A Highland fling with plenty of bite

Inverness-based rider Paul Greaves braved Scotland’s notorious summer clouds of biting midges on his Three Glens 200km DIY Audax, but was rewarded with fine weather and glorious Highland vistas. Here’s his report:…

A High land fling

IN THE SUMMER of 2020, during those heady days of being able to cycle wherever you wanted, I took advantage of some glorious weather in the Scottish Highlands to do a 200km solo advisory DIY Audax from home, taking in three target glens and a circuit of the Beauly Firth. A successful completion would restart my RRTY after the enforced pandemic lockdown break.

The sun was rising into a cloudless sky, and the moon was still up when I set off at 5.30am. Heading up Glenurquhart there wasn’t a breath of wind. Patches of mist caught the sunlight as it peeped over the hills. I stopped momentarily by one of the fields to watch three deer as they browsed. Fewer than four kilometres done.

As I neared the entrance to the first of my target glens it became apparent that midges were present on an epic scale. I was having to keep my mouth firmly closed. Many were meeting their demise in my beard where condensation caught them. Any stops for photos were pretty brief. There were lots of people camping by the road side, close to their vehicles. They were going to be in for a torrid time when they emerged from their tents.

Having started the ride with a cloudless sky and no wind I was surprised at how quickly cloud cover became dominant. On reaching the car park at the end I took a quick photo, used the

Paul Greaves by Loch Beannacharan after entering into Glen Strathfarrar

A High land fling WITH PLENTY OF BITE

WORDS & PICTURES PAUL GREAVES

facilities, and retraced my track back towards the village of Cannich. Three quarters of the way back along the glen, going down a descent, I met a camper van on a corner. This caused me to snatch at the brakes a bit too sharply and made the back end skip out.

Fortunately, I eased off the brake and the bike straightened up in time for me to pass through the gap to the side of the van – a reminder of the need to be cautious on the single track roads. Almost immediately after this incident I felt like I had a puncture, and sure enough the rear had lost pressure.

The midges were having a go at my hands, shins and face while I replaced the tube. I couldn’t find anything protruding on the inside of the tyre, so just inserted a new tube and inflated it using a CO2 cartridge for speed.

Passing through the village of Cannich I took a left turn where the Glen Affric Hotel used to stand and headed up the climb which leads into Glen Cannich. The first part of the 16km road is forested on both sides and part way along I rounded a corner to see a red deer hind in the road. The deer scarpered, but not before charging headlong into a deer fence. It seemed to be unscathed and we both continued on our separate paths.

Glen Cannich doesn’t attract tourists in the way that Glen Affric does. It appears to be largely Munro-baggers and hillwalkers that venture up it. On leaving the woodland area the road curves round Loch Carrie overlooked by one isolated cottage. A herd of cows were grazing on the bank and some of the calves skipped along the tarmac in front of me before dodging out of the way.

There was a slight incline up the glen but the steeper bits are at the start and at the end. The road surface wasn’t the best and while admiring the scenery I had to keep an eye out for pot-holes. I got the sense that there was a tailwind as I went on my way. As Loch Sealbhanach came into view, so too did the imposing Mullardoch Dam in the distance.

The clouds were now starting to clear and the temperature was rising. It had been very mild, even with the early start, and I’d only needed arm and knee warmers with a short-sleeved shirt. The steep climb up to Mullardoch Dam had me out of breath so I stopped to take a photo of Loch Mullardoch and tucked into a homemade flapjack.

I retraced my route, passing someone painting one of the few houses, wearing a midge net. There was a slight headwind on the way back, but with it being mostly downhill it was a very pleasant ride back to Cannich. I popped to the Spar shop to get a water refill, a steak slice and a chocolate bar. I wouldn’t be passing a shop again for quite some time.

With 74km behind me I headed up Strathglass towards the village of Struy. Again I had a tailwind and it seemed to be strengthening. I find in the glens you can never predict the wind direction with any confidence. Many times you are sailing

Low lying mist at the entrance to Glen Affric

along with a tailwind, only to find it reverses part way along. The 12km to Struy passed quickly and I crossed the bridge over the River Farrar and turned sharply left into Glen Strathfarrar.

A man dressed in tweed was showing a couple of people how to fly fish as I passed by. This is a glen that has restricted public vehicle access, with only 25 vehicles being allowed in on certain days. As with all the glens I was riding there are hydro schemes at the far end and that’s probably the reason they are tarmacked as well as they are. Glenstrathfarrar is my favourite glen to cycle as it’s quieter than Glen Affric. There are remnants of the ancient Caledonian Forest, and the road surface is very good for most of the 30-odd kilometres.

I had removed my arm warmers back in Cannich; the clouds had now pretty much disappeared and it was turning into a hot day for Scotland. I cycled along admiring the colourful flowers with the purples and pinks of different heathers mingling with the yellows of birdsfoot trefoil and what might have been catsear. It was one of those days when visibility seemed to be extraordinarily clear and the views looking westward over Loch Beannacharan were spectacular. I kept stopping to take photos and fortunately the breeze was now strong enough to banish the midges.

