Today's ride was mainly on the Lochs and Glens North route that runs through the Cairngorms National Park, home of the UK's largest mountain range. The Drumochter Pass was one of the highlights, being among Britain's highest transport corridors. With the route shouldered by a railway line on one side and the A9 on the other (not to mention the towering mountains enclosing us), it was a brilliant reminder of how lucky I am to be part of something so much larger than life itself.
We stopped for lunch today in the village of Dalwhinnie for some simple burgers and chips at one of the local diners. As we left, the scent from the Dalwhinnie Distillery pushed us to move on towards our hotel where we were (supposedly) being offered a free dram of whiskey!
Somewhere along the way, we managed to cross the border of the Highlands, a sparsely populated council area in the north-western portion of Scotland. We rode through and skirted a few towns which had names familiar to me - Kingussie and also Aviemore, which is a great place for budding skiers, by the way!
The final 15 miles or so were again some gentle rolling hills through forests - perfect for some semi-competitive riding with PJ! As we finally entered Boat of Garten, a loud whistle filled the skies... it was the steam train! We raced to the Strathspey Railway Station and luckily, managed to watch as it left for its next destination.
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