The Speyside Way. Alan Castle

source of the Spey to the official start of the Speyside Way at Aviemore, additional maps will be required, either Landranger 34 (Fort Augustus) and 35 (Kingussie & Monadhliath Mountains) (the latter map also covers the Badenoch Way), or Explorer maps 401 (Loch Laggan & Creag Meagaidh) and 402 (Badenoch & Upper Strathspey), and possibly, depending on exact route, Explorer sheet 400 (Loch Lochy & Glen Roy).

      Dava Way

      Landranger maps 36 (Grantown & Aviemore) and 27 (Nairn & Forres) are required to cover the entire length of the Dava Way, but all but the first mile of the route from Grantown-on-Spey is covered by sheet 27. The corresponding Explorer maps for the Dava Way are sheets 419 (Grantown-on-Spey & Hills of Cromdale) and 423 (Elgin, Forres & Lossiemouth). (An appreciable length of the Way is also shown on Explorer sheet 418 (Lochindorb, Grantown-on-Spey & Carrbridge), although there is no part of it that is not also covered by sheet 419.)

      Moray Coast Trail

      The Moray Coast Trail laps over three Landranger maps, 27 (Nairn & Forres), 28 (Elgin & Dufftown) and 29 (Banff & Huntly). Over three quarters of the trail is covered by Sheet 28, which overlaps Sheet 29, such that the latter is only necessary for the last ½ mile into Cullen at the eastern end of the route. The Explorer alternatives are 423 (Elgin, Forres & Lossiemouth), 424 (Buckie & Keith) and 425 (Huntly & Cullen).

      The Moray Way

      The Moray Way requires either Landranger maps 36 (Grantown & Aviemore), 27 (Nairn & Forres) and 28 (Elgin & Dufftown) or Explorer maps 419 (Grantown-on-Spey & Hills of Cromdale), 423 (Elgin, Forres & Lossiemouth) and 424 (Buckie & Keith). The Moray Way Association has produced a comprehensive map at 1:80,000 scale that covers the entire Moray Way in significant detail (see Appendix C).

Navigation and Waymarking

      No special navigational skills are required to walk the official routes of the Speyside Way, Dava Way and MCT. The trails are generally well waymarked, and by following the routes and maps in this guidebook you should have few problems in finding your way along them. The landscape through which most of these routes pass is relatively low lying, and the walker is rarely very far from public roads, villages or towns where help could be sought in cases of emergency. So even if the walker or cyclist does mislay the route, he or she is unlikely to come to any serious grief. The one exception to this is on the Tomintoul Spur, which heads into the hills for several miles, to a height just a little below 2000ft (610m), and where getting lost could have more serious consequences, so a familiarity with map and compass work is strongly advisable. However, the route is well waymarked in this section too, and in normal weather conditions and good visibility most people would be able to negotiate the section safely. The walks described in the Prologue require a much higher level of navigational skill and experience (see below).

      The Speyside Way is waymarked with a white Scottish thistle, identical to that used on all the other official Long Distance Routes in Scotland (West Highland Way, Great Glen Way and Southern Upland Way). These waymarks appear most often on wooden posts. The Tomintoul Spur is similarly waymarked, but the trails of the Dufftown Loop between Aberlour, Dufftown and Craigellachie do not carry the thistle waymarking. Where the Way crosses public roads and at other important junctions along the route, special Speyside Way signposts have been erected, often indicating the distance to the next village along the route. The Speyside Way has its official logo, and this appears on Speyside Way waymarks, signposts and information boards.

      The Dava Way, MCT and Moray Way are all waymarked with distinctive logos (see above). The Dava Way carries a triangular logo, depicting a railway viaduct and a bootprint, and the MCT has a distinctive fulmar logo. The sections of the Speyside Way, Dava Way and the MCT that make up the circular Moray Way carry, in addition to their individual trail waymarks and signposts, a special Moray Way logo, which consists of an inverted triangle, with a hiking man symbol, plus a wheel and horseshoe design, within it. The Badenoch Way has simple circular waymarks showing a directional arrow with the words ‘Badenoch Way’ around the perimeter. There are also numerous signposts or fingerposts on all four trails carrying the trail name and/or logo, reassuring the walker or cyclist that he or she is on the line of the named Way, and usually indicating a distance to the next village, town or amenity.