The B9160 crosses the Black Isle north of Inverness towards the eastern end of the peninsula.
The B9160 climbing Mount High
The route starts on the A832 at the top of the Fairy Glen, a mile or so north of Rosemarkie and heads north to climb up over the Millbuie ridge of hills that runs the length of the Black Isle. After a couple of bends at the southern end, the road runs straight across fields, and then into forestry where it reaches a summit of just under 190m, with the road passing the trig point at the highest point. The descent then begins, gently at first before steepening. About a mile from the summit, the road leaves the forest and starts meandering a little more. It runs down through fields to a TOTSO junction with the B9163 roughly midway between Balblair and Jemimaville. The route is locally known as the 'Mount High Road' with a row of houses on the northern edge of the forestry area called Mount High. A minor road to the south west which also crosses the Millbuie ridge is similarly known as the Mount Eagle Road.
History
Although left unclassified in 1922, this road was given the B8026 number in the mid 1920s. With the extension of the A9 north of Inverness in 1935, the road became out of zone, and so was renumbered as the B9160. Other roads in the area were changed from B86x to B916x, but as the original B860 was on the west coast, the B9160 number was free to be used, and so bring this route in to line with its neighbours.
