Enjoy Britain
mountains one of scores of
The road to the
Highlands
Scotland can be as beautiful in midwinter as at any
other time of year, as Norman Wright discovered, in
the concluding part of our series
PICTURES; CLIVE NICHOLLS
Sprinkling of snow on the
Cairngorm foothills
OME OF the world’s greatest
S scenic drives criss-cross the
Highlands of Scotland,
especially beautiful in the
long hours of summer daylight. But what
about in the dark month of January?
As we skirted the Cairngorms on our
way from Perth to Inverness we got
our answer.
A scattering of green grazing land in the
valley gives way to multiple shades of
brown bracken as the land rolls upwards to
the grey granite cliffs and tors of the
mountains. And the highest tops have an
6 CHOICE MAY 2019
icing sugar sprinkling of snow. The view is
spectacular already and it is only going to
get better. So far winter in the Highlands
is fine by us.
And it does get better as the A9, one of
Britain’s longest A roads, turns east towards
Aviemore alongside the River Spey. The water
sparkles over the rocks and tumbles from the
burns carrying it from the high ground.
Not that our journey earlier wasn’t
enjoyable. The scenery really started as we
turned off the A1 at Scotch Corner and
headed across towards Penrith edging
along the Yorkshire Dales.
Then up the M6 past Gretna Green and
skirting Glasgow to Stirling. As usual we
were on a tight timetable but this trip would
be brilliant if you had a couple of weeks.
Stirling is a good place to break the
journey. The magnificent Stirling Castle
overlooking the town is an important part
of Scottish history as is the memorial to
Scottish hero William Wallace just
outside the town. Doune Castle, a few
miles off the A9, is an icon of comedy
history as the setting for the film Monty
Python and The Holy Grail, a heritage that
the castle makes the very most of. If you
enjoyed the film you will appreciate
what the Pythons managed to make of
basically a ruin.
On the way north to Perth we passed the
world famous Gleneagles Hotel and golf
course. A few years ago we took a cheeky
picture of a car in the impressive drive
with the hotel as backdrop before we
attracted the attention of the doorman, but
this time we decided not to take the liberty.
There’s more heritage just outside
Perth, the Palace of Scone, the traditional
coronation place of 38 Scottish Kings.
After Aviemore the route heads north
MAY 2019 CHOICE
Tumbling down from the
burns on the road from
Inverness to Skye
The view from our balcony in the
Highland Apartments at Inverness
towards Inverness with moorland and
bracken covered hills either side, crossing
the shining River Findhorn.
The site of the famous Battle of
Culloden is just five miles east of Inverness
with a National Trust for Scotland visitor
centre to interpret the final conflict in the
Jacobite rebellion and defeat for Bonny
Prince Charlie’s forces.
Earlier they came close to victory as his
army cut swathes into northern England.
With London arguably at his mercy, the
Prince inexplicably halted at Derby and
withdrew into Scotland. In April 1746
they were comprehensively defeated by
the Duke of Cumberland’s redcoats.
This led to the Prince’s flight to the west
coast and to Skye to be taken into exile.
We will be heading the same way in the
morning but first a night in the heart of
Inverness at the Highland Apartments.
From the underground car park to the
corner two bedroomed apartment this was
five star luxury.
The building was right in the heart of
the city with balconies looking over the
centre on one side and on the other over
t
the surging River Ness. The view only got
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 Enjoy Britain
t
better as night fell and the lights of the
bridge and riverside restaurants and shops
began to twinkle.
The apartment itself was beautifully
furnished with a living/dining kitchen and
two en-suite bedrooms. The space and the
absence of restrictions made it so much
more relaxed than the usual hotel stay.
Just a few yards from the city’s
restaurants we could have eaten out but
took advantage of the well-equipped
kitchen to rustle up dinner and breakfast
in house.
It was just what we needed after the
500-mile drive from Choice’s home in
8 CHOICE MAY 2019
Peterborough. A meal and a glass of
wine and we were both nodding off in
front of the TV.
In the morning we headed west as the
road followed the northern shore of Loch
Ness for many miles. The long narrow
loch was steely grey on an overcast and
rainy day. We didn’t spot the monster but
the impassive waters certainly looked
capable of hosting one.
Before reaching the end of the loch at
Fort Augustus we headed onto the A887
which tracks the course of the River
Moriston fed by spectacular burns tearing
down from the hills. Photographer
The A9 winds through the
Cairngorms
Below: Memorial to a Jacobite hero,
Col Roderick Mackenzie
Nicholls bravely endured a soaking
rainstorm to get his pictures of the
tumbling, gushing streams.
We were intrigued by a roadside
memorial just before the junction with the
A87. It turned out to be another connection
with Prince Charlie’s flight to Skye.
