{"id":13615,"date":"2014-07-19T15:37:16","date_gmt":"2014-07-19T19:37:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=13615"},"modified":"2014-07-19T15:37:16","modified_gmt":"2014-07-19T19:37:16","slug":"day-22-saturday-july-19-aviemore-to-inverness-scotland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=13615","title":{"rendered":"Day 22. Saturday, July 19 – Aviemore to Inverness, Scotland"},"content":{"rendered":"

The prediction for rain by noon, looked more like a definite and much earlier. \u00a0But with the temperature in the low 60’s and ceiling high for the moment, it was comfortable as we pedaled out of town.\"DSCN9458\"<\/a>Must say, that this bike tour has given us the most variety of biking terrain,\"DSCN9460\"<\/a> as all our other rides combined. \u00a0\"DSCN9463\"<\/a>It also is not without it’s whimsy \"DSCN9491\"<\/a>and history.\"DSCN9480\"<\/a>Carrbridge (town and bridge name) is an old packhorse bridge, the oldest (1717) stone bridge in Scotland’s Highlands.<\/p>\n

Without the sun, the countryside was not as dramatic as we’ve seen,\"DSCN9462\"<\/a> but it was a gorgeous day to ride.<\/p>\n

We’d been told of the two big climbs we would have on our ride today, but did not feel terribly taxed when we reached the top of the first,\"photo-2\"<\/a>though it did take two hours to go 17 miles.\u00a0Just before noon we reached Tomatin Distillery, seemed like a good place to take a break and a sip or two of some single malt.\"DSCN9501\"<\/a>A half mile down the road, we stopped for a bite to eat, as there would not be anything\u00a0before we our reached our destination. \u00a0This little food trailer was in the perfect place to catch the bikers from both directions; \"DSCN9505\"<\/a>Antonio and Melania, from Seville, Spain had just come from Inverness. \u00a0We chatted as we ate and then headed in our different directions. \u00a0We traveled over hill \"DSCN9507\"<\/a>and dale (sorry, had to say it),\"DSCN9510\"<\/a>past ponds\"DSCN9514\"<\/a>and stone walls encrusted with wildflowers.\"DSCN9515\"<\/a>And then there was the pile of rocks\"DSCN9523\"<\/a> that we learned was the Balnuaran of Clava, an prehistoric\u00a0burial ground between three and four centuries<\/strong> old.<\/p>\n

Lots of climbs and wonderful downhills. \u00a0We reached the edge of the city by 2:30, the sky that had kept it’s distance started spitting. \u00a0\"DSCN9527\"<\/a>By the time we found our hotel, forty-five minutes later it started to rain, perfect timing. \u00a0Unfortunately, the rain persisted for the afternoon, \"DSCN9530\"<\/a>so a quick walk to the water and back to our dry comfortable room. \u00a0If the morning is clear, we will try a drive by the castle.<\/p>\n\n\t\t