We've had a great stay at Tigh na Failte and in Ullapool but, after a quick trip to Tesco, it's time to move on. There's firing at Cape Wrath at the end of September, so we just have to get there as soon as we can. This means three days of long distance road walking, starting with the A835.
The A835 is part of the NC500 (North Coast 500). This is a 516 mile driving route around the north coast of Scotland launched in 2015 starting and finishing at Inverness Castle. It has become very popular after the pandemic. This means that the road is filled with ultimate behemoth motor homes, left-hand drive cars from the continent, sports cars and rentals driven by North Americans who have never driven on the left, never mind used gear shift. Meanwhile, the locals are trying to get about their business as this is the only road. We decide to look out for ourselves and not trust anyone on the road, which means hopping on and off verges and positioning ourselves carefully at the various sharp corners and blind summits.
We start off following the shore and all the North Atlantic weather can throw at us. On the plus side, the sunshine and sharp, squally showers create beautiful, dramatic rainbows across the countryside.
The scenery is incredible. The mountains of Coigach and Assynt have always seemed far-flung, mythical beasts to me and here they are laid out in front of us. They are inselbergs of ice-age weathered Torridonian sandstone sitting on a bedrock of much older Lewisian gneiss. They are like no other mountains I have ever seen, Stac Pollaidh being my favourite.
This whole area is part of the North West Highlands UNESCO Geopark. Lewisian gneiss is similar to gneiss in Greenland and North America rather than anything else in the UK, providing evidence that these areas were all once connected. We decide to have lunch at the Knockan Crag visitor centre despite the fact that it's an uphill detour, as it's covered (albeit open) and by now, it's cold and pouring with rain.
After lunch, we continue down the hill and through the village of Elphin with glorious views of Suilven. We pass some friendly, free range pigs and then turn off down the single track A837 for a mile and a half to reach the Altnacealgach Motel. It's a very welcome stop after a day on the road.
Total distance so far: 845 miles
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