Today is Thursday, 16th September and we are travelling to Dornoch, our first destination on the eastern leg of the NC 500. On the way we visited Wick to explore the town and a couple of interesting castle ruins nearby.
The first was Castle Sinclair Girnigoe, which is located about 3 miles north of Wick on the coast at Noss Head. It is considered to be one of the earliest seats of Clan Sinclair. It comprises of the ruins of two castles: the 15th-century Castle Girnigoe; and the early 17th-century Castle Sinclair, although the site has been occupied since the 1300s. The building sits on a peninsular, surrounded on nearly every side by the sea. Noss Head lighthouse is also located nearby and yes it is another Ikea model!
Castle Sinclair Girnigoe
View from the castle to Noss Head Lighthouse
We then drove to Wick for some calories (tea and cake) and took a lovely walk along the coast from the harbour to the ruins of the Castle of Old Wick and some stunning coastal scenery.
The coastline on the walk to the castle consists of beautiful slabs of rock lining the water’s edge, broken with ruler-straight fractures and covered with lichens.
One area on the rock slabs have been colonised by Cormorants
On these rocks is the Trinkie, an open-air swimming pool, or lido, which was opened in July 1931 and generations of Wickers have learnt to swim there. It has recently been refurbished and it is hoped that it will start to be used again next summer. Trinkie is an old Scots word for trench.
The recently refurbished Trinkie Pool
An old picture from the 1930s of the Trinkie Pool
The ruins of the Castle of Old Wick stand on a spine of rock projecting into the North Sea, between two deep, narrow gullies. It is one of the oldest castles in Scotland. It was probably built by the Earl of Caithness, Harald Maddadson, in the 1160s.
The ruins of the Castle of Old Wick
Further down the coast from the castle is a bay called The Brough and contains two really interesting landmarks, the Brig O’Stack and the Stack o’ Brough, known locally as Scorries’ Island.
The Brig O’Stack is two tall sea stacks, with an impressive rock bridge connecting one of them to the mainland.
Brig O’Stack
The Stack o’ Brough is a 121 ft. tall, 216 ft. long isolated rock rising out of the sea containing an immense tunnel going from end to end.
Stack o’ Brough
Friday was the first full day of our 4-night stay in Dornoch. Our first destination of the day was The Falls of Shin. These are a series of small waterfalls, which for much of the year are recognised as one of Scotland’s best places to see salmon leaping. Depending on the weather, fish can usually be seen jumping from mid-May until late autumn as they make their way up river to spawn. There wasn’t much activity, but we did see one salmon attempting the jump, but unfortunately didn’t capture it on ‘film’. However, with the help of a very slow shutter speed and a tripod I managed to capture the falls water with a nice motion blur.
The Falls of Shin
There are also a number of woodland walks nearby, in which we discovered some beautiful fungi.
A selection of beautiful and colourful fungi found on our woodland walk
We then decided to go and explore the town of Durnoch and its well-known beach. On the way there we stopped off for a lovely 2-mile walk along the Wood Sculpture Trail in Skelbo Woods, just outside Dornoch. We saw some excellent sculptures as we walked the trail, including this Bat:
One of the many sculptures in Skelbo Woods
Part way around the trail there are the remains of a 2000 year-old broch, an iron-age fortified home. Built high-up on a mound, the broch would have offered its occupants excellent views of the landscape for miles around.
View from the mound of Loch Fleet in the distance
We then arrived in the centre of Durnoch and after several weeks of staying in desolate, remote, small settlements with no real facilities of character, it was pleasant to find a lovely market town, with a Cathedral and great shopping – guess who was pleased about that?
After a gentle stroll around the town, we headed down to the beach. Dornoch beach is a beautiful expanse of golden sand located on the tranquil Dornoch Firth. It is part of a wonderful stretch of golden sandy beaches from Dornoch Point heading past Embo beach to the mouth of Loch Fleet National Nature Reserve.
Dornoch Beach
The next day we visited Dunrobin Castle. However, as it didn’t open until 10.00am, we used the earlier hours to take a brisk walk along nearby Brora Beach. This wild, unspoiled, 2-mile long beach, running alongside the local golf course, offers spectacular views over the North Sea and the Moray Firth.
Early morning walk along Brora Beach
Charlotte enjoying the noise of the crashing waves
Dunrobin Castle is the most northerly of Scotland’s great houses and the largest in the Northern Highlands with 189 rooms. It is also one of Britain’s oldest continuously inhabited houses dating back to the early 1300s, home to the Earls and later, the Dukes of Sutherland.
