The A832 is a road in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland ...

, linking

Cromarty Cromarty (; gd, Cromba, ) is a town, civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish and former royal burgh in Ross and Cromarty, in the Highland (council area), Highland area of Scotland. Situated at the tip of the Black Isle on the southern shore o ...

, on the east coast, to

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

on the west coast, and beyond Gairloch to Braemore Junction. It is long and runs entirely in the former county of

Ross and Cromarty Ross and Cromarty ( gd, Ros agus Cromba), sometimes referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the l ...

. The road forms part of the

Wester Ross Coastal Trail The Wester Ross Coastal Trail is a route in the Western part of the Scottish Highlands.{{Cite web , url=http://www.iknow-scotland.co.uk/tourist_information/highlands/north_west_highlands/sutherland_highlands.htm , title=Sutherland Highlands Tour ...

Cromarty to Gorstan

Starting in

on the

Black Isle The Black Isle ( gd, an t-Eilean Dubh, ) is a peninsula within Ross and Cromarty, in the Scottish Highlands. It includes the towns of Cromarty and Fortrose, and the villages of Culbokie, Jemimaville, Rosemarkie, Avoch, Munlochy, Tore, and ...

, the A832 travels south alongside the

Moray Firth The Moray Firth (; Scottish Gaelic: ''An Cuan Moireach'', ''Linne Mhoireibh'' or ''Caolas Mhoireibh'') is a roughly triangular inlet (or firth) of the North Sea, north and east of Inverness, which is in the Highland council area of north of Scot ...

Fortrose Fortrose (; gd, A' Chananaich, sco, Chainry) is a town and former royal burgh in Highland, Scotland, United Kingdom. It is on the Moray Firth, about north-east of Inverness. The burgh is a popular location for trying to spot bottlenose dol ...

, then turns west, heading inland. It crosses the A9 and A835 at

Tore Tore is a Scandinavian masculine name. It is derived from the Old Norse name ''Thórir'', which is composed of ''thorr'' which means thunder, and ''arr'' which means warrior. So Thunder Warrior or Thor's Warrior. The most famous person by this na ...

and continues to

Muir of Ord Muir of Ord ( gd, Am Blàr Dubh) is a village in Easter Ross, in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is situated near the western end of the Black Isle, about west of the city of Inverness and south of Dingwall. The village has a popula ...

, passing near to the

Beauly Firth The Beauly Firth ( gd, Linne Fharair) is a firth in northern Scotland. It is the outlet for both the River Beauly and River Ness. The Beauly Firth is bounded at its western end by the town of Beauly and its eastern by Inverness, where it emptie ...

. Five miles after Muir of Ord, the A832 meets the A835 again at a T-junction, and turning left, multiplexes with the A835 for nine miles (14 km) to

Gorstan Gorstan ( gd, An Goirtean) is a small hamlet in Garve Garve () is a village on the Black Water river, in Ross-shire, and is in the Highland Council area of Scotland. It is situated northwest of Contin, on the A835, the main road to Ullapool ...

. On this stretch it passes

Contin Contin ( Gaelic: Cunndainn) is a Ross-shire village, and a civil parish and community council area between Strathpeffer and Garve in the Highland council area of Scotland. The parish has a population of 675.Rogie Falls and Loch Garve.

Gorstan to Gairloch

the A832 and A835 diverge again. They meet again later on at Braemore Junction, where the A832 terminates at the A835. From Gorstan to Braemore Junction on the A835 is , however on the A832 it is a vast circuit to the west coast and around the mountains of

Wester Ross Wester Ross () is an area of the Northwest Highlands of Scotland in the council area of Highland. The area is loosely defined, and has never been used as a formal administrative region in its own right, but is generally regarded as lying to t ...

. From Gorstan the A832 heads west along

Strath Bran A strath is a large valley, typically a river valley that is wide and shallow (as opposed to a glen, which is typically narrower and deep). Word and etymology An anglicisation of the Gaelic word ''srath'', it is one of many that have been abs ...

Achnasheen Achnasheen ( Gaelic ''Achadh na Sìne'') is a small village in Ross-shire in the Highland council area of Scotland. The village is situated on the River Bran at the junction of two roads built by Thomas Telford. Despite the size of the village ...

, alongside the Dingwall and Skye Railway. At Achnasheen the A890 branches off to the south to

Loch Carron Loch Carron (Scottish Gaelic: "Loch Carrann") is a sea loch on the west coast of Ross and Cromarty in the Scottish Highlands, which separates the Lochalsh peninsula from the Applecross peninsula, and from the Stomeferry headland east of Loc ...

