Mountain Trike team Green take on the ultimate road trip - the NC500

14th August 2024

For those of you not familiar with the NC500 it is a route of just over 500 miles of stunning coastal scenery in the far north of Scotland. It is a well travelled route with many highlights along the way.

Many travel the route by motorhome or camper van, but Bill and Fiona Green opted to stay at pre-booked B&B’s as they travelled the route taking Bill’s Mountain Trike and wanted a few creature comforts along the way. They also scheduled in time to visit and stay with family as part of the trip.

Bill and Fiona Green took off from their home in Yorkshire in early May (2024) for their 16-day road trip heading north on their first leg and joining the official start of the NC500 on day 4 and had decided to do the route anticlockwise from Inverness.

This route took them from Inverness to John O’Groats, along the Caithness coastline to Durness then turning south to Ullapool. Heading out around the Applecross peninsula by the coast road and on over the top on the Beach Na Ba, bringing them back down to complete their journey returning to Inverness - but not before a detour to the Isle of Skye.

They experienced some fantastic weather along the way, coupled with beautiful views and countryside. They highly recommend the trip but it does need good planning in advance. In many places the roads are narrow and in some place single track with passing places. And disabled facilities are few and far between, but one B&B that does come highly recommended is Forse of Nature at Latheron just south of Wick - a former care home being converted into B&B accommodation. There are lifts to upper floors, doors are wide enough, and the owners came out of NHS and care sector so plenty of experience and understanding. Also set in huge grounds to be explored.

To help with the planning Fiona and Bill used the guide book, Destination NC500 which is full of useful information along with some suggestions for trips done over different lengths of time. They also used google maps to work out distances between places when considering what might be possible in a day for them, trying to build in flexibility so that stops or detours could be made. The route is well signposted on the roads now too.

Read on for Fiona’s diary of their trip which gives you a real feel of how much they packed into their itinerary and some of the wonderful places they managed to visit. Just as lovely are the array of photos showing the stunning trip.

"Day 4. The official start of the NC500. We are taking the anticlockwise route. Our first leg is Inverness to Dornoch. After a quick look round the city and a puncture repair to the Trike, we set off over the Kessock Bridge onto The Black Isle to stop at Chanonry Point and see the dolphins. It was an interesting drive from Fortrose to get here through the middle of a golf course with warnings about flying balls everywhere! We drove on to Cromarty and saw some rigs then headed back to rejoin the NC500 route. We didn’t get far before we picked up signs about a Pictish Trail and detoured to Nigg and a little church with a Pictish Stone on display. Arrived at Dornoch just before 5pm, staying in The Castle Hotel. Nice evening meal and a walk round the town famous for being the place of the last witch execution in Scotland.

Chanonry Point & Lighthouse where we watched dolphins just off the coast

Day 5 and day 2 of the NC500, a ‘rest day’. We decided on a circular route , stopping first at Bonar Bridge to see a stone circle. Not quite what we were expecting as it was a relatively modern arrangement of different rocks from around Scotland. Moved on to The Falls of Shin for lunch and a visit to the well known salmon leap - sadly no salmon on our visit. Making our way back to Dornoch we found a sign for a railway station in the middle of nowhere and an interesting bridge to cross to get to it!! Some accessibility issues at the waterfall but Bill managed the few steps at the end with assistance. The wobbly bridge was not too safe for a wobbly person! Back in Dornoch we headed out the back of the village, past some little cottages with history and made it onto the beach to settle down with our books but the breeze was chilly!

Bonar Bridge stone circle - a collection of rocks from all across Scotland

Day 6 and Day 3 of the NC500 and moving on from Dornoch to Latheron. Took a look at Dornoch Cathedral and its impressive stained glass before we left. Bill also took the opportunity to add to his malt whisky collection in the Carnegie Courthouse shop. Drove towards Golspie and found the Fleet Loch Nature Reserve with miles of dunes and beach, known for seabirds, waders and otters. So peaceful here we could have stayed all day We moved on to Dunrobin Castle, where we could almost have been in France. Walked round the gardens, had lunch in the cafe and watched a very informative falconry display then I dived into the castle for a quick tour. Arrived at Forse of Nature Guest House for another 2 night stop. Finished the evening with a short wander through the huge gardens at the guest house until the midges appeared!

