We set off at 9.45 and made good time. Straight on to M9 which leads on to the A9….a very straight forward route. Good roads and easy driving. Leaving plenty of time to enjoy the wonderful scenery.

Our first stop was at Blair Atholl station for John to photograph a train. We also had a very nice cup of coffee….scored 10/10!!, at The Atholl Arms Hotel

The scenery was fairly dramatic

With patches of snow…

Contrasting with beautiful vibrant bluebells …

We continued on our way passed Drumochter Pass which is the highest point on the UK rail network.

We stopped of at Kingussie.

There were still a lot of Daffodils out.

We sat in the station carpark having our sandwiches.

From here we dropped in at Avimore. It would have been rude to pass by and not call in at the station and the toilets !!!!

On we went up to and passed Slochd one of the steepest climbs on the rail network and also a place of mass humiliation for me……many, many years ago on my first time to Scotland with John we stopped here to have a picnic lunch….I asked John if any trains were coming and he assured me there were none due…so I walked along the line side footpath and found a nice big bush which shielded me from the road….bursting for a wee I squatted down…..mid flow a steam train appeared over the rise with a viewing platform on the back of the train, this was full of oriental tourists and their cameras….they were not shy in clicking away at me in mid-wee!!!!! Talk about embarrassing….Johns only excuse – to this day- is that in those days they didn’t put “The Specials” on the internet timetable …..ummmm…I haven’t quite forgiven him yet…of course he found it hysterically funny…so every time we go by John takes a picture of it…just to remind me!!!!

Just after Slochd you can see the dramatic viaduct at Tomatin

We continued on through the countryside.

Around about 2.30 we arrived in Inverness and easily found our AirB&B – a very nice ground floor of a period house. 2 double bedrooms, one en-suite and the other next to a bathroom, a large lounge with two big comfortable settees and a well equipped kitchen……The washing was soon on and we rested before going our for supper.

We went to The White House because we were meeting my sister and her husband for the evening. They just happened to be here on holiday at the same time as us. We had a very nice meal before returning to our accommodation for a much needed good nights sleep.