Making the connection
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Connecting rural communities can be a tricky business, but one organisation has been doing what it can to encourage active and sustainable travel.
Showcasing quiet roads and hidden trails, Transition Black Isle (TBI) has come up with a series of handy guides that show ways of linking the small communities on the peninsula north of Inverness.
I headed over the Kessock Bridge to ride some of the familiar and less familiar routes and discovered that, while you sometimes have to go the extra mile, it’s often worth it.
Let’s face it: the Black Isle isn’t flat, so hills are one thing you have to contend with. That’s becoming less of an issue, however, with the growing availability of electric bikes which can make those climbs motor away for those who choose an assisted bike.
The other issue is the distance. It would be ideal if we could make traffic-free cycle routes that connected each of the villages in rural areas like this, but the reality is that there isn’t the money (or sometimes the will) for every stretch of road to have a dedicated cycle path built alongside it.
So some of these routes are a bit further than going by car, which is only an issue if you’re in a rush. I wasn’t, so I took the tourer and enjoyed a scenic cycle around this wonderful area, following a couple of the “community cycle links” from the new guides.
The first guide I looked at links Munlochy and Avoch, so my first port of call was the former. I followed the National Cycle Network past North Kessock – getting a great view of a magnificent red kite above me, eyeing up some carrion – then under the A9 and east into the heart of the Black Isle.
Route 1 of the cycle network reaches Munlochy via a superb road from Allangrange, and I turned left when I reached the T-junction to head into the village.
It’s only a few miles from here to Avoch on the main road but it is narrow and carries fast-moving traffic, so it’s only suitable for confident road cyclists. Most of us prefer a more relaxed ride, so the guide I was following takes you straight over the main road – staying on Route 1 – to climb the hill towards Culbokie.
Being so used to taking this route, I missed a slight detour that the guide suggests past the Pink Lodge, though I did return that way later in the day. Then, after heading through Killen, I was looking for an off-road route that I hadn’t tried before.
The guide suggests heading through the Rosehaugh Estate, so shortly after a bridge I took a right turn signposted to Burn Farm down a dead-end lane. Where the road bends sharp left to houses, I took a potholed muddy track right then went past a locked gate to enter the estate via a lovely twin-track and an old bridge.
This wasn’t perfect terrain for my 32mm tyres but taking it slowly it didn’t do any damage. Emerging onto a better track at the keeper’s cottage I followed the signs towards Avoch – the guide gives step-by-step directions through here but they correspond to the small marker arrows on track-side posts, so I was able to keep moving.
Another rough farm track has to be followed so I cautiously rolled my way along this route until it finally emerged at the road-end. I followed the residential street to a T-junction then turned right down the hill towards Avoch.
This was a nice route and would be fine on a hybrid or mountain bike but was a bit too bumpy for my tourer. The next section I thought would be the same but it was a little smoother. From Avoch I followed the old railway line to Fortrose, which begins at a car park behind the parish church.
This core path is signed and is easy to follow, with views through the trees over the Moray Firth. Being a railway bed, it is flat too!
The TBI guide directs you through the roads where you emerge, crossing the High Street in Fortrose before cutting across to the golf course and beach at Rosemarkie. It was good to have directions for this little section written down as there are lots of lanes around here to find your way through.
Arriving at the car park in Rosemarkie, I had a break and enjoyed the views before following the on-road routes suggested by the guides to return to Munlochy.
Back at Fortrose, I continued up the hill past the turning for the old railway route, ignoring a sign to Feddon Hill and then turning left towards Insch. There’s a bit of a climb here but for regular riders it’s not too steep, and the views down to Avoch and back to Chanonry Point from the top road are fantastic.
Where it meets another road at a T-junction, Avoch is down the hill to the left but my route to Munlochy would take me back up this hill, so I turned right and followed this quiet country lane around a sharp left bend and up to the Killen road.
A left turn here took me past the turn to Burn Farm then over the bridge, and this time I was looking out for the route to Pink Lodge, which takes you left at a crossroads at Wester Strath. As I always follow the cycle route, I’d never used this road, which drops nicely over a burn then rises to pass the lodge before meeting the hill back down to the village.
These on-road routes were great alternatives but they do involve some climbs and, in the case of Avoch to Munlochy, can be twice as far as the more direct but busier route. I’m always happy to ride a little further but to make cycling a genuine mode of transport for everyone, more needs to be done to make it more attractive to the masses.
Hopefully these community cycle link guides will go some way to showing that you can get around the Black Isle, and other rural areas, by bike if you’re willing to look for the best way.
