Map 3 Dochan Woods to Lairig Ghru (Cairngorms)













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Follow this path through Dochan Woods until you reach a five bar steel gate.  Pass through this gate and onto the derelict Dochan Farm about ¼ mile ahead. Here take a right turn down the hill to Chapelton where the track changes into a tarmac road.  Follow this road until you reach the A95 to Avimore. Cross this busy road carefully to the brightly coloured Eco School, then follow the cycle track to the Boat of Garten which runs parallel to the road.  About half way to the Boat of Garten there is a path to your right into the woods. Take this path and follow it through the pine trees until you reach a forest track.  Take a right and follow the track for about a mile keeping a look out for red squirrel and pine martins along the way. Here you meet another track and to your left where you will see the Strathspey Steam Railway Line. Follow the track to your left under the railway line; here you might even see a steam locomotive puffing smoke into the woods. The path now joins the Speyside Way. This shadows the railway line for a couple of miles, passing back under it through a stone tunnel just before entering into the outskirts of Aviemore.  Take any route though the town, but do stop for provisions and a coffee.  I recommend the all day breakfast bun and coffee in the Blue Café (Café Bleu). After a well earned rest, continue past the railway station and follow the signs/path to Rothiemurchus Spey Bridge Park . This leads you to the B970 to Coylumbridge. Turn left and follow this road for about one and a half miles to the campsite at the edge of the Rothiemurchus Forrest.  Just before the campsite there is a forest track to the right signposted to Lairig Ghru.  Take this track through the woods and up into the Cairngorms.  The path has been upgraded and is easy to follow through the forest to the steel constructed Cairngorm Club footbridge. Cross this bridge over the river Am Beanaidh and take a right following the path along the valley. Watch out for mountain bikers without bells!  This is a single track path that winds its way up through the forest as the valley falls steeply away to your right.  As you climb higher the path becomes more technically difficult, so a sturdy stick is a good companion. It is quite a steep climb, but because of the difficulty of the path there is a tendency not to rush, so it is not as lung busting as it could be.  The path is well walked and easy to follow, but as you exit the forest the path becomes more and more rocky, so care should be taken at all times.  You are now entering Lairig Ghru. Take time here to look back towards Aviemore, as the views on a clear day are wonderful.