The yellow gorse has been our companion for as long as I can remember and now it provides the only link between the contrasting landscapes of Sutherland/Caithness and the fertile lowlands around the Moray Firth.
After a short sharp climb under the Nairn Viaduct we seemed to fly at high speed all day. This is the longest masonry viaduct in Scotland, it is splendid and I guess over-shadowed by the Glenfinnan (Harry Potter) structure.
Our first stop was Cawdor castle, we only intended to visit the gardens and, although still early in the growing season these were lovely.
Getting to the tea shop before the American coach party was a slick move so soon we were off with the wind again. Briefly passing through Nairn and on to Brodie castle. We had the dilemma here. It is National Trust, we are members (thanks again mum) and a guided tour was scheduled 2 minutes after our arrival. We held the tea shop and went for the tour but only lasted the library. A 600 year old letter to Brodie from Robert the Bruce was interesting, it was an instruction to unblock his river so the abbey's mill wheel could function again.
Anyway, I hope the nice lady didn't miss us because we went straight from library to tea shop, the soup was good!
Crossing the Findhorn river on perfect cycle lanes and paths brought us swiftly to the bay and our destination. Sue had decided that the best way to spend our rest day and celebrate the completion of half the distance for our journey would be to spend the night in a whiskey barrel.
The alternative lifestyle and Eco-living at the Findhorn Foundation would be a perfect place to rest.
Figures:
Distance:- 52.6 km
Cycle Time:- 3 hours 15 minutes
Average speed:- 16.2 kph
Total Distance:- 3204 km
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