Walking into whisky country
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The closure of hundreds of miles of Britain’s railways in the 1960s may have dealt a major blow to the country’s public transport network, but over time the disused lines have proved a real boon for walkers and cyclists.
This is particularly evident in the north east of Scotland where the Speyside Way, an official long distance path linking Aviemore with Spey Bay on the Moray coast, utilises long sections of former tracks laid to serve the area’s many malt whisky distilleries.
There is, however, another less well-known railway-based trek in these parts, the Dava Way.
WHY
The 40km path stretches from Grantown-on-Spey in the south, to Forres, its northern terminus.
Like the Speyside Way, it follows closely the route of a former railway, one that was just as busy ferrying whisky traffic from local distilleries, passing through peaceful woodlands and across miles of wild, uninhabited moor.
HOW
Although the Dava Way begins in Grantown-on-Spey, we opted to start in the bustling Highland resort of Aviemore. The Speyside Way provides a handy link for walkers heading from here to Grantown, but we were going to remain faithful to the former Highland Railway, the route that would take us north to Forres.
The line closed in 1965, but 13 years later a group of enthusiasts created the Strathspey Steam Railway, a preserved line running north from Aviemore to Boat of Garten. In 2002, the track was extended to Broomhill, and there are plans afoot to restore the route to Grantown-on-Spey.
The railway line crosses open country, following the River Spey downstream. The gleaming locomotive had a good head of steam and in no time at all we arrived at Broomhill.
Fans of the BBC’s Monarch of the Glen will instantly recognise the halt, as it doubled as Glenbogle Station in the series and carries the name on its platform signs. From here we continued on foot, although there were still a few miles to cover before we joined the Dava Way.
A traffic-free stretch of rather pleasant road walking across the base of the Spey Valley led us to the hamlet of Nethy Bridge where we joined the Speyside Way for the three-mile trek to Grantown.
The Highland town has an excellent campsite on its western fringe, a pleasant grassy field set aside for tents, away from the caravans and motorhomes.
The park is well signed from the centre of town and a single-track road continues beyond the entrance, leading under an old railway bridge to the start of the Dava Way. The route curves gently away from the town, the solid path underfoot leading through the trees above the campsite.
The railway crosses the A939 by a grand bridge attached to a turreted lodge, and beyond this there is a short detour off the trackbed.
The path took us on through a pleasant wooded valley before emerging on to heather moorland beyond Huntly’s Cave. From here to the Divie Viaduct, the way crosses open ground with fine views in all directions.
Small copses of trees offer some shelter ahead of arrival at Dava, a lonely outpost where a handful of cottages cluster around the old line. Again, there is a short detour before the track weaves round the southern flank of Knock of Braemoray, a perfectly contoured little hill.
We strayed off the track at this point and pitched our tent on the Knock’s heathery slopes. As the mid-point of the Dava Way, this is an ideal place to break the trek.
After supper we launched an assault on the Knock, climbing straight up over the short heather and grass. At the top there is a trig point, and the vistas stretch across the counties of Nairn, Moray and Inverness.
Early the next morning we were back on the track, walking north to the Divie Viaduct, a giant six-arch stone bridge spanning the River Divie. The viaduct is most spectacular from below. There is no path down, but a slippery scramble from the northern end drops to a road passing under one of the tall arches.
The Dava Way follows the railway to Dunphail, just over a mile north of the viaduct. Here it leaves the line, making a lengthy detour by quiet back roads, re-joining the track just south of Clashdhu.
With Forres drawing ever closer, we had a detour of our own to make before we reached town – a visit to the Dallas Dhu Distillery.
The complex, which sits adjacent to the line, produced its last drop of malt on 16 March 1983, and has been preserved exactly as it was on that day.
Instead of organising guided tours, Historic Scotland provides visitors with audio handsets that can be triggered at marked commentary points.
As is customary with all distillery tours, our visit ended with a wee dram, a measure of Roderick Dhu, the blend originally produced from the Dallas Dhu malt.
Dallas Dhu, which is open all year, is just a mile or so south of the centre of Forres, the end of our journey. It shares history with another local distillery, Benromach, located on the northern edge of the town.
Local entrepreneur Alexander Edward built them both to meet a growing demand for malt whisky from the blending industry.
A tall, red brick chimney stretching high into the sky dominates the tiny complex of tidy whitewashed buildings. Unlike Dallas Dhu, Benromach is a working distillery and we arrived just in time to join the last guided tour of the day where a welcome dram marked a fitting end to our adventure.
VITALS
The Dava Way is suitable for experienced walkers and mountain bikers.
It is 40km (25 miles) in length and crosses some exposed terrain, although the low elevation makes it suitable for exploring at any time of the year, except during the worst winter weather. As there are no shops or places to eat or drink on or near the route, you must be self-sufficient.
The A940 road is never very far from the way, but it does not offer any public transport. There are, however, good public transport connections at both ends of the trail.
A regular bus service links Aviemore with Grantown-on-Spey and Aviemore Station, on the Perth to Inverness line, served by both GNER and First ScotRail. First ScotRail also operates services from Forres, enabling a return to Aviemore via Inverness.
The Strathspey Steam Railway runs trains from Aviemore Station to Broomhill from 1 April to the end of October, with additional services in December.
ADVICE
The Dava Way crosses a working grouse moor between Huntly’s Cave and Dava. Walkers are requested to keep dogs on the lead on sections of the way that cross grazing land and moor where there are ground-nesting birds.
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SLEEP
The best wild camping spots can be found around Knock of Braemoray, at the mid-point of the Dava Way. There are campsites close to both ends of the route.
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GRANTOWN-ON-SPEY CARAVAN PARK Grantown-on-Spey, Morayshire Tel: (01479) 872474 Web: www.caravanclub.co.uk Open: All year |
BOAT OF GARTEN CARAVAN PARK Desher Road, Boat of Garten, Inverness-shire Tel: 01479 831652 Web: www.campgroundsofscotland.com Open: All year |
FINDHORN SANDS CARAVAN PARK Findhorn, Forres, Morayshire Tel: 01309 690324 Web: www.caravanpark.findhorn.com Open: April to October |
CONTACTS
The Highlands of Scotland Tourist Board 01997 421160, www.visithighlands.com
The Dava Way Association 01309 672244, www.davaway.org.uk
Strathspey Steam Railway 01479 810725, www.strathspeyrailway.co.uk
Dallas Dhu Distillery 01309 676548, www.historic-scotland.gov.uk
Benromach Distillery 01309 675968, www.benromach.com
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