This was another route I’ve been looking at doing for some time, and one that will feature in my forthcoming book. Yesterday I got the train to Newtonmore and headed off towards Laggan, then up and over the Corrieyairack Pass to Fort Augustus.
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!
Good morning,
I have just seen your notes on traversing the pass from Laggan to Fort Augustus. I used a Land Rover in the summer of 1969 to take visitors on day tours here. Many happy memories and the hair pin bends made for frequent stops for photos !! I used a short wheelbase vehicle, painted orange and charged £15.00 for the day trip. and I always got a tip on top. On one trip the road from the summit down to Loch Ness was washed away – this was the part that had been maintained by the Hydro Board. There was no track for about a hundred yards. Still just slid the Landy into low range, used the hand throttle, had my passengers walk on, and she just slowly traversed a side of the road-slip on her own. I remember phoning the Board from a house at the bottom of the hill to report the problems !
Great days. Ralph Cross.