the village and goes straight to the loch, irrespective of what your Satnav tells you. Signs will be in place to remind you.

This route takes you to the entrance to CP1, just as you enter the village. Even if you have a permit for CP2, you can drive easily through CP1 and pick up additional passengers, or you can follow signs to head straight for CP2.

Parking

Parking for the Middle and Long (the same parking solution for both days) is split over two locations.

Car Park 1 (CP1) is in the village of Kinloch Rannoch and competitors will use shuttle buses to reach the arena (3.5 miles along the lochside from the village).

Car Park 2 (CP2) is within 500m of the arena (the arena is the same both days).

All competitors will park in CP1 unless issued with a permit for CP2.

CP1 is large, one way ‘drive through’ recreation park. It is easy to pass through here even if you have a permit for CP2. Reasons why you might do this are listed below:

  • Collection of permits for CP2, if these have not been collected on Day 1 (Sprint) Available from 0730.
  • Parking for any village amenities – shop, cafés, etc. ABSOLUTELY NO PARKING in the village.
  • Picking up additional passengers from the bus queue if you have a permit for CP2 and can take one or two more people. Please consider doing this!
  • Picking up pre-arranged additional passengers (from your club, etc.) to take to CP2.
  • All campervans and motorhomes longer than 5m MUST park in CP1 (other than those with campsite overnight pitches booked). We are sorry but this is the case even if you otherwise qualify for a permit for parking at CP2.
  • There are 4 toilets in CP1, but there is no cover whilst waiting for buses so please ensure you have adequate clothing, umbrellas, etc. in case of cold or wet weather.
  • Dogs are allowed on leads in this Car Park and are allowed on the buses.

Car Park 1

Car Park 2

Shuttle Buses

We have booked 5 minibuses and small coaches with a total capacity of around 100 passengers. This service will begin at 0830 on both mornings and the last departures from the Arena will be at approx. 1630. Journey time from CP1 to the drop-off point is around 15 minutes but is dependent on other traffic on the single lane road along the loch.

On Day 2 (Middle) only an additional early bus service will depart at 0800 for competitors who have been allocated start times BEFORE 1000 – this only affects people running M21E. If this affects you, please arrive at CP1 in good time to get this bus!

It is 800m easy walk to the Arena from the drop-off point.

Distances to the Starts are provided below. Please use all the information available to ensure you arrive at your start in good time.

Car Park 2

Car Park 2 is signposted off the South Loch Road, along the forest road to Kilvrecht Campsite (1km after turn-off). Please drive very slowly at all times and follow instructions from marshals.

Please display your permit very clearly for marshals to see.

CP2 opens at 0800 and all competitors must arrive by 1200. No exit before 1230.

Timings

Start times are from 1000 until 1400, except for M21E on Day 2 (Saturday) when starts will be from 0940 – 1420.

 

Entrants to M/W18E/20E/21E are reminded that start times for these courses are seeded with start lists on Saturday based upon rankings (highest ranked starting last. Start times for M/W18E/20E/21E on Sunday are in reverse order from finish positions on the Saturday (i.e. with the winner from Saturday starting last).

Please make sure you (and those you are travelling with) take this into account when making travel plans.

 

Maps

Map Scales are 1:7,500, 1:10,000 (and 1:15,000 for the long) depending on class, with 5m contours.

Survey and cartography for JK26 by Peel Land Surveys and Deeside Orienteering and Leisure Maps.

Rannoch was last used at an event to celebrate FVO’s 40th birthday in 2013. Maps from previous events can be found on Routegadget:

Course Information

All M21E entrants will be placed on the same middle distance course on Day 2 (Saturday).

The highest finishing 81 competitors in the M21E Day 2 results who are also entered for Day 3 (Sunday) will qualify to run M21E1 on Day 3. Anyone finishing in positions 82 and below will qualify to run M21E2 on Day 3 (including anyone not entered, not starting, not finishing or disqualified on day 2).

