Scotland Travel; 9 Days Singletrack Roads
Day 4: Blairgowrie to Loch Ness.
Slept good? If you have slept by Ridgeway, you get home-made jam and yoghurt with your breakfast, delicious! This was also the cheapest B & B of the trip. Fine!
If you have dressed up, we will get on and we will still pass the petrol station, so if you have not refueled, do so now at RP2.
Today we enter the Highlands and we pass the most famous Loch in the world, Ness. We are also going to pass Commando Memorial, Fort Augustus and some spectacular viewpoints, and for those of megastile, singletrack hairpin bends ala Hardknottpass, is today a challenge! For those who want to take it easy, there is obviously an alternative route.
When we leave Blairgowrie, we follow the A924 for a while and pass through a number of small hamlets, on the way beautiful panoramas and if you are lucky, the most beautiful airborne parts. Narrow roads like at RP6 through the town of Pitlochry (make sure you do not accidentally end up on the A9) we continue the road over the parallel track. Note at RP10, here you already see that the route wants to follow the B8019 to the left, but first we go straight to look at Blair Castle (RP13), and pass a pretty old station (RP12) along the way.
On the way back from Blair Castle we come here again, so if you have not made the photo yet, you can now. At RP10 we now go right. We drive to Loch Tummel, and arrive at RPR at Queen's View. A beautiful viewpoint, where you obviously have to take a picture. We also did.
We follow this road, pass through beautiful nature and end up at RP19 in the Highlands, and not much further than at the Dalwhinnie Distellery (RP20) where they make delicious whiskey. Even if you are not (yet) a whiskey lover, this is an almost mandatory visit. Nice tour, good tasting and dooorrrrrr .... After this instructive (and delicious) stop we continue the road and we, hopefully not from the whiskey, to Loch Laggan. Again we follow the coastline and therefore have all visibility.
Along the way you often see signs along the road with eg viewpoint, visitor center etc which I can not possibly all name, but stop safely, all routes are made in such a way that you can quietly stop and watch a few times a day without having to hunt. A "must-see", however, is the Commando Memorial. If we just follow the same road, we reach the southernmost point of Loch Ness, and we can refuel (RP28) and make a nice picture at RP29. Most people here take the west bank of Loch Ness to Inverness, but we go over the much quieter, more challenging and actually more beautiful East side.
Follow the road until Inverfarigaig until you reach RP34. Get off there for a moment, and look calmly to see the next section, just walk up a bit ... This piece is called locally "The Twisties" and leads to a high plateau, where you feel alone in the world with Loch Ness far away in the depth. If you dare it is a great piece that requires the necessary driver's skills and driving skills. If you do not see it, follow the coastal road B852 and then we will see each other again at RP39. Whichever way you choose, it is a beautiful piece!
After RP39 we drive to Inverness, the last "big city" before we really enter the Highlands tomorrow. If you still need something in terms of motorcycle and motorcycle clothing, this is about the last option. In the route of tomorrow you will come straight after departure, if you want to see the POI is also in this route, and the link to the website is: http://www.mitchellsmc.co.uk/.
There is no restaurant in the direct vicinity of the B & B, so if you have not yet eaten, you might want to go straight ahead at RP41, and then after dinner at Kim Craigan B & B.
With a bit of bad luck, you'll also experience your first midges here at the Loch .... Fun! Continue tomorrow?