I discovered the North Coast 500 route quite by accident whilst scouring the internet for places to visit and roads to travel in the north of Scotland.
The route takes you on a clockwise circuit of north Scotland, commencing and finishing in Inverness. The roads range from quite good highways to single lane roads with passing points. The condition of the roads also varies with many not in a great state of repair. Sometimes the roads have you feeling as if you are on a rollercoaster such are the peaks and troughs in the road surface.
A s we were hoping, the scenery was absolutely spectacular. On this trip, we found ourselves not only looking at these magnificent hills, but driving up and through them. There were views of the sea and the quite rugged coastline, along with sandy and rocky beaches. Little coastal villages, the occasional castle And more whitewashed houses than you can impossibly imagine. Flowering rhododendrons of purple and pink dot the landscape in every direction which made us think that they must be native to Scotland. These were the shrubs we noticed on the Isle of Skye.
I had encountered great difficulties in obtaining accommodation for this part of the trip and given the number of people we encountered on the roads, it was little wonder. Even more surprising was the number of cyclists we saw, mostly in low gear scaling the hills. Motorcycles were extraordinarily common and it was not unusual to round a corner and find a group of cars, motorcycles and bikes all pulled up and gazing out at another stunning view.
This expedition also provided us with one of the most memorable hotel stays on any of our trips.
Bettyhill is a village located on the north coast. The Farr Bay Inn is around 200 years old and looks its age. A coat of paint would not go astray. When we arrived, l wondered aloud what l had brought Gloria to. The entrance to the Inn was unkempt and overgrown and initially looked very univiting. However, l was greeted by the male half of the owners and he was clearly a person with a sense of humour. Shortly thereafter l met his wife who greeted me very warmly and personably. A quick inspection revealed a small bar, small dining room and a quite comfortable room for us to retire to.
There are no prizes for guessing what we did after depositing our cases in our room - straight to the bar to unwind after a day in the car. The Inn only has 4 rooms and only 1 of those rooms joined us, along with 5 locals. A night of conversation and laughter eventuated. We discovered how friendly and hospitable the Scots can be......
The only down side we could identify was the rain. It started slowly and rained non stop for two days. The jokes and lines around Scottish summers continue unabated.
