Geo-Trips :: The 11.6 km-long Wildcat Trail around Newtonmore
Newtonmore
A walk from Highland Folk Museum, Newtonmore, Wed, 14 Aug 2024 by Julian Paren
The Wildcat Trail around Newtonmore is promoted in the leaflet Newtonmore Paths and on two websites. Newtonmore Paths is one of a series of leaflets under the general title of Cairngorm Paths. Six Newtonmore Paths are listed and the Wildcat Trail is the longest and the only one described as strenuous.
According to the leaflet
The Wildcat Trail is an iconic orbital path through woodland, moorland and alongside rivers, offering wonderful views. It has narrow uneven earthy paths, some rough, stony and muddy. Some sections cross grassy fields with livestock present. There are gates and a railway crossing.
The Walk Highlands website introduces the path as: The Wildcat Trail is an orbital route around Newtonmore taking in the banks of the River Spey, open heather moorland, wooded glens and burbling streams. The Trail can either be walked as a whole or in sections as there are various paths linking the Trail to different start points in Newtonmore. The route is waymarked with a wildcat symbol, and further information can be found in the WildCat Centre on Newtonmore High Street. Link
. There is also a very good description of the path and images on the Wildcat Centre website. Link
I started and completed the circular walk from the car park of The Highland Folk Museum. My wife was demonstrating spinning at an events day there, and I had six hours to amuse our dog and myself while she was busy. The weather was excellent. My GPS measured my walk to have been 11.6 km long and the route took me 4 hrs 6 mins.
The Wildcat Trail does a large loop around Newtonmore with excellent paths and one minor road. Being summer the path was dry, but vegetation and trees in leaf by the River Calder prevented good views of the river. The section along the River Spey was a little disappointing because the river is only seen in one or two places, again because of thick belts of trees. Two minor diversions were made from the official route. One to visit the Craggan Viewpoint above Newtonmore and the other to see a Hut Circle in a clearing in the woods north of the town.
The achievement of the designers of the walk is to join up and create paths close to Newtonmore yet hardly being conscious of the town at all. The walk is recommended, especially the sections above the town.
On the map below, the grey line is the GPS track from this trip. Click the blue circles to see a photograph taken from that spot and read further information about the location. The blue lines indicate the direction of view. There is also a slideshow of this trip. ( )
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The road to Strone above Newtonmore
A quiet loop road that forms part of Newtonmore's Wildcat Trail.
The Wildcat... more
Entrance to the open moor above Newtonmore
The good news on the information board is that walkers are welcome. The side gate... more
Track towards the Monadhliath Mountains
The track presents an obvious route for exploring the hills behind Newtonmore.
The Wildcat Trail above Newtonmore
This section of path follows a woodland edge with moorland beyond.
The Wildcat... more
Hut Circle clearing in woodland
The wood has been cleared here to expose a hut circle with an information plaque provided.
Information plaque at the Hut Circle
An excellently executed bronze plaque describing the site and illustrating what... more
Edge of woodland above Newtonmore
The Wildcat Trail passes here.
The Wildcat Trail passes along the banks of the... more
The Wildcat Trail above Newtonmore
The way through this open section through woodland is marked by a line of stones.
Path to the Craggan Viewpoint above Newtonmore
A fine path off the Wildcat Trail to achieve the Craggan Viewpoint over Newtonmore.
Rock with plaque at the Craggan Viewpoint
A feature installed by the Newtonmore Community Woodland Trust.
Seat and rock plaque at the Craggan Viewpoint
A good place to divert to off the Wildcat Trail. A close up of the rock with... more
On the Wildcat Trail
The trail follows a farm road down to the Glen Road.
The Glen Road, Newtonmore
The same trees were photographed from the opposite direction by Peter Moore.... more
Glen Road - the road up Glen Banchor
The public road ends within a mile of here and there is access to an old township... more
Signpost for walkers in Glen Banchor
Here the Wildcat Trail leaves Glen Road and heads to the Alder Path.
View from the bench beside The Wildcat Trail above the River Almond
If you traverse the Wildcat Trail clockwise a bench is found on the rise above the... more
Path above the River Calder
This is one section of the Wildcat Trail.
The Wildcat Trail passes along the... more
Looking down on the River Calder from the Wildcat Trail
The river is just visible down the steep bank.
River Calder beside the Wildcat Trail
The Wildcat Trail passes along the banks of the River Spey, high above the river... more
Bed of the River Calder near its joining with the River Spey
As seen today, the width of the river in high summer seems only to take up a very... more
The Wildcat Trail near Spey Bridge
The path passes through Silver Birch as it heads beside the River Calder to its... more
The Wildcat Trail beside the River Spey
A pretty stretch of Silver Birch with fleeting glimpses of the River Spey.
The... more
Railway bridge across the River Spey near Newtonmore
A feature of Newtonmore's Wildcat Trail.
The Wildcat Trail passes along the... more
Fields beside the River Spey near Newtonmore
Some of the houses in Newtonmore are visible.
Newtonmore Golf Course
The Wildcat Trail follows the bank of the River Spey, but while the river is... more
Fairways of Newtonmore Golf Course
On a beautiful summer's day with no wind and glorious sunshine, not a single... more
The Wildcat Trail near the River Spey
The path here is mown with uncut grasses beside it.
The Wildcat Trail passes... more
The River Spey near Newtonmore
A minor diversion from The Wildcat Trail takes you to the river bank.
Wooded stretch of the Wildcat Trail close to the River Spey
The Wildcat Trail passes along the banks of the River Spey, high above the river... more
The River Spey by Newtonmore
A path leads from The Wildcat Trail to this position.
The Wildcat Trail passes... more
Footbridge on the Wildcat Trail
The bridge goes over a small creek, but was not needed on a dry August day with no... more
The Wildcat Trail at the edge of Newtonmore Golf Course
The golf course is to the left.
The Wildcat Trail passes along the banks of the... more
All images © Julian Paren and available under a
Creative Commons licence .
