The Dava Way is a

long-distance path A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...

that mostly follows the route of the former

Highland Railway The Highland Railway (HR) was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921, operating north of Perth railway station in Scotland and serving the farthest north of Britain. Based in Inverness, the company was formed by merger ...

between

Grantown Grantown-on-Spey ( gd, Baile nan Granndach) is a town in the Highland Council Area, historically within the county of Moray. It is located on a low plateau at Freuchie beside the river Spey at the northern edge of the Cairngorm mountains, abou ...

and

Forres Forres (; gd, Farrais) is a town and former royal burgh in the north of Scotland on the Moray coast, approximately northeast of Inverness and west of Elgin. Forres has been a winner of the Scotland in Bloom award on several occasions. There a ...

. The railway line, built as a route between Inverness and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, opened in 1863 and closed in 1965. The route was reopened as a long distance path in 2005. It is listed as one of

Scotland's Great Trails Scotland's Great Trails are long-distance "people-powered" trails in Scotland, analogous to the National Trails of England and Wales or the Grande Randonnée paths of France. The designated routes are primarily intended for walkers, but may have se ...

NatureScot NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and ...

, and links directly to two further Great Trails: the Moray Coast Trail and the

Speyside Way The Speyside Way (Doric: '; gd, Slighe Shrath Spe) is a long-distance path in the Scottish Highlands. The route begins in Buckie and ends at Newtonmore, away. There is an optional spur leading off the main route to Tomintoul, adding and of as ...

. It is currently the shortest of the Great Trails, but can be combined with sections of the Moray Coast Trail and Speyside Way to form a circular route known as the Moray Way. About 3,000 people use the path every year, of whom about 400 complete the entire route.

History

Although in 1860 Inverness had a rail link to the south via

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, this was circuitous and involved a change between two railway stations in the town. A more direct route south bypassing Aberdeen was planned leaving the Inverness to Aberdeen Line at

and heading south to

and then via the

Pass of Drumochter The Pass of Drumochter ( gd, Druim Uachdair) meaning simply 'high ridge' is the main mountain pass between the northern and southern central Scottish Highlands. The A9 road passes through here, as does the Highland Main Line, the railway be ...

. Work started in 1861, with the line between

and opening on 3 August before the complete line opened on 9 September 1863. The line was built and initially operated by Inverness & Perth Junction Railway, which became part of the Highland Railway in 1865. The line north of Aviemore was bypassed by the current more direct route via the Nairn Viaduct in 1898. In his 1963 report " The Reshaping of British Railways"

Dr Beeching Richard Beeching, Baron Beeching (21 April 1913 – 23 March 1985), commonly known as Dr Beeching, was a physicist and engineer who for a short but very notable time was chairman of British Railways. He became a household name in Britain in the ...

recommending closing the network's least used stations and lines, which included the line between Aviemore and Forres and this subsequently closed in 1965. The Dava Way Association was formed in 1997 to create a walking and cycling path along the former railway. Negotiations and purchase of the former alignment were necessary before the clearing could start in 2003. The way was opened in 2005, although this at the time included a diversion along a minor road.

Route

The long route from Grantown-on-Spey in the Cairngorms National Park to Forres in Moray mainly follows the old railway line. Starting from Grantown and heading north, the path crosses

Dava Moor Dava may refer to: *Dava, a division of Hindu Akhara * Dava (comics), a fictional martial artist appearing in comics published by DC Comics *Dava Bazaar, an area in South Mumbai noted for producing medical and scientific instruments as well as lab ...

where it reaches its summit of . Continuing to Dunphail, the River Divie is crossed by the old railway viaduct, used today as the symbol of the Dava Way. Between Dunphail and Forres a new bridge was installed in 2004 to cross the Altyre Burn.

References

Books

* *

External links

*
Dava Way Leaflet
Dava Way Association {{Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom Highland Railway Footpaths in Moray Rail trails in Scotland Cycleways in Scotland Scotland's Great Trails

History

Route

See also

References

Books

Further reading

External links