ND0045 : Bridge over Sleach Water, Altnabreac
taken 9 years ago, near to Altnabreac Sta [other Features], Highland, Great Britain
I was planning a trip to Scotland and trying to decide how to fill a spare day at Inverness. Why not travel to Altnabreac station in the Flow Country, one of the most remote in Britain and therefore of considerable fascination to me? Even better, there was a nearby grid square which had yet to be captured on Geograph ND0243. A check of the rail timetable showed that it would be possible to have 3 hours at Altnabreac but that the 5 o’ clock train south was the last of the day and could not be missed if I wanted to avoid being stranded in the far north for the night!
The square is some 2 miles walk from the station and at my usual walking/photographing pace would take about an hour to reach. An hour to walk back would leave an hour for contingencies so the timings looked good. There are still several other available squares in the area but going to them would have jeopardised my catching the last train.
Although in the heart of the Flow country, which in its natural state is ‘endless’ peat-bog, the area around Altnabreac is now mostly fir plantations. This obviously restricts the available views.
The area was, perhaps, busier than I expected with some forestry activity. There are two houses in the vicinity of the station and the ex-Lochdu Hotel about a mile to the south and now seemingly a hunting lodge. The forestry roads led to easy walking to my objective and I easily captured the square and returned to the station in good time for the train.
On the return walk, it started to drizzle and so I was able to experience the true Flow Country atmosphere!