Advice – cycle Inverness to Torridon

MB wrote:

Thanks folks, having booked the train ticket I then had to call a number to reserve a space for my bike. Scotrail would not take a reservation from Edinburgh to Perth or from Perth to Inverness! I bet I could have made that reservation 50 years ago. Rubbish.

Best use a train company website which lets you book bike space simultaneously, e.g. GWR. They all sell each other’s tickets but – bizarrely – it’s often better to book via a company other than the one you’re actually travelling with if you want to book a bike at the same time.

Agree about going via Muir or Ord (either along the N or S banks of the Firth) and joining the A835 later, N of Marybank. 

the infamous grouse wrote:

from inverness to conon bridge junction, there is a segregated cycleway/lane. parts of it are adjacent, parts are former main road. parts are slightly overgrown.

conon bridge to gorstan junction is likely to be the least enjoyable section, as it’s narrow with truly awful visibility. boy racers, tourist transport, motorbike convoys. highly undulating.

everything improves considerably once you get on the A832 with a lovely descent into kinlochewe. the A896 scenery is quite lovely.

Cheers – I was on 4 wheels not 2. The scenery is amazing tho. It’s one of the things I miss now I’m not living in Scotland any more.

The bit of the A9 and A835

The bit of the A9 and A835 you’ll ride are fairly busy. They also have some hilly bits. I drove that way (yes I know) in 2017. You could avoid the A9 and A835 by taking the longer route via Muir of Ord. I haven’t been by that route for more years than I care to remember though.

I can’t remember what the A832 is like after the turn off the A835 near Gorstan. It’s a long time since I went (climbing) that way too.

The scenery is fantastic though. Scotland actually has a better road safety record than England incidentally, so I wouldn’t be put off by the drivers. Enjoy the trip.