The Northern Highlands – a beautiful, rugged landscape, many castles and ruins, breathtaking cliffs. We visit so many beautiful places here that we can’t get everything summarized in one post. Therefore, we divide this travelogue into two parts. Here as now part 2 (to get to part 1, click here).

Castle Sinclair Girnigoe

Today there are only the ruins of the former castle, or as Paddy would put it; another pile of stones.
The ruins themselves are not very impressive from our point of view and most of them are closed off because of the danger of collapse. However, the cliffs on which the castle was built are all the more impressive. The rock is divided into fine layers and appears almost like skipper’s plates stacked on top of each other. The high cliffs form narrow natural bays, which served the former castle as ideal protected landing places from the sea.

Stacks of Duncansby

The cliffs in front of Duncansby are probably world famous, especially the two pointed towers in front of them. Unfortunately, we got the famous Scottish rainy weather today, cold, dark and drizzle. Nevertheless, it’s fun to walk along the high cliffs and watch the rough, churning sea. In better weather conditions you could even climb down into the bays in some places. But since everything is wet, muddy and slippery, we leave it today with the view from above.
Here we can also understand once more why the Scots walk  often in rubber boots. The meadow is so saturated by the rain that, as so often in the Highlands, there are small lakes everywhere, some of which are not so easy to see because of the high tufts of grass. Therefore, we walk carefully around the water and mud holes, because it is too cold for wet feet at this time of the year.

Castle of Mey

Another castle that was on our, or especially Mimi’s, wish list to visit. Unfortunately, this castle is closed during the winter months, so we can’t take a look at it. Maybe another time, someday. In any case, the approach through an old, gnarled forest was already promising.

Admission £13.00/adult, £7.00/child

Thurso

In Thurso, we make a leisurely stop on the NC500 before heading onto one of the most strenuous parts of the NC500. Although the NC500 is a “big” road, the east-west connection at the very north is not built with two lanes. Vehicles have to wait for each other at passing points and all this at the allowed 60 miles per hour or 96 km/h. So it happens that Paddy with Ben drives at a comfortable speed far below the speed limit to prevent regular emergency braking. At blind spots it happens but then a few times that there is no other way than to swerve into the unpaved roadside – that hurts us every time – Ben is certainly up to this trip anyway!

Loch Hope

For the next overnight stay we chose a great spot about 10km away from the NC500. And how beautiful it is, a small pebble beach at Loch Hope and far and wide no civilization in sight. Only water, hills and sky – wonderful!

Smoo Cave

Smoo Cave is a quite impressive big cave, which is open to the public. Besides the big chamber at the very beginning of the cave, you can only enter another smaller chamber a bit further back, where there is a small waterfall. All around there are other smaller caves that can be explored in good weather

Free entrance

Durness

With Durness we have reached our northernmost point in Great Britain. Here we get supplies for all those who are out of fuel or supplies. As mentioned before, we had taken precautions and allowed ourselves the luxury of fresh bread and small nibbles. From now on we continue in southwestern direction through beautiful landscapes. We just can’t get enough of the impressive, barren, stony and very wet landscape.

Clashnessie Fall

We come to this waterfall only by chance, because we make a small loop from the main road to find our camp for the night. From the road there is an almost unrecognizable footpath over hill and dale, mud holes and creeks which can only be crossed by jumping from stone to stone. But the somewhat strenuous walk is worth it – the waterfall is really beautiful and as hidden as it is, not (yet) so crowded by tourists.

Free entrance

End of the NC500

Now we drive again in the direction of Inverness. This is already the end of the round trip around the northern Highlands. The NC500 starts and ends in Inverness. Since we have already seen the city, we pass outside in the direction of the well-known Loch Ness. Who knows, maybe we will discover Nessi?

Loch Ness & Urquhart Castle

Since we have to refuel urgently and our supplies are running low, we drive around almost the whole Loch Ness in search of a payable gas station and a bigger supermarket. Once a different kind of Sightseeing, from Nessi however no trace.
On the east side of the lake Mimi visits Urquhart Castle. Today, only the ruins of the former castle remain. However, these were converted into a beautifully designed museum.
On the west side we stop for a afternoon snack and enjoy the view of the famous lake.

April, May and September: daily 09.30-18.00, last entry 17.15
June to August: daily 09.30-20.00, last entry 19.15
October: daily 09.30-17.00, last entry 16.15
November to March: daily 09.30-16.30, last admission 15.45

 

Admission £12.00/adult, £9.50/child

Our next destination is the world-famous Isle of Skye. We are curious if it really has so much to offer in terms of scenery and if it can compete with the wild beauty of the northern Highlands. Here we will report again how it goes on.