kingussie

A couple of miles further on is the village of Kingussie. The name is derived from the Gaelic meaning 'the Head of the Pinewood'. Before the arrival of the railway in 1890, Kingussie was a centre for weaving and spinning. Along with Newtonmore, it became a popular tourist stop with wealthy English families journeying to the Highlands by train, bringing their household from the south and setting up home here for the summer. Shooting and fishing, as well as taking the beneficial Highland air, were popular. Beautiful Victorian houses built as holiday homes are still evident.

One of Kingussie's main attractions is the Highland Folk Museum found just off the main street. Originating on the island of Iona, the museum moved around the Highlands quite a bit before settling in Kingussie in 1935. During those travels, it has amassed a fascinating collection of items that give a rare insight into aspects of ancient Highland life. In the Hebridean Black House from Lewis, a replica of the houses used around 200 years ago, there are short-legged stools to keep the residents lower that 'the peat reek' or smoke from the open fire as well as an adjacent byre where the tenant's livestock was kept. In the main building of the museum, there is a farming exhibition and often varying demonstrations of traditional crafts put on by staff who take an active role in bringing the museum to life.

The nearby ruins of Ruthven Barracks (or the 'Red Place') are set on a man-made mound, backed by the Cairngorm Mountains. In their time they commanded one of the major crossing sites on the Spey and this is still easily appreciated when you see them towering over the Spey valley. It was built by government militia in 1718 as part of the Highland campaign to control the Jacobites and used as a staging post for troops and horses. To the followers of the Jacobite cause, however, this was a stain on their land, a symbol of suppression by the House of Hanover. In February 1746 the Jacobite army took control of the barracks and blew them up to avoid them falling back into English hands. Two and a half months later, following their dire defeat at the battle of Culloden, the tattered remains of Prince Charles's forces came back to Ruthven expecting to carry on the campaign. But there, they received orders to disperse as the young pretender made his escape back to France. 'Let every man seek his own safety in the best way that he can,' was the word from the retreating commander. The barracks remain roofless and bare, much as they were left in those pitiable days.

The River Spey, meandering through this part of the area, has been a keynote in Scottish and Highland history and amply contributes to the magnificent scenery surrounding it. It commences its 98 mile (158km) journey to the Moray Firth at Loch Spey in the heart of the Monadhliath Mountains passing through the communities of Newtonmore, Kingussie, Aviemore, Boat of Garten, Grantown on Spey, Fochabers and finally entering the sea at Spey Bay.

Behind Kingussie, the Monadhlaith Mountains, reaching from the Spey Valley over to Loch Ness to the west, appear quite desolate, littered with peat bogs and glacial debris scattered over a granite base.