Colonel Roderick Mackenzie, one of the
Prince’s officers and part of his bodyguard,
chosen partly for his resemblance to the
Prince, was being pursued by the Duke of
Cumberland’s men.
He could have escaped into the hills
that were hiding his leader but bravely
turned to fight and buy time for the
Prince’s escape. His final act came when
he was cut down and with his last breath
called out: “You have killed your Prince.”
The resemblance was enough to
confuse the Duke’s men. Gruesomely
they cut off Mackenzie’s head and took
it to the Duke for identification and
then on to London. No one could be
sure but it took the heat out of the
pursuit and the Prince eventually
escaped to the continent.
For us it was on to Skye too. Not by
rowing boat but over the sea on the Skye
bridge at the Kyle of Lochalsh.
Just before the road sweeps around
the rocky seascape to the bridge we
MAY 2019 CHOICE
Good looking as well as a dream
to drive. The New Touareg SEL
at Eilean Donan Castle
Control panels of the superb
New Touareg SEL
stopped at Eilean Donan Castle at
Dornie to take pictures of the 2019
Touareg lent to us by Volkswagen. A
magnificent setting for a superb motor –
and no danger of an irate doorman to
tell us off for pinching their backdrop.
The story of our brief stay on Skye was
in last month’s Choice and if you missed
it the feature will be on our website
(www.choicemag.co.uk) in the next
few weeks.
So after that break we were driving
back over the bridge with another 500
miles in front of us and another scenic
route that, along with the Touareg, made
the journey fly by.
The new Touareg
The car we tested was the new
Touareg SEL 3.0-litre V6 TDI
4MOTION 231 PS 8spd auto
tiptronic. The basic price is £48,995,
although ours had extras that took it
to £53,775.
The extras included comfort seats
and we can attest that they really do
what they say.
For a big 4x4 the Touareg handled
beautifully. We were expecting a bit
of a roller coaster ride on the
switchback roads and long bends but
it was smoothness itself. A pleasure
to handle and then on the motorway
sections a solid cruiser.
The information centre on the
central screen and the screen behind
the wheel was comprehensive. It
would take a bit longer than a week
to get used to, but the basics were
useful straight away.
Two features that we enjoyed
were automatic headlight dipping
when a car approached or you entered
a built up area, and a warning light
when overtaking vehicles were in the
wing mirrors’ blind spot.
The Touareg is a big investment
but if you want a 4x4 that will take
you for miles and miles without
requiring a physiotherapist when you
get out and can be both a workhorse
and a real driver’s car it justifies
that price, which is towards the
bottom of similar major European
manufacturers’ offerings. Five stars
from Choice.
Scenery to savour
The rainy weather of the previous
couple of days was gradually lifting as
we seemed to drift past Lochs Cloune,
Loyne and Garry to rejoin the A82
heading to Fort William.
Just before Spean Bridge, with the
weather clearing all the time, we stopped
of at the moving memorial to the British
Commandos of the Second World War
who trained in the hilly country around.
An imposing bronze sculpture of three
commandos by Scott Sutherland
dominates the site. “United we conquer” is
inscribed around the top of the stone
t
plinth, while the original plaque on the
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 Enjoy Britain
River Findhorn sparkles as it
descends near Inverness
Below left: The magnificent memorial to the British
Commandos of the Second World War; below centre
and left, luxury at the Highland Apartments
stone plinth reads: “In memory of the
t
officers and men of the commandos
who died in the Second World War
1939–1945. This country was their
training ground.”
The views of Ben Nevis and Aonach
Mòr from the memorial are superb, with
a snow covering being lit and relit by
sunlight as the clouds scudded by.
We must have still been bewitched by
the views as we took a wrong turning at
Spean Bridge onto the A86 and headed
east to join the A9 back south to Perth.
Our intention was to carry on to Fort
William and Glencoe back to Glasgow
via the Trossachs and Loch Lomond.
It turned out to be not so bad an error
10
as the road back to the A9 was a treasure. and did the full 500 odd miles himself.
It swooped and twisted through the After just a few miles in most cars, let
mountains; a pleasure to drive. At least alone 500, we would both normally leave
that’s what Clive told me. our seats muttering about aches and
We split the driving on the way up. On stiffness. This did not happen in the
the way back he enjoyed the Touareg so Touareg. We travelled in real comfort, ate
much that he wouldn’t let me have a go up the miles and found it a real pleasure
to drive, especially on those scenic routes.
Passport to the Highlands
Where to stay
n We stayed at the Highland Apartments in Inverness. It is one of the Mansley
Serviced Apartments with other properties in Edinburgh, Mayfair, Kensington and
Cheltenham. Their claim of being like living in your own home in the middle of a
city is a real difference from a hotel or B&B
n For more information and to book, go to the website: (www.bymansley.com),
or tel: 0800 304 7160.
CHOICE MAY 2019