Speyside Way

Speyside Way
A walker on the Tomintoul spur
Length	130 km (81 mi)
Location	Scotland
Designation	Long Distance Route
Trailheads	Aviemore Buckie
Use	Hiking
Hiking details
Season	All year

The Speyside Way (alternative/Doric Strathspey Way; Scottish Gaelic: Slighe Shrath Spe) is a Long Distance Route that follows the River Spey through some of Banffshire, Morayshire and Inverness-shire's most beautiful scenery. It is one of four Long Distance Routes in Scotland. It begins in Aviemore and ends at Buckpool harbour in Buckie, some 65 miles away. Some choose to walk the route from Buckie to Aviemore. There is a spur leading off the main route to Tomintoul bringing the total distance up to 80 miles (130 kilometres). In addition, there is a Dufftown loop option, and other less well-known routes (Badenoch Way, Dava Way, and Moray Coast Trail) can be worked in, all affecting the total distance walked. Sections of the route are open to cycling.

The Way is clearly marked with a symbol showing a thistle in a hexagon. The route generally follows the valley of the River Spey, passing some of the distilleries that produce Speyside single malts. The final five miles from Spey Bay to Buckie follow the coastline.

An extension of the route from Aviemore to Newtonmore is currently being progressed. This extension would lengthen the total route by 34.8 km, roughly following the route of the River Spey and utilising part of the Sustrans cycle route.

A formal proposal has now been submitted and has received approval in principle from Scottish Ministers, but it still looks likely that not all landowners will be in agreement with the designated route. If instructed by the Scottish Ministers, the Cairngorms National Park Authority can implement the route against landowners' wishes under the Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967 and the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. Negotiations are still underway to attempt to avoid this situation.

The path follows most of the route of the former Strathspey Railway.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Speyside Way.

Footpaths in Scotland

Highlands and northern Scotland	Ca na Catanach Clachlet Traverse Cape Wrath Trail Cateran Trail Coast to Coast Cowal Way East Highland Way Great Glen Way Gordon Way Moray Way Rob Roy Way Scottish National Trail Speyside Way West Highland Way

Southern Uplands	Annandale Way Borders Abbeys Way Clyde walkway John Buchan Way Southern Upland Way

Coastal paths	Arran Coastal Way Ayrshire Coastal Path Fife Coastal Path John Muir Way Moray Coast trail Scottish Coastal Way

Trans-border (partly in England)	Central Scottish Way Northumberland Coast Path North Sea Trail Pennine Way Roman Heritage Way St Cuthbert's Way

Canal towpaths, rail trails etc	Caledonian Canal Crinan Canal Dava Way Deeside Way Devon Way Dingwall Canal Drovers' road Formartine and Buchan Way Forth and Clyde Canal (Pathway) Glasgow, Paisley and Johnstone Canal Hillend Loch Railway Path Monkland Canal Old military roads of Scotland Penicuik–Dalkeith Walkway Stevenston Canal Strathkelvin Railway Path Union Canal Water of Leith Walkway

Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom

National Trails (England and Wales)	Cleveland Way Cotswold Way Glyndŵr's Way Hadrian's Wall Path North Downs Way Norfolk Coast Path Offa's Dyke Path Peddars Way Pembrokeshire Coast Path Pennine Bridleway Pennine Way The Ridgeway South Downs Way South West Coast Path Thames Path Yorkshire Wolds Way

Long distance routes (Scotland)	Great Glen Way Southern Upland Way Speyside Way West Highland Way

http://online.wsj.com/articles/like-scotch-whisky-heres-a-walking-tour-for-you-1417408050

Speyside Way

See also

External links