Essich loop from Inverness would make a great bike ride or road run
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My usual approach when out for a run is to find any excuse to leave the tarmac behind but, with the Inverness Half Marathon just around the corner, this time I was seeking out the smooth surface.
Yet I still wanted to have some of that feeling of escape that I love about the weekend long run, so when I saw this suggested route on a social media group, I stole the idea – and ran with it!
This route also had some hills going for it, and anything would be better than more long miles on the city’s southern distributor road in any case.
If only the weather would have played ball. I know we shouldn’t complain when you look at the devastation Storm Dennis caused further south, but what I would give for a pleasant winter’s day with sparkling frost and snow instead of this grey, wet, constant dampness.
I was only a mile into the run when I found myself grabbing onto a hedge to bypass a flood across the Torbreck road. Perhaps it was madness going out in these conditions, I wondered.
If it was, I wasn’t the only one. I saw a couple of other runners and a few cyclists battling the elements – as well as the hills – on this circuit. In fact, this loop would make a great little bike ride as well, maybe once the light evenings are upon us again.
Heading over the Essich roundabout – the nearest I got to running on the distributor road this time – I got past the houses and turned right down the single-track road signed to Torbreck. Crossing the Holm Burn, I could see the water was flowing like a torrent over the falls and soon had my own little flood to negotiate.
Reaching the bottom of the road, I went left onto the shared-use cycle path. Despite running perilously close to the edge of the Dores road, the first stretch alongside the woodland felt remarkably peaceful, and I listened to the birds chattering as the wind clipped the tops of the trees.
Where it was more exposed at Cullaird, the wind was really buffeting as Dennis made his presence known. I reassured myself with the fact it would be behind me on the second half of the run!
After crossing a narrow wooden bridge, the cycle route is signed left onto another single-track road at Scaniport, and I followed this quiet way past farms, looking ahead to a dark and foreboding Great Glen.
Unexpectedly, the sun made a brief appearance here but the headwind was still strong as a cyclist struggled determinedly past me.
At the junction ahead, I watched the cyclist follow the Route 78 signs right as I headed left to cross the old stone bridge and climb the McBain hill that twists nearly 200 metres up onto the moors. After an initial long straight – with fine views out over Loch Ness – it twists and turns its way up to reach a crossroads above Loch Ashie.
Another few cyclists encountered on the way up showed they weren’t daunted by the weather or the slushy snow that must have been a tad slippery on narrow tyres near the top.
I paused at the crossroads to take a drink, knowing that while there was still work to do, I was now past halfway and had a long downhill stretch with the wind at my back to come.
Particular care is needed on this road, especially where dips, blind summits and tight bends restrict visibility. I had the added complication of needing to run in the middle of the road in some places to avoid the deep puddles encroaching from either side.
Running over the Drumashie moor, I was pleased to have the wind behind me as the sun came out again to light up the view of Inverness and the Kessock Bridge below. A faint rainbow did its best to brighten the skies but it was short-lived as another dark patch of cloud moved across to take its place.
Soon I was descending to the junction at Essich, carefully switching sides of the road depending on the corners, and admiring the Essich Burn that meanders down through the trees beside the road, hardly noticed by those passing in cars or even on bikes.
Under the pylons and around the last few bends I went, the edge of the city creeping closer towards me with its new housing developments and busier roads. Despite that crawl, it’s still a place where I can run from home and out of the city, onto quiet country roads with little traffic and experience the wild feel of nature, even if just for a few hours.
Route details
Essich road run
Distance 13 miles / 21km
Terrain Surfaced road and cycle paths, with some hills (care needed on single-track roads)
Start/finish Inverness (Essich roundabout on southern distributor road)
Map OS Landranger 26
Looking for variety on the roads of Inverness
