Geograph - photograph every grid square

The public road network in the West of Scotland was not developed to its current standard until relatively recent times. Many roads used to be improvements on former drovers tracks, and narrow, twisting and steep as they crossed mountain passes.

One famous old road was the "Road to the Isles", a segment of which ran from the current-day Tomdoun Sporting Lodge Hotel north-west past Cluanie Lodge to Cluanie Inn. This passed over two rivers which were dammed and flooded to form Lochs Cluanie and Loyne in around 1957. A new road, the current A87, was constructed around the edge. The old tracks to Loch Loyne are now gated and in private ownership but accessible by walkers and mountain bikers.

The story of the "Road to the Isles" or "The Roof of the Highlands" was covered by Nicholas Crane ("Mapman") in one of his 2007 BBC 2 TV series "Great British Journeys" about the writings of early travellers, in this case H.V. Morton's tours of Scotland in 1929-33 in a Bullnose Morris car.
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