A87 road
| A87 road in the UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| map | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Basic data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operator: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Start of the street: |
Invergarry ( 57 ° 4 ′ N , 4 ° 48 ′ W ) |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| End of street: |
Uig , Isle of Skye ( 57 ° 35 ′ N , 6 ° 23 ′ W ) |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overall length: | 159.3 km (99 mi ) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The A87 in Glen Shiel in Kintail | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Course of the road
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Map with all coordinates: The A87 road is an A-road in the Scottish Council Area Highland . It is part of a connection between the east and west coast of Scotland and runs across the Highlands from the village of Invergarry on the banks of Loch Oich in the Great Glen through Kintail and over the Skye Bridge to the Isle of Skye , where it ends in the ferry terminal of Uig . From there there are ferry connections to the Outer Hebrides to Tarbert on Lewis and Harris and Lochmaddy on North Uist .
course
The road begins at the junction of the A82 in Invergarry, a small town in the Great Glen about 25 kilometers north of Spean Bridge . From there the A87 climbs steadily westwards out of Glen Garry , initially on the north bank of Loch Garry , which will soon be abandoned. About 10 kilometers west of Invergarry, a narrow single track road branches off, which runs as a cul-de-sac to the small settlement Kinloch Hourn at the east end of Loch Hourn . The A87 soon turns uphill north and passes the dammed Loch Loyne , which was dammed in the 1950s as part of the Glenmoriston Hydroelectric Project operated by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board . The A87 ran much further west here until 1957, when it had to be relocated due to the damming of Loch Loyne. It first followed today's dead end road in Glen Garry to the small town of Tomdoun , from there it crossed a chain of hills into Glen Loyne, which lies parallel to the north, and crossed Loch Loyne, which is much lower in its natural state, on a bridge. From there the road climbed westward on the north slope of the valley until the transition into Glen Shiel was possible over a low pass . North of the Loch Loyne dam, the A87 meets the A887 coming from the east , which saves road traffic between Inverness and the Isle of Skye having to go through Invergarry. From there, the A87 runs west again along the north bank of Loch Cluanie , another reservoir of the Glenmoriston Project , through the Kintail region. At the west end of Loch Cluanie is the Hotel Cluanie Inn , the only settlement in this part of Kintail. Until 1957, the A87 coming from the south only returned to its current route here.
To the west of Cluanie Inn, the road descends again through the steeply rising and scenic Glen Shiel. Most famous are the Five Sisters of Kintail , a mountain range with the five peaks Sgùrr na Ciste Duibhe , Sgùrr na Càrnach , Sgùrr Fhuaran , Sgùrr nan Spàinteach and Sgùrr nan Saighead each over 1000 meters on the north side of the valley. At the end of the valley at Shiel Bridge, the narrow road to Glenelg branches off to Glenelg Ferry , a ferry connection to Kylerhea on Skye. The A87 reaches sea level here at the east end of Loch Duich , a branch of Loch Alsh , the strait between the Scottish mainland and Skye, and follows Loch Duich on its north bank to the village of Dornie . Shortly before Dornie, the road passes the famous Eilean Donan Castle and its visitor center on an island in Loch Duich . At Dornie, the A87 crosses Loch Long on a bridge , another branch of Loch Alsh. About five kilometers west of the bridge, the A890 branches off to the north, via which Strathcarron and Achnasheen can be reached. Following the course of the coast, the A87 reaches the village of Kyle of Lochalsh , the end point of the Kyle of Lochalsh Line and until the completion of the Skye Bridge in 1995 ferry terminal for Skye. The A87 originally ended at the ferry port and was only continued to the island after the bridge was opened.
The A87 is the most important road connection on Skye, from which almost all the spur roads branch off, via which the various peninsulas of Skyes can be reached. Shortly before Broadford , the second largest town on Skye, the A851 branches off to the south onto the Sleat peninsula after the main town there, Armadale . In Broadford there is another junction to Elgol on the Strathaird Peninsula . The A87 now runs largely along the northeast coast of Skye and passes the Cuillin Hills south of it , the highest peaks of which are almost 1,000 meters high. The ferry to Raasay , one of Skye's neighboring islands, begins at the small town of Sconser . At the Sligachan Hotel, the A863 branches off to the west, via which the Minginish and Duirinish peninsulas can be reached. The A87 runs from here inland to the north to the island capital Portree , the economic center of Skyes, about 15 kilometers away . In Portree the A855 branches off to the north, via which the east coast of the Trotternish peninsula is developed. The A87 initially runs through the interior of the island again. Shortly after Portree, the A850 branches off to Dunvegan and Dunvegan Castle . The A87 reaches the west coast of Trotternish at Kensaleyre, which it follows to the end at the Uig ferry port .
In total, the A87 is around 159 kilometers long, around 99 miles. It has only had its current length since 1995 after it was extended to Uig with the completion of the Skye Bridge. The section on Skye was previously part of the A850 between Kyleakin and the junction north of Portree, the section from there to Uig was the A856. The road is consistently two-lane and mostly well developed. It is particularly popular in summer as it is the most important connection to Skye.
