BIKING THE BEALACH NA BA

A fine morning

What joy, empty roads

the long haul up

Great coming down

Applecross and looking out to Skye

Not a long ride so should be ok

The Torridon hills, finish in sight

Black Cuillin of Skye from Applecross

Picturesque road

Nearing the top of the Bealach na Ba

The café at the end (and start!)

The Bealach na Ba (626m) is the third highest road in the UK, only surpassed by the two ski roads here in The Cairngorms. It's been some time since I last biked over this, approx. 15 years! I'm not into competitions or 'challenges' but my wife signed us both up for the annual Bealach na Ba bike event. It's the only day the road is closed to all motor traffic (apart from when it's snowed up in winter of course). What a day to have a beautiful bike ride. Temperatures just perfect, not too hot or cold and bags of beautiful sunshine. Apart from being a high road it is, of course, one of the most scenic journeys in the world. From Shieldaig it's a nice easy 'warm up' before the big hill. A joy to bike with no cars. Brilliant. The run down the other side to Applecross village is also beautiful. The view out to Skye so clear. Then there is the coastal road back to Shieldaig. Even more beauty! And some big ups and downs to make the overall climb around 1200m. A great day out. Where did I finish? Who cares, I enjoyed the views and stopping for photos. I reckon I came first in the 'Photographing the route' category! :)