Day 1, 26th June 2009. Inchbae Lodge, near Garve to Gairloch.
Night at Inchbae Lodge. We take the A835 down Strath Garve back down to Garve. This is a new road and you can see the old twisty road beside it in places, now disused. A great start to the tour. Just before Garve we take a sharp right W on the A832 towards Gairloch. We assume that’s there’s no place to get lunch on this road, so get packed lunches from the Inchbae. However there’s a Hotel at Achnasheen and also a cafe by the station. Drinks at Kinlochewe. Tail wind today – it’s hard to believe as we are heading W.
Distance 53.18 miles Cycling time 3:42:08 Average Speed 14.36 Max 41.3 mph
Day 2, 27th June 2009. Gairloch to Ullapool
view from Gairloch
A climb out of Gairloch on the 832 towards Ullapool. Up and over to Poolewe at the end of Loch Ewe which has the Isle of Ewe in it. It seems that Poolewe is pronounced ‘Pooloo’. Does this mean that the Isle of Ewe is pronounced ‘Isle of Ooo’. I hope not. I love you. More hills to get out of Aultbea and Gruinard. We manage to get to the excellent Maggie’s cafe on the side of Little Loch Broom for a late lunch. There’s also a hotel at Dundonnel. Through an empty landscape and into a stiff headwind we finally get to the junction with the A835. Then it’s an easy run down to Ullapool.
Distance 61.42 miles Cycling time 5:44:14 Average Speed 10.7 Max 39.9 mph
Day 3, 28th June 2009. Ullapool to Drumbeg
A couple of climbs out of Ullapool on the A835 before after about 12 miles we turn W on unclassified road which eventually runs along Loch Lurgainn. This is a top quality run, with a mountain called Polly (Pollaidh) over our right shoulders. At the end of the loch there’s a sharp right up the hill towards Lochinver. Cruckster falls off on the way down but isn’t badly hurt. Lunch in Lochinver. Then there are more ups and downs around the coast road to Drumbeg. Prize for the scruffiest settlement goes to Stoer where the road is full of sheep droppings and tufts of dirty wool snagged on the barbed wire of roadside fences. Night in the Drumbeg Hotel
Distance 47.72 miles Cycling time 4:39:26 Average Speed 10.24 Max 38.8 mph
Day 4, 29th June 2009. Drumbeg to Durness
On to the A894 and north we pass a coach from Zell am Zee which has stopped to let the passengers stretch their legs. We have a nice chat with
near drumbeg
them. Then on to Scourie for lunch. NE of Scourie (‘Scoorie’ not ‘Scowrie’) over Laxford Bridge and onto A838 this is wild open countryside. The run down past the Kyle of Durness is superb.
Distance 49.16 miles Cycling time 4:44:22 Average Speed 10.37 Max 34 mph
Day 5, 30th June 2009. Durness to Bettyhill
This is a feature day for Cruckster – another part of the tour which stood out on the map, similar to the run past Polly. We turn E in anger for the first time to head across the N coast, but the minor roads up Strath More and down Strath Naver are too good to miss. Loch Eriboll and Loch Hope both deliver in the scenic stakes and we have (packed) lunch at the Dun Dornaigil broch.
Broch
Strath More is empty. One or 2 farms, that’s it. It’s also hot – hard to believe. The crossroads with the A836 is a bleak spot, nothing to delay anyone there, but just past this is a friendly campsite by Loch Naver where we get an ice cream from the shop and exchange midge-bite stories. Not much at Syre to detain anyone; we press on down Strath Naver which lacks the scale and grandeur of Strath More, but is a pleasant ride. We are leaving the hills. After a long day, we trundle the last 3 or 4 miles down the A836 into Bettyhill. I remember this as the ‘Day of the Cleggs’.
Night in the Bettyhill Hotel, perched on a cliff top with stupendous views of Torrisdale Bay.
Distance 67.55 miles Cycling time 6:21:16 Average Speed 10.24 Max 38.8 mph
Day 6, 1st July 2009. Bettyhill to Scrabster
The ‘cleggs’ we are told are a type of horse fly – big brown things which specialise in landing on your skin to suck your blood. Knock them off once they’ve started their meal and you’ll be left with a thin trail of blood on your skin. We have a race on to get the lunchtime ferry from Scrabster to Stromness. There’s not much to see on route, a couple of hills, the road is set well back from the coast. Endless clover-filled fields. The scent of the clover is really strong. Fare to Stromness about 17 Pounds Sterling including bike. This is a big ferry – so a good idea to get there with 30 minutes to spare. Also, we are asked for photo ID before tickets are issued. Lunch on the boat. Night in Stromness at the Ferry Inn.