Middle

Course Length (km) Climb (m) Map Scale Classes Start
1 5.3 180 10000 M21E Red
2 4.4 140 10000 M35L Red
3 4.3 150 10000 W21E Red
4A 4.1 160 10000 M21L Blue
4B 4.1 160 7500 M50L Blue
5 4.0 140 10000 M18E, M20E Red
6 3.0 130 10000 W18E, W20E Red
7A 4.6 140 10000 M40L Blue
7B 4.6 140 7500 M45L Blue
8 3.9 140 7500 M55L Blue
9A 3.8 115 10000 W35L Blue
9B 3.8 115 7500 M60L Blue
10A 3.6 120 10000 W40L, W21L Blue
10B 3.6 120 7500 W45L Blue
11 3.4 110 7500 M65L, W50L Blue
12 3.1 100 7500 M16A, M35S, M40S, M45S, W55L Blue
13 3.1 90 7500 M70L, M18L, M20L, M21S, M50S Blue
14 2.8 85 7500 M75L, M55S, W60L, W35S Blue
15 2.7 65 7500 M60S, W16A, W65L, W40S, W45S Blue
16 2.4 65 7500 M80L, M65S, W70L, W18L, W20L, W21S. W50S Blue
17 1.9 60 5000 M18S, M20S, M70S, M75S, W75L, W55S, W60S, W65S White
18 1.6 50 5000 M85, M80S, W80L, W18S, W20S, W70S White
19 1.1 40 5000 M90, M95, W85, W90, W95, W75S, W80S White
20 2.9 70 7500 M14A, M16B Blue
21 2.4 70 7500 W14A, W16B, Light Green Blue
22 2.5 75 7500 M12A, M14B, W12A, W14B, Orange White
23 1.7 55 5000 M10A, M12B, W10A, W12B, Yellow White
24 1.6 55 5000 M10B, W10B, White White

Long

Course Length (km) Climb (m) Map Scale Classes Start
1 14.4 545 15000 M21E1 Red
2 12.2 435 15000 M21E2 Red
3 11.8 450 15000 W21E Red
5 10.3 380 15000 M18E, M20E Red
6 9.9 355 15000 M21L, M35L, M40L Red
7 8.4 335 10000 M45L Green
8 7.9 265 15000 W18E, W20E Red
9 7.7 285 10000 M50L, M20L, W21L, W35L, W40L Green
10 6.9 240 10000 M16A, M55L, M18L, M21S, M35S, W45L Green
11 6.1 210 10000 M60L, M40S, M45S, W20L, W50L Green
12 5.5 205 7500 M65L, M20S, M50S, W16A, W18L, W21S, W35S, W40S Green
13 5.1 155 7500 M70L, W55L Blue
14 4.4 160 7500 M75L, M18S, M55S, W60L, W45S Blue
15 4.1 155 7500 M60S, M65S, W65L, W20S, W50S Blue
16 3.2 80 7500 M80L, M70S, W70L, W18S, W55S, W60S Blue
17 2.6 65 7500 M85, M75S, M80S, W75L, W80L, W65S, W70S Blue
18 1.8 20 7500 M90, M95, W85, W90, W95, W75S, W80S Blue
19 4.9 160 10000 M14A, M16B Blue
20 4.3 140 10000 W14A, W16B, Light Green Blue
21 3.0 120 7500 M12A, M14B, W12A, W14B, Orange White
22 2.3 75 7500 M10A, M12B, W10A, W12B, Yellow White
23 1.5 50 7500 M10B, W10B, White White

Starts

Middle

There is no clothing transfer on Day 2.
  Walking time approx Distance
Blue 20 minutes 1.0km 45m
Red 25 minutes 1.7km 50m
White 7 minutes 700m 5m

Long

There will be a clothing transfer service for competitors using the Green Start on Day 3 (Long). Clothes may be left in a named or recognisable bag and collected later from Enquiries. Bags will be returned at around 1230 and again at around 1430.

