John Davidson, author and journalist, shares his love of the great outdoors from Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland
One of my photographs has been used on the cover of Harvey’s new Suilven Superwalker map!
The 1:25,000-scale map also covers Stac Pollaidh, Conival, Ben More Assynt and Cul Mor in this beautiful part of the north-west Highlands.
You can purchase a copy of the map in most outdoor shops, or direct from Harvey here.
The cycle to Laggan and on to Melgarve is a beautiful 20-mile cycle ride in itself, then the tough bit started! General Wade’s road is tough going, and there are long stretches where it’s not really possible to ride, especially on the Laggan side.
It’s a spectacular trip though, and you can imagine how wild this place would once have been (especially before the pylons were installed). It’s still pretty remote today, though, and it climbs to over 2,500ft above sea level, so you need to be prepared for a mountain-top adventure.
I decided it would be a good idea to cycle back to Inverness later in the afternoon, on top of doing the pass. When I got home, sometime after darkness fell, I was well and truly exhausted. Thankfully Meg had cooked up a nice roast dinner, which was just what I needed after a long day in the saddle!
After witnessing trail bikers on the summit of Ben Wyvis recently, there is a Ross-shire Journal story today about quad bikers on the ridge too.
This is a protected environment where motorised vehicles are prohibited because they damage the fragile mosses and other plant life.
If you see people breaking the law in this way, please report it to police as it takes years for the land to recover from such damage.
Weather like this may be pretty rare on Skye but when it happens you have to make the most of it, and we certainly did that here!
This is a route that is straightforward for walkers, and any scrambling is optional, yet you still get to bag a Munro on Britain’s most awe-inspiring ridge.
Pick up a copy of the October 2010 edition of TGO to read more about this fantastic route.
Spent a great weekend on Mull with a plan to get up Ben More via A’ Chioch and the narrow ridge that leads up from there. However, the weather scuppered our otherwise perfect plan!
Having walked into a headwind for two hours to reach the ridge at the bealach between Beinn Fhada and A’ Chioch, we watched as the wind whipped over the edge of the crest higher up until it disappeared into the cloud.
Today was not the day for a nice narrow scramble, we thought, so we headed back down the beautiful Gleann na Beinne Fada for what was a pleasant walk in itself with great views over Eorsa, Ulva and North Mull.
Some photos and a snippet of video from our two-day tour to Durness on the bikes recently. We had mixed weather, generally showery but with some really bright, sunny spells. Fantastic roads, great views, almost got blown off the cliffs camping at Durness! Great fun!
John Davidson's Guide to Walking and Cycling in Inverness and the Highlands
See links here for other ways to buy...
I'm a journalist in Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland who specialises in the great outdoors - including walking, cycling and mountaineering. I write a regular Active Outdoors feature for the Inverness Courier as well as contributing to other publications, including leading hillwalking magazine TGO.
Active Outdoors
