Deeside Way - Rails to trails

If people were given the power to travel back in time, most people might choose to travel back to some tragic event and change the future for the better. For example, you might wish to travel back to April 1912 and persuade the captain of the Titanic to take a different course; or to Linz in 1898 where you would slip into the bedroom of a young Adolf Hitler and smother him with a pillow. But on a sunny Sunday in Deeside when my cycling friend Graham asked the hypothetical question as we pedalled along the trail, the answer that popped into my head was travelling back to 1963 to derail the Beeching Report. Dr Beeching’s 1960s review of railway infrastructure led to a massive cull of our railway network. It’s never really recovered and the line closures were a crucial factor that set in place the move to car-based transport systems and the deterioration of our public transport networks. And we all know the problems that’s brought.

That might seem a slightly random answer to Graham’s question but not if you realised that we were cycling along the Deeside Way at the time. It’s a long distance walking and cycling trail that mostly uses the bed of the old Deeside Railway which was … you’ve guessed … closed by the Beeching Report. Mind you, in some ways I shouldn’t grumble because all over the country these old railway lines have been turned to cycle trails, offering easy, flat cycling away from traffic. But I think I’d rather have the trains back!

The Deeside Way runs for 41 miles between Aberdeen and Ballater, and we were cycling it as day trips from a campsite base in Aboyne. For much of the way we were ensconced in woods where the straight-as-an-arrow trail could be seen for miles ahead as it formed a tunnel through green, broadleaved trees or between tall, majestic pines. In warm sun, the pines cast their sweet aroma on the air which always reminds me of cycling through the mountains in Portugal. Added to this, the trackside gorse was still in bloom and added its canary colour and coconut aroma to the scene. In other places, the trail was not straight but a pleasing meander through the woods with gentle curves wherever tree trunks formed a chicane.

I said above that rails-to-trails routes are mostly flat but between Aboyne and Banchory the Deeside Way leaves the old railway line and does a couple of stiff climbs. The first was a series of “s” bends on a singletrack path that wound its way up into wooded hills before dropping back down to the River Dee at Kincardine O’Neil, the oldest village on Deeside. 

The second climb was a more gradual but longer pull up through Slewdrum Woods. Near the top it swung by the popular walking and biking trails of Scolty Hill, which had a nice outdoorsy vibe. It then plummeted down to Banchory and our hearts sank – this was an out and back ride so we would have to do both climbs again on the return leg. Luckily all the smart, little towns around here have great coffee shops for refuelling with cake. Our favourite was the beautiful café in the old waiting room of the former train station in Aboyne.

The cycling on the Deeside Way itself was great but there were also a couple of brilliant detours from the route. The first was the ancient pine wood of Glen Tanar, a short ride from Aboyne along quiet back roads and then forest trails. Sitting for a while up here we enjoyed the evening sunshine and the peace and surrounding nature of St Lesmo’s Chapel on the edge of the woods. Bluebells nodded in the breeze while swooping swallows and the gentle ring of the chapel’s bell filled the summer air.

The second detour was near Dinnet to a place I’d always wanted to see – the Burn O’Vat. We parked up the bikes and set out walking along a gorgeous forest trail passing huge boulders called erratics, left by the retreating glaciers of the last Ice Age. Suddenly the trail appeared to end at a wall of these big boulders but, on getting closer, we could see the stream flowing out and a narrow gap through which we could squeeze. We stood in awe and delight on the other side as we found ourselves in the Vat, a huge pothole measuring 18 metres across and 13 high.  

The pothole was formed by the melting of the vast ice sheets that covered this area 16,000 years ago. It is thought that a rock from the meltwater stream became lodged in a hollow on the river bed, causing the water to flow around it in a spiralling motion. Over a long period of time this created the pothole and over subsequent millenia the pothole half-filled with silt which was what we were standing on to gawp up at the Vat. 

The Deeside Way ends at the beautiful Victorian train station in Ballater which is currently in the latter stages of its renovation. Later in 2018 it will re-open as a new museum when it will be a fitting end point for the route. My friend Graham and I both agreed that we would love to ride this rails-to-trails route again for that reason alone, never mind the pretty towns and scenery. 

Until then I’ll be working at perfecting my time travel skills so I can go back to 1963 and thwart the dastardly Dr Beeching.

Fact File

Start/finish: Aboyne

Transport: On this rare occasion we used Graham's car to save money on train fares and to cycle for a change without carrying all the kit. But the route can be accessed by train from Aberdeen and starts there in Duthie Park.

Route: We stayed at Aboyne Loch Caravan Park which has a small area for tents. The Deeside Way is right at the entrance to the camspite and links it to Aboyne itself. First day we cycled east beyond Banchory. Second day we cycled the west section to Ballater, leaving the route as it neared Cambus O'May to take the A93 then the B9119 to Muir of Dinnet Nature Reserve where there is a visitor centre and waymarked trails including that to the Vat. For the detour to Glen Tanar we cycled south over the Dee at Aboyne then right on the B976. Glen Tanar is signposted at Bridge o'Ess. Again there's a small visitor centre and a network of trails. The whole Deeside Way route is very well signed.

Info: The best coffee shop (of many good ones in and en route to the area) was in Aboyne, called Spider on a Bicycle, a beautiful place in the old station waiting room. 