Day 7 and Day 4 NC500, exploring the triangle of Latheron to John O’Groats across to Thurso and back. Another fabulous day. First stop were The Grey Cairns of Camster, Neolithic chambered cairns dating back about 5000 years. Unable to see inside but still an amazing sight on the hillside. Next stop was the Hill O’ Many Stanes. 200 small standing stones in rows on the hill but sadly shrouded in mist so not so impressive. Headed on to Duncansby Head Lighthouse, still in mist and the stacks were a long walk along the cliff so we moved on to John O’ Groats for lunch and the obligatory photos! Stunning views as we continued along the north coast stopping at The Castle of Mey for Queen Mother’s cake then calling in at the Wolfburn Distillery in Thurso for a tasting and another malt purchase!! After dinner we took a short drive down to Latheronwheel Harbour. 11:30pm no aurora for us - still too light!

Day 8 and Day 5 NC500. Supposed to be an easy drive day today but detours added to the miles. We left Latheron heading for Thurso and stopped first at The Achavanich Standing Stones. After refuelling in Thurso we turned west back to explore Dunnet Bay and headland. Bill had fun doing (mountain trike) donuts on the largely deserted beach. Lunch in Thurso we met a local man who was very impressed by the Trike. We got talking and he told us about his pub and cafe concerns and also gave us his number if we wanted a cottage to rent on the Dunnet Headland in the future. Moving on we passed Dounreay power station and arrived in Melvich. It was early enough so we decided to turn inland to visit RSPB Forsinard Flows. What an amazing place and a fantastic boardwalk across the peat bogs to the viewing tower and platform. Dinner back in Melvich at the Halladale Inn then a walk down towards the beach.

On the boardwalk at RSPB Forsinard Flows

Day 9 and Day 6 NC500. Another beautiful start to the day as we left Melvich with a long drive ahead of us. We started with another look at Melvich and its beach access, then moved on. Our first stop was at Bettyhill viewpoint and Tourist Information cafe with sight of the mountains to come. Next stop was Coldbackie with some stunning views. We crossed The Kyle of Tongue and travelled on to Loch Eribol and more amazing views stopping just outside Durness for lunch and admiring views of Ceannabeinne Beach and The Kyle of Durness. Moving inland and south the mountains started to grow on our horizon and a fog rolling in was chasing us. Made a brief stop at Rhiconich then on to our destination Scourie Guesthouse in Scourie. Dinner was booked down a steep single track road to Tarbet at The Shorehouse Seafood Restaurant and granted Bill’s wish for Scottish Langoustines!

Day 10 and Day 7 of NC500. Leaving Scourie and heading south, with the fog and low cloud still hanging around, we headed for Kylesku and the bridge across from Garbh Eilean. We arrived in time to catch a one hour boat trip out on Loch Glencoul to see the tallest waterfall in the UK, Eas a’ Chual Aluinn. We also learnt about the importance of the geology of the area to informing understanding of geological processes and were offered the possibility of seeing Common and Gray seals, otters, cormorants and sea and golden eagles amongst the local wildlife. We only saw the seals with pups and cormorants. Moving on past Drumbeg, we made for Stoer Point and lighthouse. Passing Lochinver we drove alongside Loch Assynt with the clouds starting to lift and arrived in Ullapool for a much needed 2 night respite from the driving. Bill was interested in the tall ship in the harbour on our first walk round the town. Sadly our accommodation on this occasion did not live up to expectations but we made the best of it.

Day 11 and day 8 NC 500. We decided to take a run out to explore some of the road we would follow the next day and save some time on the long drive. We went as far as Gruinard. It was surprising to see Gruinard Island so close to the mainland as it had been used by the military and contaminated with Anthrax! We turned back towards Ullapool and stopped for coffee and cake at Lael Crafts Gallery then visited The Seafood Shack for lunch as dinner the previous night had been tasty. They didn’t disappoint! After lunch we set off again along Loch Broom to Leckmelm to a garden & arboretum we had spotted earlier. We spent a lovely couple of hours in amongst the trees. Dinner again at The Seafood Shack as we loved the food and the atmosphere and the shared tables meaning we chatted to many interesting people.