  Walking time approx Distance
Green 30 minutes 2.1km 135m
Blue 25 minutes 1.4km 90m
Red 20 minutes 1.5km 50m
White 7 minutes 400m No climb

Arena

The Arena is the same for Days 2 and 3. Toilets are provided in the Arena. On Day 2 (Middle) there will also be 2 toilets near the Red Start. On Day 3 (Long) there will be 4 toilets en route to the Blue and Green starts.

We are delighted that the much-loved orienteering caterer – Podium - will be joining us in Highland Perthshire. We also have some exciting new local caterers for you to enjoy: The Cornerstone will be serving delicious pizza AND BEER to refuel you for the next day! And Oakliés are bringing a great big burger van, and a lovely coffee truck. Meanwhile, Compass Point and Pete Bland Sports will be on hand to make sure you are smartly dressed for the forest and to handle all your ‘packing oversight’ issues.

There are 3 areas for club tents, and you can leave these up overnight from Saturday into Sunday.

Finish

The Finish will be in the Arena, and we hope you will enjoy cheering on all the competitors as they make their way to the finish line. Our excellent commentators, Katherine Bett and Holly Stodgell will keep you informed of all the exciting results as they unfold.

O Zone

We are also delighted to offer the O Zone – a drop-in tent for younger orienteers (and their parents). Activities (with orienteering and Easter themes) include colouring sheets, puzzles, craft activities, games and hopefully some outdoor fun too!

String Course

There will be a String Course on Days 2 & 3. Day 2 is a Middle distance course, whilst Day 3 is classic Long. Both have been planned by former GB Elite Orienteer Alasdair McLeod, who is keen to impress in his debut in the world of String Course planning. Athletes and their coaches should turn up well-rested and nourished.

Drinks Points

As required by WRE rules, water will be provided for those on Courses 1 and 3 on Day 2 and for Courses 1, 2 and 3 on Day 3. For Day 2 (Middle) there will be one water point, and for Day 3 (Long) there will be 3 water points. A small number of other courses will pass these drinks points and people on these courses may approach for water, but only if necessary. There will be no water at the starts.

Prizegiving

The overall JK Prizegiving (Middle and Long combined) and WRE Flower Ceremony (Long) will take place at around 1545, or as soon as possible thereafter.

WRE Flower Ceremony for Middle Distance Races

This will take place in the Arena at around 1500, or as soon as possible thereafter. Please join us in celebrating the achievements of our podium athletes.

Safety

It is compulsory to carry a whistle on Days 2 & 3, and it may be necessary to make cagoules mandatory, depending on the weather.

Whistle & Bib checks will be applied as you exit the Arena on both days. Please be prepared for this and be polite to marshals carrying out these checks. They are for your safety and form part of our detailed risk assessment.

Vehicles - those arriving by bus from CP1 will walk through a small public car park on the way to the arena. Any traffic will be moving very slowly, but please exercise caution and follow instructions from marshals if necessary.

Competitors should be aware that they may very occasionally encounter a slow-moving event vehicle during their race on both days, and also when walking to the Blue and Green starts on Day 3. Please be aware of this when approaching a track and exercise caution.

Bridge marshals – all competitors approaching the Finish on Day 2 will require to cross at least one, and in some cases, two narrow bridges. Marshals will be on duty to alert incoming runners to be aware of each other and to encourage slower people to make way for faster ones. Please heed these warnings and act sensibly.

Environmental Constraints

Sensitive bogs and a large badger sett are marked as OOB on the map. Please respect these restrictions. There are a large number of anthills in the forest – please avoid running through these.

Officials

  Long Middle
Planners David Godfree (FVO) Brian Bullen (FVO), Alastair Duguid (TAY)
Organisers Rona & Jonathan Molloy (FVO) Rona & Jonathan Molloy (FVO)
Controller Duncan Archer (LOC) Derek Allison (LOC)
IOF Advisor Duncan Archer (LOC) Duncan Archer (LOC)