Riverside Lodge Gardens
 

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Riverside Lodge Gardens
Spean Bridge
Inverness-shire

Telephone
01397  712  702
Mobile 077 895 178 33

Cyclists welcome  Walkers welcome

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Where is Spean Bridge?


This small village lies some 10 miles north of Fort William on the A 82. The village grew because of the Thomas Telford bridge which crosses the river Spean at this point. It is also a very beautiful village as it is surrounded by some spectacular scenery, in particular the Grey Corries which lead on to the Nevis Range of which Ben Nevis is not only the highest of them all but also the highest mountain in Britain. All of that is to the south and east. To the north and west you have the Great Glen . This Glen follows the north west to south east route along the Highland fault line from Inverness to Fort William, along which the Caledonian canal runs. On top of all that the village is self contained with its own shop, post office, railway station, and several restaurants.

Riverside Lodge Gardens is ideally located to explore this part of the Highlands, be it for a day or several - we look forward to your company.

Ben Nevis From Caledonian Canal
Listed below are some of the attractions which you can visit from Riverside Lodge Gardens
Pap of Glencoe

Attractions within half an hour of Riverside Lodge Gardens

Situated 5 miles south on the A 82 towards Fort William you will come to Britain's only Gondola cable car ride. At Nevis Range you can ski in the winter or take the gondola to 2,1000 feet or take one of Britain's steepest down hill mountain bike routes in the summer. Whenever you are the views from the top of the Gondola are superb. If the weather turns inclement there is also a fully licensed restaurant at the top station.

Britain's highest mountain, Ben Nevis at 4406ft takes for the reasonably fit person around 4 hours to climb from Glen Nevis. If you want to climb the Ben wear stout footwear and take waterproofs with you even if it is a warm summers day at the start, the weather can change

The Caledonian Canal is one of the finest engineering examples of the early 1800s. Places to visit on the canal are the locks at Gairlochy or in particular at Neptune's Staircase by Corpach on the A830 road to Mallaig. The construction of this staircase started in 1803. It is a series of 8 locks which raises the canal a height of 65 feet over a distance of 500 yards. Built during the time of the Napoleonic Wars it cost £50,000 as the price of Oak was at a highly inflated price due to the demands made by the Royal Navy for repairing and building ships. The staircase therefore had to be constructed of cast iron sheathed with pine.

Cille Choirille a picturesque 14th century church and graveyard located high above the road to Newtonmore (A86) offering some wonderful views along Glean Spean.


The Commando Memorial. Sculpted in bronze, this memorial was erected in memory of the special training done by these men during the second world war

The Jacobite Steam train operates during the summer months and is worth a trip. Indeed the whole West Highland Line from Glasgow to Fort William and Mallaig is a wonderful journey starting in the suburbs of Glasgow and on to some of the wildest and bleak scenery in the Highlands. The line is ideal for day trips and for access to some wonderful walks. Plus if you are coming from the south remember the sleeper service from London Euston that stops at Spean Bridge

The sites below are all within an hour and a half drive of Riverside Lodge Gardens.

The main "village"of Stratshspey. Aviemore was a small village in the early 60's, but with the development of the ski area is now a bustling activity centre. New this year is the "Funicular railway" which has replaced the old chairlifts

Inverness only became a city in 2000 but always been considered the capital of the Highlands. The A82 from Spean takes you direct to Inverness passing on the left side of loch Ness and Urquhart Castle.

Mallaig is not only the ferry point for the Island of Skye but is also a busy fishing port. First of all take the road to Fort William and then travel along the famous " Road to the Isles"

A busy ferry town, Oban provides access to many of the well known Hebridean islands. Mull, Tiree, Iona etc. Well worth a visit.

You have three choices in how you can access Skye by car. Either by ferry from Mallaig or Glenelg, which is the old "drovers" route, or by bridge from Kyle of Lochalsh.