The Castle, which resembles a French château with its towering conical spires, has seen the architectural influences of Sir Charles Barry, who designed London’s Houses of Parliament, and Scotland’s own Sir Robert Lorimer. The Castle was used as a naval hospital during the First World War and as a boys’ boarding school from 1965 to 1972, before reverting back to a family home. The castle is now owned by Elizabeth Sutherland, the 24th Countess of Sutherland and Baroness of Strathnaver.
It was one of the most spectacular castles we had ever visited.
Dunrobin Castle sits in a commanding position overlooking the North Sea
View of the spectacular Dunrobin Castle from the formal gardens
The formal gardens were beautifully laid out, with ornamental fountains and ponds as central focal points
After the visit to the castle we explored the Big Burn, on the outskirts of Golspie. This is a lovely 2-mile walk alongside a rapid-flowing burn, which then enters into a gorge ending in a 50-foot waterfall. It was also another chance for Graham to practice his motion blur photographic technique!
The rapid-flowing burn looking calm and surreal
The 50-foot waterfall at the end of the gorge
The final day in Durnoch was a rest day before our trip to Inverness. For us the capital of the Highlands, Inverness, was as much about R & R as it was sightseeing. The month-long trip so far to Scotland has been fabulous; however our 4 day visit to Inverness was a much needed change of pace.
Here are some of the highlights of our trip to Inverness:
The main attraction that brings people to Inverness is undoubtedly Loch Ness. At 23 miles long and a maximum width of 1.7 miles, Loch Ness is not the deepest loch in Scotland (Loch Morar), nor is it is the largest by surface area (Loch Lomond). However, it is the largest body of water in the whole of the UK! There is more water in Loch Ness, than in all the lakes in England and Wales put together. It feels huge and on a blustery day, as it was when we visited, it’s like you are at the coast, with waves crashing into the shoreline.
Loch Ness is best known for alleged sightings of the cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as ‘Nessie’. This makes it a major tourist attraction with everything from Nessie Cruises to the unmissable ‘Nessieland’, a monster adventure on the shores of Loch Ness. We managed to avoid both of these!
View across Loch Ness from the eastern side to Urquhart Bay
The winds causing waves on the shoreline
View to the far southern end of Loch Ness into the afternoon sun
Often cited as one of the most scenic glens in the land, Glen Affric is the perfect combination of pinewoods, lochs, rivers and mountains. It is also a National Nature Reserve.
Loch Affric nestled in the glen surrounded by mountains
Small rapids on the River Affric between Loch Affric and Loch Beinn a’ Mheadhain
Also located within the Glen Affric National Nature Reserve, Plodda Falls is an amazing vertical cascade dropping 150 ft. beneath the Douglas firs into the Abhainn Deabhag river.
Plodda Falls
The base of the falls
Woodland around Plodda Falls
On 16th April 1746, at Culloden Moor, Jacobite supporters led by Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie), seeking to restore the Stuart monarchy to British throne, gathered to fight the Duke of Cumberland’s government troops. It was the last pitched battle on British soil and, in less than an hour, around 1600 men were slain – 1500 of them Jacobites.
A visit to the Culloden battlefield and brilliant visitor centre was both a very moving and interesting learning experience. Rows of red flags mark the front line of the government army, which numbered approx. 8,000 men; this was where most of the hand-to-hand combat took place. The blue flags mark the front line of the Jacobite army, which numbered approx. 5,500 men.
A memorial cairn to the gallant Highlanders that fought for Scotland and Prince Charlie was erected in 1881. This marks the area where most of the mass graves are located. Headstones remember the traditional burial sites and some of the names and clans of the people involved.
One of the many paths through the Culloden battlefield with red and blue flags and the memorial cairn on the right
One of the mass graves marked by a headstone, with the memorial cairn in the background
Cawdor Castle, which dates from the late 14th century, was built as a private fortress by the Thanes of Cawdor, a family made famous by Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’. The Castle has been the ancestral home of the Campbell’s of Cawdor for over 600 years.
Cawdor Castle
Unusual topiary in the castle gardens!
The Falls of Foyers is a 165 ft. waterfall on the River Foyers, which feeds Loch Ness.
Top of the waterfall
The main body of the falls crashes into the river
The waterfall viewed from the other side of the gorge – a single person can be seen on the viewing platform
We have come to the end of our Scottish odyssey and tomorrow we head south for a few days in Yorkshire with family and then home. It has been a fantastic trip, blessed with great weather; only 2 days of rain in the 4 weeks exploring Scotland – many locals commented how unusual that was! By the time we get home we will have driven over 3,000 miles and brought with us some fantastic memories.
We hope you have enjoyed this blog and look forward to seeing you all in the near future.
Charlotte & Graham's Travels 