Inverness is a wonderful, easy going City. After a light breakfast, courtesy of our Air BnB hosts, we went out for a walk. Inverness was planned as a stop that would allow us to take it easy and, "catch our breath". We are just a few days over the halfway point in the trip, so far we have walked over 187 miles!

Since we were in Inverness a few years ago a lot seemed familiar to us. Purely by coincidence, we are only a few short blocks from were we stayed last time.


Yesterday walking from the rail station it became obvious that this is a bicycle friendly town! How friendly we would find out this morning.


Today as we neared the city center and the Ness River, yup-it flows from Loch Ness, we heard a strange whistling. On this Sunday morning, either it was a parade, riot, or....

Several people in safety vests were waiving bright flags and blowing whistles. They were directing bicycles in their own dedicated lane. This was the Etape Loch Ness, bicycle road race. Entry into today's popular race opened a year ago and reached its capacity with 5200 riders signing up in less than a day.


It's a 66 mile (106km) race around Loch Ness known for its scenic beauty and of course, Nessy. No sighting this year. The event offers a physical challenge as barricades offer traffic free roads. Many riders just compete against themselves, others like the team of 1000, got pledged donations to help support cancer research.

So, if your interested (Captain Chuck!) you can find out more at:
https://www.etapelochness.com/event/etape-loch-ness/

For us, we'll stick to walking, but who knows, tomorrow we head to the Isle of Skye!

Fair Winds & Quiet Anchorages,
Wendy & Jeff