Sluggan Bridge

The Sluggan Bridge stands in a beautiful location, spanning the River Dulnain on General Wade's military road.

The stony river shore and its grassy banks make it the perfect place for a paddle and picnic.

The current Sluggan Bridge replaced a two-arched bridge that was built as part of the construction of General Wade's military roads in Scotland. The original bridge was built sometime in the 1730s with a span of 9.8m and was one of the many structural victims of the 'Muckle Spate' floods of 1829.

This single arch replacement was built sometime later, but it is uncertain exactly when.

If you spend any time walking in Scotland, you can't help but come across General Wade's military road network.

General George Wade was appointed by King George I in 1724 to quell the unrest in the Highlands following the Jacobite rebellion of 1715. The roads were built to improve the logistics between a number of barracks and key locations.

In 1732, General Wade appointed Major William Caulfeild as Inspector of Roads and he took over from Wade in 1740. It is possible that either Wade or Caulfeild were responsible for the first Sluggan Bridge.

The construction of the military roads continued until 1767 when Caulfeild died.

In total there are over 1100 miles of roads, of which Wade was responsible for about 250 miles, and Caulfeild for about 900 miles. There were also around 40 bridges built under Wade and over 600 during Caulfeild's time in the role.

Once the roads had served their military purpose, they continued to be used as essential routes for trade and travel.

The bridge has the feel of an old packhorse bridge with a lack of parapets. It spans 17.8m and is just over 4m wide with metal railings.

On the western side of the bridge you will find an interesting ruinous building to investigate. It is uncertain what this was, but the road would have been busy, so maybe a hostelry or maybe just someone's home.

From the parking area follow the National Cycle Route 7 north-west until you come to the bridge.

The Sluggan Bridge is a Category A Listed Building with Historic Environment Scotland.

It is only 1km from the parking area to Sluggan Bridge, although you may wish to visit the nearby Archer's Stone, or even include the Slochd Viaduct by walking the Inverlaidnan Loop and include the viaduct and bridge on a longer 12.5km route.