The route from Turriff to Banff is quite short at 12.9 miles, with total climbing of 768 feet. As with most of Aberdeenshire the route is lumpy, but there are no major hills and so has a difficulty rating of 4.Turriff is an ancient place, with links to the Knights Templar. Known locally as Turra, the town hosts a two-day agricultural show each August which is the largest in Scotland and has been running for 156 years. Somewhat strangely, the most famous former-resident is bovine rather than human. In 1913, sheriff officers confiscated a farmers cow after he (the farmer, not the cow!) refused to pay the newly introduced National Insurance. However, officers couldnt sell the cow locally due to sympathy for the farmer, and the subsequent auction was disrupted by protesters and the cow escaped. Now an emblem of the town, a statue of the Turra Coo was erected in the town centre in 2010.
Starting in Turriff town centre, you will head broadly north with the River Deveron a constant companion on your left. Whilst there are no specific tourist attractions to mention, the route is very pretty, taking you through farm and woodland. You will travel on rolling roads for the first 3.6 miles before negotiating a short, sharp ascent of 1.1 miles. This section of road is lovely, with the Deveron shimmering down below. After a short descent you will start going up again to a high point of 282 feet at mile 9. You will go mainly downhill from there, arriving on the north side of Macduff, before skirting the town and crossing the Deveron via a beautiful seven arch bridge built in 1779. You are now in Banff, and the cycle finishes on the seafront.Banff was first mentioned in royal charter in 1163 . It was considered a trading town for many centuries despite its location, the harbour was only built in 1775. Banff has a beautifully preserved townscape with many historic buildings, including a museum that was gifted by Andrew Carnegie. There are some lovely beach and cliff walks to both the east and west. There are plenty of places to enjoy an ice-cream or fish n chips, and you could also reward yourself with a single malt at the Macduff Distillery on the east side of the Deveron.
By clicking on the play symbol on the graphic below you can see route map. The elevation profile of the ride can be seen via the Hills tab with files for use with a GPS device also available for download. If you take any photos of the route that youd like to share, please submit to neil@velodays.comOnward rides from Banff can be found here
Route map for Turriff To Banff by Neil Innes on plotaroute.com