Distance 33.39 miles Cycling time 2:45:41 Average Speed 12.09 Max 32.6 mph
Day 7, 2nd July 2009. Tour of Orkney Mainland
Skara Brae and Skail House. About £6.50. Pretty good value. Good cafe at visitor centre. Then on to the Brough of Birsay. By the time we get there the tide is in and the causeway inaccessible. However we can see the ‘island’. There’s no time anyway as we have to press on to get to the
Ring of Brodgar
Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness. At the stones we are attacked by midges so we leave at speed to return to Stromness
Distance 36.02 miles Cycling time 3:19:59 Average Speed 10.8 Max 31.8 mph
Day 8, 3rd July 2009. Stromness to Wick
Today has another race against the clock, this time to get the midday ferry from St Margaret’s Hope to Gills Bay. It’s pretty tough against a headwind, first along the A965 then after Finstown we bypass Kirkwall on a road S of Wideford Hill. Then onto the A961 S of Kirkwall. It’s a long haul to St Margarets we don’t get much chance to admire the Churchill barriers as we cross them and Scapa Flow, or to stop and look at the Italian Chapel. This is a smaller ferry than Scrabster to Stromness. Interesting to pass deserted islands of Swona and Stroma. From Gills Bay a dull run on the A836 to John o’ Groats for lunch. Yes, John O’Groats lives up to its reputation. The natural landscape is hardly awe-inspiring and visitor facilities minimal. One or two ‘outlets’ a souvenir shop or two, an Edwardian hotel – fenced off and boarded up. Fortunately, there’s an ‘End to end’ cafe. One thing that typifies the general dissatisfaction with the place is the fact that there is a guy who at 3pm takes down the finger post that people like to have their photo taken against. I guess he owns this concession and must charge for this privilege. Sad. Whoah! To add to the gloom, the clouds have rolled in for the first time this holiday. We press on to Wick on the A99, without further delay.
Distance 53.77 miles Cycling time 4:33:26 Average Speed 11.8 Max 31.4 mph
Day 9, 4th July 2009. Wick to Golspie.
Wick is a big town. The previous night we have wandered around the remains of Thomas Telford’s Poulteney Town – worth a look if you are interested in buildings and history. This morning the mist has closed in and we see nothing of the coast as we spin down the A99. In a cafe on Orkney, some other cyclists tell us of a legendary cafe called ‘La Mirage’ in Helmsdale, which is en-route for us but a long haul at about 37 miles. Lunch in La Mirage is worth it. Excellent Fish and Chips. The portions are enormous, in fact Cruckster gets four battered fish on his plate. Things have also improved because the sun has come out and the mist receded. Good run
Golspie
to Golspie, even though we are on the increasingly busy A9. Night in Granite Villa which wins the prize for the best B&B of the holiday. Great friendly welcome, and fine breakfast with excellent selection of jams.
Distance 55.34 miles Cycling time 3:59:18 Average Speed 13.87 Max 40.3 mph
Day 10, 5th July 2009. Golspie to Inchbae Lodge
More A9 though we detour around the lovely Loch Fleet to Dornoch which is a fine little town with castle on the High Street. After Dornoch Firth the A9 is getting bigger and busier. We detour via Invergordon which is a mistake trying to find a lunch spot, but on Sunday afternoon it’s a bit like a set from a zombie movie. We eventually find some life (and decent food) at the Tomich Garden Centre cafe. The B817 via Alness and Evanton is OK, and the A862 via Dingwall is a little better. We stop for a break at the Hotel in Dingwall and have send back not one but two different pints of real ale. On the TV Roger Federer is grinding out his win against Andy Roddick. The last 10 miles on the A835 are a good ride. It’s amazing how quickly the dull E coast is behind us here. An alternative route would be to take the A949 to Bonar Bridge, then the 836 along the S of the Dornoch Firth then fork S on the B9176 to Alness. Night in the Inchbae Lodge.
Distance 69.83 miles Cycling time 5:37:26 Average Speed 12.41 Max 32.4 mph
To be completed: I’ll add some links and some pictures and a summary in a few days.
