The only places of refreshment on the wilderness walks in the Prologue are at the starting points of Roybridge, Spean Bridge and Fort Augustus, and at Laggan at the end of Stages 1 and 1A. All food and drink must be carried for the duration of these walks, although there is abundant water to drink in the many burns (you may wish to treat this water with a purifying agent before drinking).
Tourist Information
The Spey Valley has several Tourist Information Centres (TICs) often operated in partnership with the local community. There are offices at Kingussie, Aviemore, Grantown-on-Spey and Aberlour There is a TIC at Tomintoul on the Spur route. Only Aviemore is open all year, the others being closed from October to Easter. There is a seasonal TIC at Forres, where the Dava Way ends and the MCT begins, and elsewhere in Moray there is a tourist office open all year at Elgin. Two of the starting locations for the treks described in the Prologue, Spean Bridge and Fort Augustus, both have seasonal TICs. Scotland's Tourist Board, known as Visit Scotland, has an informative website at www.visitscotland.com.
One of the joys of walking the Speyside Way and the trails of Moray is that there are so many interesting things to do and places to visit either on route or with a short detour from the trail. The most obvious attractions are the numerous whisky distilleries, many of which offer free guided tours during the spring and summer months (see Appendix D). But there are also castles to visit, archaeological sites to examine, steam railways to ride, wildlife reserves to enjoy and many more places of interest along the way. The area is a magnet for birdwatchers. Golfers and anglers can even stop walking for a half-day or more to enjoy their sport before continuing on the Way. Further details of the various visitor attractions will be found in the relevant sections of this guide.
What to Take
The amount and type of equipment to take depends on whether you intend to hike these trails over a number of consecutive days, staying at accommodation each night, or as a series of day walks. The day walker needs only a very light pack, containing map, guidebook, food and drink for the day, and perhaps a camera. But you should always take waterproof, windproof and warm clothing, even in summertime, as weather conditions can change rapidly in these northern latitudes, even at relatively low altitudes.
Crossing a footbridge in the rain just before Aberlour (Speyside Way)
The quantity of equipment needed by the walker using B&B, hotel or hostel accommodation is much less that that of the backpacker camping out each night. The most important consideration, always, is to ensure that the pack is as light as possible; do not take unnecessary items. Nothing spoils a walking holiday more than having to endure the excessive weight of an overloaded rucksack. Assemble your equipment and then go through it carefully to see what may safely be left behind.
If staying at a B&B, hotel or hostel it should not be necessary to carry more than 15–20lbs (6.5–9kg), even including food and drink. Take clothing made from lightweight wicking material and do not carry large amounts of spare clothes (follow the ‘wear one/wash one’ philosophy). Backpackers should aim for under 30lbs (13.5kg) and certainly never more than 35lbs (16kg) on a route of this nature, where food can be bought from shops, cafés and pubs at regular intervals along the trails (except on the Dava Way). People who want to take a heavy rucksack, but not to carry it, should contact a taxi company in the region that will transport baggage from place to place along these trails on a daily basis (see Appendix B).
The rucksack, the size of which will depend on whether or not camping equipment is to be carried, is possibly the most important item of gear. Make sure that it offers a comfortable carry before you set out on your holiday. A dustbin liner for the rucksack and a supply of plastic bags should keep the contents dry in heavy rain. Make sure you pack:
a good pair of lightweight boots – heavier mountaineering boots are not necessary on the main trails in the summer months – and sufficient clothing to keep you warm, dry and safe
maps, guidebook, compass
a basic first-aid kit plus any personal medicines
a small washing kit (no towel needed if using B&B or hotel accommodation)
sufficient food and drink
a mobile phone, but be aware that you may not always get a signal in the areas covered by these trails.
Most other items will be superfluous. My luxuries consist only of a camera and a small exercise book to be used as a travel journal.
Backpackers will also need a good lightweight tent, sleeping bag (not a heavy five-season one if walking during the summer months), a lightweight insulating mat/air bed and a lightweight travel towel. If you intend to cook your own food then obviously a cooking stove, utensils and fuel will be required. As food shops, pubs, restaurants, and fish and chip shops are frequently encountered on the main trails, the backpacker should decide before setting out whether to make use of these and leave the stove at home. Only backpackers can sensibly consider the walks described in the Prologue through the remote mountain and moorland areas of the Grampians. If venturing into these regions then it is necessary to think more carefully about what is taken on the trek and what left behind – certainly take extra emergency food, a torch and an emergency blanket.
Remember that, with the exceptions of the treks outlined in the Prologue and the Tomintoul Spur of the Speyside Way, most sections of the trails described in this book offer easy-grade, relatively low-level walking on good paths and tracks, rarely far from most modern facilities. Therefore for these trips it is not necessary to spend large sums of money on the sort of high-tech mountain equipment that is more appropriate to remote and high mountain areas of the world. The mantra ‘think safe, think sensible, think warm and dry, think light, think economical’ is not a bad one.
Maps
This guidebook contains Ordnance Survey mapping of the entire Speyside Way, the Dava Way, the Moray Coast Trail and the other described trails, with the route of each clearly overlaid. Provided no serious navigational errors are made en route, or long detours from the Way are envisaged, then this is the only mapping that is required to walk the trails. However, many walkers will want to carry some general maps of the area in order to identify interesting landscape features along the way and to locate off-route places of interest. They will also be useful if you have to divert from the line of the trail to secure a night's accommodation.
Cyclist on Dava Way alongside Dallas Dhu Distillery (Beryl Castle)
Speyside Way
For the Speyside Way the best strip map (showing at least a mile either side of the route) is the excellent one published by Footprint (see Appendix C). The route of the Speyside Way from Aviemore to Buckie, as well as the spur from Tomintoul, the Dufftown routes and the Badenoch Way, are all included on one sheet at a scale of 1:45,000. An alternative strip map is published by Harvey Maps at a scale of 1:40,000. This is a metric map printed on tough waterproof material and is GPS compatible (but does not mark the Dufftown routes or the Badenoch Way). This map, updated in 2015, includes the recently opened extension from Kincraig to Aviemore.
If more area either side of the trail is required, then the relevant OS maps are the ones to acquire, either at 1:50,000 scale (the Landranger series) or at 1:25,000 scale (Explorer maps).
Landranger (covers all the official Speyside Way route, including the Tomintoul Spur): sheets 36 (Grantown & Aviemore) and 28 (Elgin & Dufftown)
Explorer (whole route): sheets 403 (Cairn Gorm & Aviemore), 419