THE PARALLEL ROADS OF GLEN ROY. 
383 
with a view to self-instruction, I made a solitary pilgrimage to 
the place, and explored pretty thoroughly the roads of the 
principal glen. I traced the highest road to the col dividing 
Glen Roy from Glen Spey, and, thanks to the civility of an 
Ordnance surveyor, I was enabled to inspect some of the roads 
with a theodolite. As stated by Pennant, the width of the 
roads amounts sometimes to more than twenty yards ; but near 
the head of Glen Roy the highest road ceases to have any width, 
for it runs along the face of a rock, the effect of the lapping of 
the water on the more friable portions of the rock being per- 
fectly distinct to this hour. My knowledge of the region was, 
however, far from complete, and nine years had dimmed the 
memory even of the portion which I had thoroughly examined. 
Hence my desire to see the roads once more before venturing to 
talk to you about them. The Easter holidays were to be 
devoted to this purpose ; but at the last moment a telegram 
from Roy Bridge informed me that the roads were snowed up. 
I was thus thrown back upon books and memories ; but these 
proving only a poor substitute for the flavour of facts, I resolved 
subsequently to make another effort to see the roads. Accord- 
ingly on Thursday fortnight, after lecturing at the Royal Insti- 
tution, I packed up, and started (not this time alone) for the 
North. Next day at noon we found ourselves at Dalwhinnie, 
whence a drive of some five-and-thirty miles brought us to the 
excellent hostelry of Mr. Macintosh, at the mouth of Glen Roy. 
We might have found the hills covered with mist, which 
would have wholly defeated us ; but Nature was good-natured, 
and we had two successful working days among the hills. 
Guided by the excellent Ordnance map, on the Saturday morn- 
ing we went up the glen, and, on reaching the stream called 
Allt Bhreac Achaidh, faced the hills to the west. At the water- 
shed between Glen Roy and Glen Fintaig we bore northwards, 
struck the ridge above Glen Gluoy, came in view of its road, 
which we persistently followed as long as it continued visible. 
It is a feature of all the roads that they vanish before reaching 
the cols over which fell the waters of the lakes which formed 
them. One reason doubtless is that at their upper ends the 
lakes were shallow, and incompetent on this account to raise 
wavelets of any strength to act upon the mountain drift. A 
second reason is that they were land-locked in the higher por- 
tions and protected from the south-westerly winds, the stillness 
of their waters causing them to produce but a feeble impression 
upon the mountain sides. From Glen Gluoy we passed down 
Glen Turrit to Glen Roy, and through it homewards, thus 
accomplishing two or three-and-twenty miles of rough and 
honest work. 
Next day we thoroughly explored Glen Glaster, following its 
