With everything now dried out from yesterday’s soaking we set off out of Pitlochry in the sunshine. This stage of the journey was to take us up and over Drumochter Pass.
About 7 miles into the ride at Blair Atholl we were impressed by the colourful roadside floral displays through the village.
Before we began the long climb uphill we read the warning signs which made us a little nervous but we felt we were well prepared.
The main of the ride up to the top of The Pass ran alongside the River Garry which cascades down it’s rocky path
The cycle route followed a now closed road and also narrower cycle paths up to the summit. At times we were only a few metres away from the railway line on one side and the busy A9 on the other .
As we continued to rise towards The Cairngorm National Park we once more felt minuscule amongst the mountain scene. We took advantage of a cyclists rest area and had our lunch there.
Now fed and watered we rode on under darkening skies which threatened a downpour at any moment. The railway slightly drifted away from us at this point.
After 25 miles of continual climbing we were approaching the summit.
The rain held off and we reached the summit!
We had a little celebration planned at 29 miles into today’s ride.
We very much enjoyed the 16 mile downhill to Newtonmore, our B&B for the next 2 nights.
Rainfall today NIL
Total distance today 42 miles
Total Hill Climbs today 1,896 ft