Part way up the glen I passed Braulen Lodge. You can usually guarantee seeing a huge herd of red deer on the nearby flat ground, but there was a digger moving about and I could only see one stag sitting there, being pestered by flies.

I was using Loch Monar Dam as my next control point and it was a fair old climb up to it. The first part of the climb revealed a spectacular overview of an isolated fragment of Scots Pine Caledonian woodland on steep ground next to the river Garbh-uisge (Gaelic for rough water). The final ascent up to the dam is short but steep and I was pretty warm by the time I reached the top. The road crosses the dam and continues for another 3km, but I only went a short way to take some photos of Loch Monar before heading back the way I’d come – 117 km done.

Not long after descending from the dam I passed a couple of ladies out for a walk with their dog. Chatting to them I was interested to hear that one of their sons was an organiser and participant in GBDuro, a very tough, unsupported off-road cycle race from Land’s End to John O’Groats. In 2020 the participants have had to carry all their food with them. They cannot visit shops or make use of any facilities and cannot fly into the country to participate. A contrast to the top end professional road races that have a huge environmental impact.

I ate another flapjack on the way back towards the village of Struy before exiting the glen and continuing up Strathglass towards Beauly where I planned to stop at the Co-op to get some food and water. On the way I passed Aigas golf course, neatly manicured and picturesque, situated as it is beside the River Beauly. There were several golfing groups who were no doubt glad to be able to resume their pastime having only recently been allowed to return after lockdown.

I bought a chicken sandwich, a strawberry milkshake and my preferred cycling pastry, pain au chocolat, consuming them in the bike parking facility outside the shop. It was hot now. I didn’t hang around and headed off to Muir of Ord.

A couple of right turns took me through my next control, an inconspicuous road junction with the A862 160km into my ride. The speed of the vehicles on the A862 was certainly a contrast to the slow pace of the few I’d encountered earlier in the ride. The fields of cereal turning a golden colour between me and the Beauly Firth were a distraction, as were the abandoned cars in the middle of them. I wondered whether they were actually abandoned, or perhaps placed there as a modern iteration of a scarecrow.

Looking west towards Loch Affric from the car park at the end of the public road

❝Midges were present on an epic scale. I was having to keep my mouth firmly closed. Many were meeting their demise in my beard where condensation caught them ❞

I only did three kilometres before turning on to a minor road with a rough surface which took me down to the Firth at Redcastle. The tide was in and the flat ride along the coastline to North Kessock was a joy, even with a reasonably stiff headwind. I felt confident that I would receive the benefit of a tailwind once I crossed the impressive Kessock Bridge. Before doing so I stopped to take some photos and tucked into another piece of flapjack.

As I headed on to the bridge, via the cycle path, I passed through my penultimate control at 173km. I then threaded my way through an industrial area of Inverness across the River Ness and the Caledonian Canal before heading along the southern side of the Beauly Firth. Sure enough a tailwind assisted me on my way and the road was reasonably flat for the next 12km.

Even though I cycled the Hellfire Corner 400km Audax, organised by Highland Audax, in 2019 with no problems, I usually find that on a 200 I feel pretty tired as the finish approaches. This can lead to the last leg being a bit of a drag, but I was feeling pretty good today. Maybe I was benefitting from the 300km two-day tour of Cumbria that I’d done with camping kit a couple of weeks previously.

The final control that I passed through at 192km was again a road junction where I turned left back towards Drumnadrochit. The road gradually started to climb, but I knew that there was a more severe test between me and the end of the ride. There was still 300m to ascend with short sections up to 10 per cent gradient. I certainly had a sweat on once I’d tackled the steepest half of the climb and I felt just a hint of cramp in a hamstring.

I’d put one rehydration tab in a bottle earlier, but perhaps with hindsight I should have had another during the ride. Fortunately it didn’t manifest itself and after a minor downhill I completed the climbing for the day. All that remained was a very steep descent with several blind corners. They say most accidents happen near to home, so I took it easy on the descent and returned to my starting point having done 209km and 2000m climbing.

Ten and three quarters hours had elapsed since I’d set off, although only eight and a half hours were moving time. It’s amazing how non-moving time accumulates, and in this instance a good chunk of it must have been down to taking photos – and a bit for the puncture (I’m not the fastest even when mithered by midges). I was really pleased to feel like I had more miles available in my legs, but I was ready for a well-earned shower and a beer.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable solo ride on a spectacular weather day. I feel fortunate to live in such a beautiful part of the world and I would recommend the route to anyone looking to cycle in the Highlands. Also, keep an eye out for the SR series of calendar events which Highland Audax had been planning for 2020. We hope they’ll be able to go ahead in 2021.

Glen Strathfarrar looking westwards towards the Munro, Sgùrr na Lapaich

A remnant of the ancient Caledonian Forest next to the river Garbh-uisge in Glen Strathfarrar The view of the Beauly Firth from the Kessock bridge