Kintail - Meandering Munroist

I have to confess that I'm not a very committed Munro bagger. Of course, I really enjoy getting up a Munro but I just can't be bothered if the cloud is down and I'm not going to get a good view from the top. And, after all, the views and encounters can be just as enjoyable down in the glens or along the coast. So my ideal backpacking trip in the Scottish outdoors is a place with lovely low level walking but also the chance to nip up a Munro if a good, clear day happens along.

Kintail fitted the bill perfectly when I was there for my May holidays. There are gorgeous, interconnecting low level trails plus an ample pick of close-at-hand Munros if the sun should shine. I set out from Morvich on a beautiful day of clear blue skies. As the trail climbed away from the village up towards Bealach an Sgairne, I was really heartened by the natural regeneration here that's turned a barren glen into rich woodland thanks to the stewardship of the National Trust for Scotland. How lovely it was to meander through the cool woods. Eventually the trail left the woods and zig-zagged up towards the pass. 

As it was such a gorgeous day, I decided to pick off the beautiful Munro of Beinn Fhada. I'd climbed it once before a long time ago and its beauty had stayed in my memory for all the years since. A super stalker's path climbs up through Beinn Fhada's stunning corrie, a huge bowl enclosed by ragged, snow-streaked cliffs, then pops out onto the vast, flat plateau. The last time I was up here a thunder and lighting storm had moved across and I remember crouching behind a boulder until it passed. No crouching this time, just an easy stroll to the top for views across Kintail, Knoydart, Skye and Monar. 

I dropped back down to the trail and continued through the tight, rocky pass of Bealach an Sgairne. I love this route. Having been transported through this narrow cut between steep hillsides without a view, the pass suddenly spits you out on the other side and there is a new panorama. Below your feet are the sapphire blue waters of Loch a Bealach and ahead the pointed peak of Mullach Fraoch Coire, tinged with the soft evening light of a sinking sun. I pitched the tent on the loch shore and watched the black-throated divers on the water. One of my favourite birds.

The next day was a low level day. It was raining and the cloud was down over the tops. So I meandered. I meandered eastwards into the remote headwaters of Glen Affric, marvelling again at the forest regeneration around here and stopping to take a photo of a group of tree-planting volunteers who are making it happen. This long, low level trail eventually emerges at Cannich. It passes by the most remote youth hostel in Scotland, Glen Affric Youth Hostel, which is well used and much loved by walkers and, increasingly, by the more adventurous cyclists. 

As the afternoon cleared up, I had a real treat in store. My trail turned into Gleann na Ciche, a stunning place where the river meanders through a valley of lush birch and pine woods hemmed in by a horseshoe of shapely Munros, still touched by the snows of a late winter. I pitched the tent and dreamed of a good day tomorrow for picking off another Munro.

The day dawned grey but clear and dry, a useable kind of day rather than a stunning one. It was a long, rough walk along the remainder of the glen followed by a steep pull up the back wall. I saw not another soul, neither in the glen nor along the ridge to the top of my Munro, Sgurr nan Conbhairean, which means Peak of the Keepers of the Hounds  . It was marvellous to sit up there with the world to myself. Although not for long in a chill wind that was blowing in a new weather front.

The weather front brought rain and wind throughout the next day so I was glad I'd got up a hill the day before. I meandered back to Morvich on a different trail that runs along the south side of Beinn Fhada along the Fionngleann. There are two nice things about this route. The first is the pretty Camban Bothy, a great spot to escape the rain and sit a while looking out the window with a brew. The second nice thing are the waterfalls as you descend the other side of the pass. The trail itself passes right over one of the waterfalls and that day the wind was so fierce that it was actually blowing the water back uphill into my face. 

The route finishes by returning to Morvich along the long, green valley of Gleann Lichd. It's bounded on the south by the steep sides of the Five Sisters of Kintail and today their secretive summits disappeared into swirling grey cloud. I might have had an easy wander along the glen but the thought of a hot shower back at the campsite at Morvich turned the final few miles into a march rather than a meander. 

Fact File

Start/finish: Morvich, near Shiel Bridge

Public transport: Citylink Glasgow-Skye bus stops at Ault a Chruinn, then it's approx 2km walk along a quiet back road.

My route: Continued to the road end beyond Morvich then followed the signed hill path through the crofts here. Signed for Falls of Glomach but where the path splits in an open meadow, I took the right hand fork for Bealach an Sgairne/Beinn Fhada. The path climbs up the side of the valley, crosses a side stream (can be tricky in spate) and above here there is another split - I took the right hand split again which is an excellent path up through Beinn Fhada's corrie to the edge of the plateau. No clear path to the top but no problems in good visibility. Returned to the main trail and continued through Bealach an Sgairne then on passed Glen Affric youth hostel to the cottage at Athnamulloch. Just passed here the track junctions - I turned right into Gleann na Ciche. A track then path of variable quality/clarity continue to the head of the glen. A faint path zig-zagged up the back wall and was easier to find on the way down. I continued along the ridge towards the top, eventually a path appeared where the more popular route comes up from Glen Shiel. Returned via same route to Gleann na Ciche. For the return to Morvich, I went back passed Glen Affric youth hostel and soon after the trail splits (signed). I took the trail passed Camban Bothy and into Gleann Lichd, a nice contrast to the outward route and now part of the Affric Kintail Way. Returns to the road end at Morvich.