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Wester Ross Pictures
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Page 2 - Gruinard to Braemore Junction
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map above shows the road between Laide and Braemore (bray-more)
Junction, which is where the main road in the Laide area joins the
trunk road to Ullapool (ull-ah-pool), from Inverness,
the capital of the Highlands, some 75 miles from Laide. I grew to
know this road very well over the last couple of years in particular,
as I used to take the bus to Inverness or Dingwall (the town where
my football club, Ross County, are based) most weekends before I moved
to Perth. |
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First
up, a couple of miles east of Laide, you reach Gruinard Hill,
pictured on the left (on the map, it is just to the left of
Little Gruinard)... the photo really can't do justice to just
how steep this hill actually is, even with me standing there
to try and give an idea of how much of an angle it's at! Mike
nearly had a heart attack when he first visited the area and
I told him he had to drive up this hill to reach Laide ;-) |
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| This
photo is taken from the top of Gruinard Hill, looking out over
Gruinard Bay. The sandy beach at the far side of the bay is
very popular in the summer, both with tourists and with the
locals - I've been to several barbecues held there over the
years :-) |
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I
haven't actually got a photo of Gruinard Island itself, but
this sign (now propped up in the car parking area of a friend
of my parents) used to be on the island to warn away potential
visitors, due to the Government anthrax testing programme. |
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| Moving
west from Gruinard Bay, and getting towards the turnoff for
Badcaul (bad-call), there is usually a good view
of Beinn Ghoblach, which overlooks Little Loch Broom. |
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Further along the road is Ardessie, which is primarily known
for its spectacular waterfalls. This picture doesn't really
give an idea of the scale of the falls, but they're pretty high
:-) |
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| A
common sight on the road near Dundonnell - there are a lot of
wild goats in that area, and they often wander along the grass
verges beside the road (no pavements here!) |
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More
loose animals - this time sheep wandering beside the war memorial
near Dundonnell. |
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| Not
sure exactly where this was taken, but as goats are only found
within a few miles of Dundonnell, it will have been somewhere
around there ;-) |
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This
very atmospheric-looking picture was taken somewhere between
Dundonnell and Braemore Junction - sadly my memory for the
area isn't good enough for me to be able to pinpoint it exactly
on the map, although I know the exact spot, but I think it
is just a few miles east of Dundonnell, and the river is probably
the River Dundonnell, shortly before it crosses to the south
of the road.
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| This
picture is taken from the same spot as the last one, but looking
in the other direction along the river, towards some waterfalls.
I've always thought of this spot as marking one third of the
way between Laide and Inverness, as it's about half an hour
from Laide, and the whole journey takes around an hour and a
half by car, if you're not in a hurry :-) |
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Not
sure exactly where this photo was taken, but a fair guess would
be the rough area of Fain, which was originally a small group
of houses, I believe (though all that's left is the ruins of
two or three buildings), but is now generally used to refer
to the highest stretch of road along the route, where deer are
often seen - sometimes on the road, not just next to
it! |
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| Finally,
just before Braemore Junction, there is a viewpoint overlooking
this view of the Broom Valley, with Loch Broom in the background.
The valley is very deep compared to the surrounding landscape,
so has really dramatic effect when you first see it - when you're
heading towards Laide, it really comes out of nowhere, as you
come round a corner and then suddenly this appears out of nowhere!
;-) |
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Introduction,
and Laide to Mellon Udrigle
West and South - Aultbea, Loch Maree and Gairloch
Large map of the area
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