Speyside Way

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
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

Template:Footpaths in Scotland

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

v t e Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom
National Trails (England and Wales)	Cleveland Way Coast to Coast Walk Cotswold Way Glyndŵr's Way Hadrian's Wall Path King Charles III England Coast Path North Downs Way 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
Other trails (England and Wales)	Capital Ring Esk Valley Walk Lea Valley Walk London Outer Orbital Path Norfolk Coast Path Peak District Boundary Walk Pennine Journey Shakespeare's Way Vanguard Way Wales Coast Path Yorkshire Water Way
Scotland's Great Trails	Annandale Way Arran Coastal Way Ayrshire Coastal Path Berwickshire Coastal Path Borders Abbeys Way Cateran Trail Clyde Walkway Cross Borders Drove Road Dava Way Fife Coastal Path Formartine and Buchan Way Forth-Clyde/Union Canal Towpath Great Glen Canoe Trail Great Glen Way Great Trossachs Path John Muir Way Kintyre Way Loch Lomond and Cowal Way Moray Coast Trail Mull of Galloway Trail River Ayr Way Rob Roy Way Romans and Reivers Route St Cuthbert's Way Southern Upland Way Speyside Way Three Lochs Way West Highland Way West Island Way
Long-distance path (Northern Ireland)	Ulster Way

See also

External links