ACTIVE OUTDOORS: The remains of Rosehaugh House and a disused railway add interest to Black Isle route

Rosehaugh House must have been an impressive sight in its day. Looking out over the Moray Firth from its elevated position above the Black Isle village of Avoch, it was a grand mansion house.

It endured many changes over its lifespan, with a house on the site since the 1760s until it was demolished in 1959 when it was in need of repair and a buyer couldn’t be found – despite reputed interest from the late Queen Mother among others.

Today, the estate contains various popular walks, many of them mapped on the Black Isle paths network noticeboard in Avoch. The Rosehaugh Estate Circular route passes the site of the old house, and this longer circuit begins by following that route.

I did this as a gentle run, but it could just as easily be walked or even cycled. Most of it is on good tracks or minor roads, with the slightly muddier return along the disused railway line that links Fortrose and Avoch.

However you tackle it, there’s no getting away from the fact that it begins with a bit of a climb. From the centre of the village, pass the sculpture of the fishing boat and head up the road signed for Killen.

Keep following the road until it turns 90 degrees right after a little children’s play area, where you leave the road to continue straight ahead past some more houses, signed initially for the estate’s South Drive then for East Lodge as you pass a gate.

Autumn is a great season for a visit to the estate, with the changing leaves adding glorious colour to the scene as you pass the lodge and continue to the dilapidated Rosehaugh Mains farm buildings.

The more impressive house seen above a large field on the way along this track is the old dairy – once operated as a separate enterprise from the main farm.

At a junction beside a bridge over the Killen Burn, turn right to take a tarmac track up the hill, keeping right ahead as it twists through some impressive trees.

A wooden signpost marks the continuation of the route towards Killen and Limekilns, but I was intrigued by the manmade structures to the right, so went to investigate. A terrace overlooks what was clearly the formal gardens of Rosehaugh House and one remaining building opposite is, I learned later, the former wine cellar.

Returning to the signpost, I carried on up the track past another building then past the entrance to Gray’s Cottage before keeping left at a fork to reach what I believe was the old kennels.

I had a change of plan here, as originally I had intended to follow the route to Killen but instead I was tempted by the track up the ridge through the Bog of Shannon Wood. The climb was gentle enough here and the forestry track made for easy running to reach the public road at a fork.

Take a right turn and drop down the hill, following the Rosehaugh Estate Extended Circular route from the map. Even though the Shaltie Burn path, which heads off to the right at the bottom of the hill on its way back to Avoch, looked like a nice little trail, I wanted a few more miles under my belt today so decided to continue along the road to the corner to meet the Knockmuir Wood route.

Where the roads turns 90 degrees to the right, go left to follow a track between the field and the woods. A few puddles require slight detours off the edge of the track here and there but it’s largely a decent enough surface.

Shortly after a very grand looking cabin-style house, you come to the public road again. Take a right here and enjoy the views over the Moray Firth and, as you approach Fortrose, Chanonry Point. Ignore the right turn to Insch, soon continuing along a pavement until you see a footpath sign for Fortrose.

Follow this grassy trail downhill – great fun for running – all the way down until you see an old railway underpass with some steps leading up to the old track bed. At the top of the steps, there’s another nice view over the tops of the houses to the sea before you turn right for the return ticket to Avoch.

The Black Isle Railway closed to passengers in 1951 and to freight in 1960, and the two-mile stretch between Fortrose and Avoch has been reclaimed by the community as a great traffic-free link between the villages.

It’s a lovely little route, if a little boggy underfoot in places, that has a wonderful outlook through the trees to the firth and is a great wildlife corridor too.

As you reach the houses, ignore a series of little link paths heading off to various houses and streets to the left, keeping on the main track until it comes to an end at the car park of Avoch Parish Church, the present building of which dates from 1870.

James Douglas Fletcher, once the owner of Rosehaugh House, had his own padded pew upstairs in the church and used bibles with the word Rosehaugh in gold lettering. The church is also the burial place of Sir Alexander Mackenzie, whose name adorns various parts of Canada including the Mackenzie River.

Finally, a left turn at the road leads back down the hill to the centre of the village.

Route details

Rosehaugh and Avoch circuit

Distance 7.5 miles / 12km

Terrain Estate roads and tracks, single-track roads, paths (boggy in places)

Start/finish Avoch

Map OS Landranger 26 & 27; OS Explorer 432; Walks in and Around Avoch leaflet

A nice circuit of Rosehaugh Estate with a longer return via Fortrose and the disused railway path