June 26th, and our latest Sunday Run took a group of 20 R2 Members to beautiful Speyside.
Update: lots more pictures on Iain Cameron's Flickr page!
Most of us met up at the Fourmile Inn at Kingswells for coffees, teas and excellent bacon rolls in the conservatory. For the first time in days the sun was shining!
Despite fears over the road works in progress on the road approaching the Lecht, apart from a few minor gritty bits with no white lines the road was clear. Alex & Kate Leys joined up with the group at Mossat and we all pulled over at the car park overlooking Corgarff Castle to enjoy the view and a blether.
Sunshine over Corgarff
The sunshine held as we continued past the ski centre and descended to Tomintoul, and then turned right towards Ballindalloch. Brian Innes was already there to meet us as we formed up in front of the castle (By special permission, we were allowed to bypass the public car park)
This picture was taken after lunch, as the clouds started to gather...
Ballindalloch Castle is a beautifully preserved tower house, still privately owned and lived in by the family that built it. We were made very welcome, and enjoyed a good soup & sandwich style lunch in the tea room.
Over lunch I distributed the route for a further 1-hour drive designed by Brian Innes, who knows the area well. Sadly the weather turned very grey and only a small contingent made the extra run. Those of us who did go enjoyed it, and I will do it again on a better day if I'm in the area. Even in the rain it was "atmospheric", with views of Lochindorb and the surrounding craggy tops. Seven stopped for a cuppa in Grantown-on-Spey at the end of the run, and then it was time to head for home.