Spinney
Bimbleur extraordinaire
- Location
- Back up north
The forecast was good, if a bit breezy, and we were in Scotland with our bikes. The plan was Newtonmore to Grantown-on-Spey and back. The weather first thing did not appear to be sunny as promised, but at least it wasn't raining. We did Newtonmore to Kingussie via the A86 (a quiet A road), then took the B road that runs next to the A9 all the way up to Aviemore.
The sun came out and we were flying along. I tried very hard think this was due to my super-fitness and not to a tailwind that we would have to cycle into at the end of the day. It was quite odd to occasionally see lorries and cars whizzing past a few yards away on the A9, but the presence of the A9 did make our B road very quiet.
A bit of faffing in Aviemore – we thought we remembered where the cycle trail started, but it took a few misses (and some vague and not terribly useful directions from a couple of locals) before we found it. The cycle path leads through the golf course then through woods and over heathland for lovely, scenic, traffic-free miles, all on a compacted gravel path that was no problem for our touring bikes. We came out at Boat of Garten, where I stopped to buy some sun-cream and then we found a little lake to sit by for our first feed of the day.
Next up was the B road to Nethy Bridge and Speybridge. This stretch was mainly through rolling fields, and we came out on the main A95 road where we turned left for the couple of miles into Grantown for a sandwich stop. After that we headed south east towards Ballater for a few miles before taking the little road west back to Nethy Bridge. This was the only major climb of the day - not really all that 'major' considering we were in Scotland, but the headwind was beginning to make itself felt and the legs were wishing I'd done a bit more cycling this year.
A quick stop in Nethy Bridge to consult the map, and we decided to go via Loch Garten where the RSPB has a centre to monitor the nesting ospreys. We spent half an hour there, with close up views of the female on her nest with two chicks, courtesy of the 'nest-cams' the RSPB have set up, but also views through their telescopes and a proper naked-eye sighting when she went for a bit of a fly around.
Then on through the Caledonian pine forest to Coylumbridge. This is ancient forest, and fairly open with the sun shining through the trees and green undergrowth (if you think 'forestry commission telegraph pole nurseries' when you hear 'pine' – the pine forests in this area are nothing like that!).
Next stop, the plant nursery/cake shop on the road between Inverdruie and Feshiebridge. They only sell tea, coffee and luscious cakes (which sounds great, but sometimes a toasted tea-cake would really hit the spot!). However the main attraction for me was the 'bar' where you sit facing out of the window. Outside are trees, with the river beyond, and about 10 different bird feeders. We saw loads of birds while we were there, very close up, including a woodpecker. Three red squirrels also came to raid the feeders.
Getting tired now, with the headwind and the lumpy road. Even little lumps seem quite big towards the end of the day. I was really pleased to come round a corner and see Ruthven Barracks ahead, because that meant we were nearly back. 72 miles in stunning scenery and good weather – this combination can sometimes feel quite rare in Scotland! A great day out.
The sun came out and we were flying along. I tried very hard think this was due to my super-fitness and not to a tailwind that we would have to cycle into at the end of the day. It was quite odd to occasionally see lorries and cars whizzing past a few yards away on the A9, but the presence of the A9 did make our B road very quiet.
A bit of faffing in Aviemore – we thought we remembered where the cycle trail started, but it took a few misses (and some vague and not terribly useful directions from a couple of locals) before we found it. The cycle path leads through the golf course then through woods and over heathland for lovely, scenic, traffic-free miles, all on a compacted gravel path that was no problem for our touring bikes. We came out at Boat of Garten, where I stopped to buy some sun-cream and then we found a little lake to sit by for our first feed of the day.
Next up was the B road to Nethy Bridge and Speybridge. This stretch was mainly through rolling fields, and we came out on the main A95 road where we turned left for the couple of miles into Grantown for a sandwich stop. After that we headed south east towards Ballater for a few miles before taking the little road west back to Nethy Bridge. This was the only major climb of the day - not really all that 'major' considering we were in Scotland, but the headwind was beginning to make itself felt and the legs were wishing I'd done a bit more cycling this year.
A quick stop in Nethy Bridge to consult the map, and we decided to go via Loch Garten where the RSPB has a centre to monitor the nesting ospreys. We spent half an hour there, with close up views of the female on her nest with two chicks, courtesy of the 'nest-cams' the RSPB have set up, but also views through their telescopes and a proper naked-eye sighting when she went for a bit of a fly around.
Then on through the Caledonian pine forest to Coylumbridge. This is ancient forest, and fairly open with the sun shining through the trees and green undergrowth (if you think 'forestry commission telegraph pole nurseries' when you hear 'pine' – the pine forests in this area are nothing like that!).
Next stop, the plant nursery/cake shop on the road between Inverdruie and Feshiebridge. They only sell tea, coffee and luscious cakes (which sounds great, but sometimes a toasted tea-cake would really hit the spot!). However the main attraction for me was the 'bar' where you sit facing out of the window. Outside are trees, with the river beyond, and about 10 different bird feeders. We saw loads of birds while we were there, very close up, including a woodpecker. Three red squirrels also came to raid the feeders.
Getting tired now, with the headwind and the lumpy road. Even little lumps seem quite big towards the end of the day. I was really pleased to come round a corner and see Ruthven Barracks ahead, because that meant we were nearly back. 72 miles in stunning scenery and good weather – this combination can sometimes feel quite rare in Scotland! A great day out.
