B885
| B885 | ||||
| Location Map ( geo) | ||||
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| From: | Portree (NG478435) | |||
| To: | Bracadale (NG357386) | |||
| Distance: | 9.3 miles (15 km) | |||
| Meets: | A87, A863 | |||
| Highway Authorities | ||||
| Traditional Counties | ||||
| Route outline (key) | ||||
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The B885 is a stunning high-level road crossing the middle of Skye from the A87 (former A850) at Portree on the east to the A863 (former B883) at Bracadale on the west. The road is often narrow, although serviced with plentiful passing-places, and unfenced for much of its length. However, at the southern end the views across Loch Bracadale into the Minch are quite amazing.
It starts at a T Junction on the A87 as the Industrial area gives way to a housing estate, and heads west, climbing steeply up past the school and so out of the town. After a short run across some moorland fields, the road passes through a mixture of woodland and forestry to reach the tiny settlement of Glengrasco. Here side roads lead off to the north and south, the latter a long meandering dead end, while the B885 continues west across the shoulder of Ben Grasco, twice crossing the 100m contour. It then dips sharply down to cross the River Snizort, entering a large forestry plantation on the west bank as it climbs again. Beyond the forestry, the road winds across a wide undulating moorland landscape, eventually reaching a summit of over 150m, but the gradients are largely mitigated by the bends.
From the summit, the road dips slightly and passes between two low hills, heading south west now to find the head waters of the Allt Mor. This small stream has cut a dramatic, steep sided gorge just below the road, and after running along the plateau above the stream for a while, the road starts to dip down, winding down a ledge on the north bank. The gorge peters out before the road has a chance to fully drop into it, and the views ahead of Loch Beag and Loch Harport draw the attention instead. The road continues to lose height as it winds down past a couple of houses, and then a couple more. Suddenly, however, the road sneaks through a gap behind Knock Garsin from Glen Bracadale into the smaller neighbouring glen, before dropping sharply down to the A863 at sea level. Just before the junction, the old line of the A863, which has gone around the head of Loch Beag, comes in from the left, so the last dozen metres of the B885 were once (more-or-less) the A863.