Day 12 and Day 9 of NC500. Woke up to a gorgeous view of Loch Broom in the early morning sun and had to take a few more pictures before we left. Stopping at Ardcharnich for the view along Loch Broom and Dundonnell on Little Loch Broom we came to Gruinard again looking much prettier in the sun. Moved on to Laide then stopped for lunch at Inverewe Gardens at Poolewe. Sadly we didn’t feel we could look round the gardens this time as we still had a long way to go. Moved on to Gairloch then Loch Maree with sight of Slioch, and stopping for a break at Beinn Eighe Visitor Centre. Moving on past Kinlochewe the mountains were getting bigger and we still had a lot of driving on this coastal road to reach our destination. We stopped briefly at Torridon for a trip down memory lane but didn’t have time to go to the deer centre. Our final pause was at Shieldaig then we pushed on to Applecross. Finally arrived in Applecross just in time for dinner at the Applecross Inn after some stunning views of the mountains and an interesting drive on the coast road. Went for a stroll in the evening admiring the views across to The isles of Rona, Raasay and Skye and a gorgeous sunset. We were really taken with this pretty little village and its stunning views and really wished we had booked more than one night at the Inn.

Part 1 - Day 13 and Day 10 NC500. Woke early and out to catch Applecross in the early morning light. So peaceful and as I rounded a corner I stumbled on 2 deer who had come down off the hills and didn’t seem bothered by me. After breakfast we set off further along the peninsula to find the post office before leaving the village up and over the hills on the Bealach Na Ba. We stopped at a couple of viewpoints on the way up before the challenging descent on the other side to Strathcarron. Definitely the most challenging 11 mile drive I’ve ever done! No stopping points to capture the experience - I just had to stick with it to near the bottom of the steepest single track and hairpin bends route going! It was interesting to see the rigs in Loch Kishorn before we stopped for coffee in Strathcarron. At this point we temporarily departed from the NC500 route passing a Loch Carron viewpoint and heading for the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Skye Bridge.

Part 2 Day 13 and Day 10 on the NC500. After detouring from the NC500 at Strathcarron, we reached the Kyle of Lochalsh and crossed over the Skye Bridge to explore the island. We had hoped to reach Portree but after lunch in Broadford we realised it was too far for us. We travelled on as far as Sligachan crossing over the Sligachan Old Bridge on foot/trike where we found a fabulous statue titled Heroes of the Hills, a tribute to a local man John Mackenzie from Sconser and Professor Norman Collie, who together mapped and named many of the peaks of The Cuillin. Bill took advantage of the stop to sample the local brew in Seumas’ Bar nearby. Feeling quite tired we decided at this point to turn back towards Kyleakin where we were staying the night.

Day 14 -16 and Day 11 NC500. Left Skye with a long journey ahead. My mistake in forgetting to book another night in Inverness meant a mad dash to finish the route then on to Fort William and turn west to Arisaig. Not much time for the views but since the rain had found us they weren’t the best. Crossing the Skye bridge we couldn’t believe the sight we saw heading to the Island - lovely to know the paddle steamer ‘Waverley’ is still going ‘doon the water’. Brief stop at Eilean Donan Castle for a picture then onto Inverness for proof we made it! Stopped near Glenmoriston to snap Nessie but no sign of her in Loch Ness, then quickly on to Spean Bridge to see the Commando Memorial. Our next stop was Glenfinnan to see the Glenfinnan Viaduct and the Glenfinnan Monument. Finally arrived at the Arisaig Hotel in time for a superb dinner and little bit of history. The next day we headed south for home snapping a few pictures of Loch Lomond on the way past, crossing the Erskine Bridge on approach to Glasgow and didn’t stop till we reached The Westmorland Hotel at Tebay services near Penrith.

Finally reached home at lunchtime on Day 16.