At breakfast I watched a small group of deer gamboling in the
hillside opposite, while the low grey cloud of yesterday had
disappeared to be replaced by glimpses of blue amongst the high white
clouds. I had the feeling it was going to be a good day, especially
when the sun put in an appearance. Leaving the B&B, it started to
rain, and on the road north I saw a couple of rainbows including one
double. Early showers had been forecast, however the temperature soon
dipped a couple of notches, and the showers turned into more
persistent rain. At one point the sun came out and I was treated to
the wonderful sight of a complete and bright rainbow spreading out in
front of me, while the sun lit up the green fields. I crossed the
River Garry a couple of times on the A9, now much fuller and wider
than when I had seen it yesterday in Pitlochry.
Just before
Dalnaspidal I got a glimpse of the snow covered tops of the hills to
the east of Loch Ericht and wondered what I was letting myself in
for. Soon after I parked up at the car park of Ralia Cafe just south
of Newtonmore, and had a coffee before setting out on my ride to Ben
Alder. It was drizzling as I put my bike together, but that was the
least of my problems as the wind was blowing a hoolie! Worse still,
it was a south westerly, and I had fourteen miles of riding due south
ahead of me. Thankfully I had packed my Altura rain jacket, which I
bought last year with a Scotland trip in mind (and a £20 voucher
from renewing my car insurance!). I pushed off, following NCN 7
alongside the busy A9. This must have been the former A9, as there
were cats eyes in places and you could still see evidence of the
white lines separating the carriageway. The main rail line to
Inverness also ran alongside.
Soon the cycle path
ended and the route followed the Old Military Road, still running
parallel to the A9. Although the road was quiet, you could still hear
the traffic on the A9 as it rushed along the wet road. By this time
the rain had died out, and the sun was starting to come out. Although
this was very welcome, the blustery wind was still brutally savage,
making it a struggle to keep momentum at times. However, the
staggering scenery that was unfolding in front of my eyes more than
made up for the slog I had to endure, the scudding clouds and blue
skies combined with the dramatic hills and wide fields were a treat
for the senses. I had passed a learner driver at the side of the road
when I had come off the cycle path, and he caught me up further down
the road, very patiently waiting behind me for a safe place to
overtake. There had been a few and he hadn’t come past, so I took
pity and slowed to let him come through so as not to hold him up any
longer.
From driving up I
knew Dalwhinnie was just(!) eight miles from the cafe, and soon the
road joined the A889 into Dalwhinnie, passing the Dalwhinnie
distillery. Now I’ve been to more than a few distilleries, and I
have to say it is one of the best situated I have seen, all
whitewashed buildings against the backdrop of dramatic hills. There
was also a road sign outside the distillery advising “SLOW Wildlife
crossing”! I’d hoped the bulk of the hills surrounding the
distillery would take some of the sting out of the wind, but as I
passed through Dalwhinnie it seemed worse than ever, almost knocking
me sideways.
In the village I
turned south again to head to Loch Ericht, and the Ben Alder estate.
The view of the loch as I headed along the road was stunning, and I
stopped for a photo, nearly getting blown off my bike by the wind.
The snow capped Ben Alder could be seen at the end of the loch from
my viewpoint, although the loch actually goes further past the summit
of the Ben. The road along the loch undulated (a feature of Scotland,
I am finding out) and was hard going into the wind. Still, the views
of the loch as I rode on were fantastic, and on the opposite shore
the hills rose up with waterfalls visible. I passed the Luxury
Highland Lodge building, looking very exotic, and followed the shore
south, watching waves on the loch breaking like so much surf at
Scarborough, the wind was that strong.
Further along, the
road climbed a little and entered what looked like the mouth of a
forest, looking quite dark inside. On reaching the entrance, I could
see that in fact it was only a short stretch of forest, and rode on
as if riding through an old railway tunnel with the light in the
distance. Coming out of the “tunnel”, I passed a small waterfall
on my side. As I got closer to Ben Alder it reared up larger in view,
and the road threw up some steeper ascents and descents. Soon I
reached Ben Alder Lodge, another exotic looking building, and stopped
for a bite to eat. My original plan was to continue up onto Ben Alder
and ride to Loch Pattack, however the fourteen mile headwind slog had
been tough, and so with another four or five days riding to come I
decided to cut short and retrace to the cafe.
Starting off again
after my snack break, the change in the experience was amazing. No
longer was I being pounded by the wind, bent over the handlebars. I
could ride more relaxed, and at a decent pace! Even going back up the
inclines was easier, although at one point my front gear refused to
drop into low when selected, and I had a few seconds of struggle
before it eventually behaved. I was flying along, drinking in the
scenery and enjoying myself immensely. The sun was out and it was
illuminating the loch beautifully, and it seemed all too soon that I
was back at the Luxury Highland Lodge. Turning off the road to get to
the exit, the wind had a final blast at me for a short while, and
then I was back heading through Dalwhinnie again.
 |
| The Highland Luxury Lodge |
I stopped at the
distillery for some purchases (thank goodness I had me cheesy Radio
Devon backpack with me, although I found that you could wear it with
the Radio Devon side to your back, rather than showing off!) and
another snack. Shortly after, on the A889 crossing the railway, the
wind put in another onslaught, but soon enough I was on the Old
Military Road heading north, with the hoolie at my back, and mostly
downhill! I sped along, at speeds of 16 to 25 miles per hour, without
even trying! There was still the scenery to enjoy, and at one point I
came across a farmer unloading some sheep into a field. One of these
had decided he didn’t want to join the rest, and was heading up the
road. I shouted to the farmer that he had an escapee, and slowed to
ensure I didn’t spook the sheep. He just kept running away from me,
so I stopped while the farmer came up, at which point the sheep
decided to leap over the fence into the adjacent field.
With the drama over
I resumed my ride and picked up the cycle path again, which was so
much nicer now it wasn’t raining. I came to the sign for Ralia
Cafe, 2 miles, and coasted the final miles into the car park. I
packed the bike into the car and went back into the cafe for some
deserved sustenance. It had been another hard but thoroughly
enjoyable ride, showcasing more of the superb scenery that Scotland
has to offer.
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