, following the railway. The A832 continues west, passing by Loch a' Chroisg and over a low mountain pass to descend Glen Docherty to Kinlochewe. Until recently, this stretch was a single track road with passing places, but in recent years the road was upgraded to two lanes. At Kinlochewe, there is a junction with the A896, which heads west through

Glen Torridon The Torridon Hills surround Torridon village in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The name is usually applied to the mountains to the north of Glen Torridon. They are among the most dramatic and spectacular peaks in the British Isles and made ...

. The A832 continues north west, beneath

Beinn Eighe Beinn Eighe () is a mountain massif in the Torridon area of Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. Lying south of Loch Maree, it forms a long ridge with many spurs and summits, two of which are classified as Munros: R ...

and along the shore of

Loch Maree Loch Maree ( gd, Loch Ma-ruibhe) is a loch in Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. At long and with a maximum width of , it is the fourth-largest freshwater loch in Scotland; it is the largest north of Loch Ness. Its surface area ...

, with views of Slioch on the opposite shore. After diverging from Loch Maree it climbs through Slattadale, and there is another short single-track stretch as the A832 descends

Kerrydale Robina () is a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Robina had a population of 23,106 people. Robina is one of the first master-planned residential communities in Australia. During its construction it was the la ...

to Gair Loch.

Gairloch to Dundonnell

After reaching the west coast at Gair Loch, the A832 follows the coast northwards, gradually making a turn back towards the south-east. It circuits the

Dundonnell and Fisherfield Forest Fisherfield Forest The Dundonnell and Fisherfield Forest covers a large mountainous area of Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland, lying between Loch Maree and Little Loch Broom. It is sometimes nicknamed ''The Great Wildernes ...

, a vast mountain wilderness region between Loch Maree and Little Loch Broom. At Loch Gairloch, the A832 turns north through the village of

, then turns east and crosses the headland between Loch Gairloch and Loch Ewe. It descends to the latter at Poolewe and follows its coast northwards to Drumchork, passing

Inverewe Garden Inverewe Garden is a botanical garden in the Scottish Highlands. It is located just to the north of Poolewe in Wester Ross, and is noted for the breadth of its collection. The garden was created from barren land in 1862 by Osgood Mackenzie on t ...

. At Drumchork the road rises again, crossing a headland to Gruinard Bay. After following the coast of Gruinard Bay the road crosses one more headland and descends to Little Loch Broom, now travelling south-eastwards. It continues past the end of the loch, and along the Strath Beag valley through the village of Dundonnell.

Dundonnell to Braemore Junction

This stretch of road is one of several to be known as the ''Destitution Road''. It was built during the Highland Potato Famine of 1846–1847, to provide employment for

crofters A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable, and usually, but not always, with a crofter's dwelling thereon. A crofter is one who has tenure and use of the land, typically as a tenant farmer, especially in rural area ...

in exchange for

oatmeal Oatmeal is a preparation of oats that have been de-husked, steamed, and flattened, or a coarse flour of hulled oat grains ( groats) that have either been milled (ground) or steel-cut. Ground oats are also called white oats. Steel-cut oats ...

rations. Beyond Dundonnell, the A832 enters the Dundonnell Gorge and begins climbing alongside several waterfalls on the Dundonnell River. The road leaves the top of the gorge at Fain Bridge and continues across the open moors to the summit at an altitude of 332 metres (1089 ft), surrounded by the towering peaks of

An Teallach An Teallach (Scottish Gaelic for 'the forge' or 'the anvil') is a mountain group in Wester Ross, in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. It lies west of Dundonnell Forest, north of Loch na Sealga, and south of Little Loch Broom. Its highest pe ...

, Sgurr nan Clach Geala and Beinn Dearg. On its final stretch, the road descends alongside the Abhainn Cuileig river, then turns alongside the Corrieshalloch Gorge. There is a car park here, with footpath access to the top of the gorge and the

Falls of Measach Falls may refer to: Places * Waterfalls or rapids * Falls, North Carolina, USA * Falls, West Virginia, USA Other uses * The ropes or wires, fed through davits, that are used to secure and lower a ship's lifeboats. * Falls (surname) * The sepa ...

. Shortly after passing the gorge, the A832 terminates at Braemore Junction on the A835.

External links

A832 at SABRE
{{DEFAULTSORT:8-0835 Roads in Scotland Scenic routes in the United Kingdom Transport in Highland (council area)