ACTIVE OUTDOORS: John Davidson puts the children to the test with a challenging off-road bike ride to the beach and back in the summer holidaysA lovely section of the South Loch Ness Trail on the way to Dores. The plan was to take what I call the “high road” on the way out – which is the off-road South Loch Ness Trail route with a steep cut down to Dores – then return on the easier “low road” through Aldourie and alongside Loch Dochfour and the River Ness. It’s actually quite a challenging mountain bike route in parts and can be great fun, with the steep descent into Dores the most difficult section. For the off-road route to Dores, keep straight ahead here and pass a wooden gate onto a narrower path. The consensus was definitely to avoid the bracken, so notwithstanding the long climb, we headed up past Ballindarroch to reach the Dores road.