Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 10 (Around Lochinver)

Monday 7th October, 2024 – Lochinver, Ardvreck Castle, Ullapool, Drumbeg, Clashnessie, Clachtoll, Lochinver Distance driven: 89.0 milesTime at the wheel: 2 hours 39 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 (Looks like we’d had our quota) After a good night’s sleep we decided to set off to explore Ullapool and possibly add another loop of spectacular driving, time…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 9 (Thurso to Lochinver)

Sunday 6th October, 2024 – Thurso, Tongue, Smoo, Durness, Balnakeil, Kylesku, Lochinver Distance driven: 126.0 milesTime at the wheel: 3 hours 22 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 1 (Finally!!!) We left Thurso and the charming Thurso Beach House Apartment with its views across the water to Orkney, to head for our next destination, Lochinver. We would be…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 8 (Around Thurso)

Saturday 5th October, 2024 – Thurso, Ulbster, Lybster, Wick, Duncansby Head, Dunnet Head Distance driven: 68.0 milesTime at the wheel: 1 hour 36 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 (Seriously? Are they hiding from us?) Saturday morning saw a latish start, partly down to my insistence on completing Thurso parkrun while I had the opportunity, what with…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 7 (Dornoch to Thurso)

Friday 4th October, 2024 – Dornoch, Golspie, Helmsdale, Thurso Distance driven: 64.0 milesTime at the wheel: 1 hour 19 minutesHeiland coos spotted: Still defiantly 0 We were on the move again so said goodbye to Strathview Lodge, though not before sampling their full Scottish breakfast.  I would certainly recommend them as a place to stay…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 6 (Around Dornoch)

Thursday 3rd October, 2024 – Inverness, Cromarty, Udale Bay, Portmahomack  Distance driven: 126.0 milesTime at the wheel: 2 hours 53 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 (I hope they’re not turning into the equivalent of the moose on our Finland trip in 2016) We made an early start because we needed to be in Cromarty by 9:45…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 5 (Inverness to Dornoch) 

Wednesday 2nd October, 2024 – Inverness, Fortrose, Chanonry Point, Rosemarkie, Cromarty, Dornoch  Distance driven: 78.0 milesTime at the wheel: 1 hour 50 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 We were back on a highish mileage day, made more so because the Cromarty-Nigg ferry does not run after September 30th so we’d missed it by a day, a…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 4 (Around Inverness) 

Tuesday 1st October, 2024 – Inverness, Culloden Distance driven: 19.0 milesTime at the wheel: 40 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 After a lot of mileage the previous day it was very pleasant to start the day with a leisurely 20-minute drive to Culloden and the battlefield centre, which is run by the Scottish National Trust. As…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 3 (Tebay to Inverness)

Monday 30th September, 2024 – Windermere, Tebay Distance driven: 301.0 miles,Time at the wheel: 5 hours 56 minutesHeiland coos spotted: 0 And so finally to Scotland. But not before a very good breakfast at the Westmorland Hotel. We’d had a good night’s sleep and been well fed before getting on our way (after wrangling the…

Travel 2024 – North Coast 500 – Day 2 (Yorkshire to Cumbria)

Sunday 29th September, 2024 – Windermere, Tebay Distance driven: 158.0 miles, Time at the wheel: 2 hours 48 minutes Heiland coos spotted: 0 Sunday morning started damp, but seemed to be improving as we repacked the car (something of a trial and error process at this stage), and headed out from Nunnington after a light…