B9117

Eastertown of Mayen

The B9117 is a link road in east Banffshire. The route was originally unclassified but had gained its number by 1932.

The route starts on the A95 at Farmtown, a few miles east of Keith, and heads east across undulating farmland. The road is straight as it crosses the valley of the small Shiel Burn and then climbs through woodland to reach a summit of just over 140m. Dipping gently through fields, the route soon reaches the B9022, which is crossed at the staggered Rothiemay Crossroads. The B9022 maintains priority, with the B9117 deliberately realigned on the far side in order to stagger the junction. The road then loses its central line as it continues southeast, dropping gently through a wood to reach Milltown of Rothiemay. Just after entering the village, however, the B9117 TOTSOs left, with the road ahead through the village and back to the B9022 being the B9118.

The route reenters open country almost immediately, and briefly heads northeast before bearing right over a burn to regain a southeasterly course. The road is now undulating high on the steep hillside above the River Deveron, which is followed downstream, with the valley steadily becoming narrower and steeper. Other than the few houses at Inchcorsie, there are no properties along this stretch of the route. It then curves round to the left, to avoid a large meander in the river below, and cuts across below the Hill of Mayen where the gradients are somewhat easier. As the route dips back into the valley, the road enters a wood, which hides the river below. Road and river draw closer as they now head north, the road dipping to cross the Burn of Tillydown, beyond which the hillside becomes steeper once more.

The road continues to follow the river, in and out of woodland, as it curves back to the east, finally finding the riverbank before diverging a little as the road passes through the small, scattered settlement of Marnoch. Beyond the village, the road is never more than a field away from the river, but the changing gradient means that the water is out of sight in the trees below the field. After a couple of short straights, the route ends at a T-junction on the A97 a little to the north of the Bridge of Marnoch.