Monday 4th June 07
After months of day dreaming of the roads up north, the day had finally come.
I had been keeping an eye on the weather sites over the past week and everything was looking good.
This would be my 8th or 9th Scottish Highland Tour.
Bike is all packed the night before, except for the beer & burgers, will pick them up enroute.
The first leg of the journey was to get out of the big smoke (Edinburgh) a 1hour ride up the M9 to Callander. For many bikers this is the starting point for their Highland adventures.
From Callander it’s a great run up to Tyndrum and the Green Welly stop. Time for a smoke and top up with fuel. Next a 10 min blast to the start of Glen Coe.
My campsite for the night was at the far end. Glen Coe is an awesome road, fast straights, superb bends that you can see through and is around 30 miles long.
Once at the campsite, first thing was to get the beer in the mountain stream to cool down, then tent up and fire on for the burgers
Once fed and watered !!! It is time for a stroll to the campsite bar, along a small single track road through hills and trees, it is the only building for miles around used by backpackers
http://www.clachaig.com/p/v/the-bars/
15 cask condition beers are on tap. This is gona be a long night. Started at the first tap and lost count by 5 or 6 !
Tuesday 5th June 07
Head a bit fuzzy from the night before, I awake to a new morning in the Glen. Blue Skies, birds singing and mist rolling off the hills.
A shower and bacon roll and I was off. ( later to find out had left my shower gel! )
Plan was to head for Fort William, Speanbridge, than up through the mountains and down to Kyle of Lochalsh
Another fabulous road, but I knew the best was yet to come.
A quick fill up and I’m off to Applecross. Up through the mountains and down along the side of Lochcarron. The roads are getting much quieter now, only one car every 5 mins or so, and are much more fun to ride.There are two ways into Applecross, one isn’t even shown on most maps. (The Old Pass)
It’s a single track road, 11 miles long through mountains, with passing places, reckoned to be impassable in the winter months, (I can see why!)
There are many steep hills, long straights, hair pins and long sweeping bends that you can see through 4 or 5 at a time, very smooth ride but also extremely demanding
Applecross itself is a lovely wee village right on the sea front. It has a wonderful campsite. The Applecross Inn is famous for its seafood and lively atmosphere.
http://www.applecross.uk.com/index.htm
No stopping here for me though I am heading up the coast through Kinlockewe to Gairloch where I would set up camp for the night.
Applecross to Gairloch.
What can I say? This road is 70 miles long, sorry no pics, was having way to much fun to stop and take any. The memory of this road will always stay with me, unforgettable only comes close to describing it.
I have travelled 203 miles today so a few beers in the local pub in Gailoch are called for. I have met up with a few other bikers at the campsite so join them. One chap asked me to pass on a message to his mate in Durness (135 miles away) as he had no phone and I was heading there tomorrow. I was told I would find him in the pub, quality, any excuse for a pint.
Wednesday 6th June
Next morning was very hot and blue sky as far as the eye could see. Had breakfast on the camping stove , packed up and headed off to Poolewe.
Another Awesome road! Great for the bird to stretch her legs. I swear I had her airbourne twice, fully loaded, the avon storms really show what they are made of.
Up here in the hills you don’t even think about the police, it’s the deer you have to concern yourself with. I had seen a few already, that had been hit, lying at the roadside. They looked about the size of a horse, I would not like to hit one.
Some of the local bikers told me they use a small whistle, only audible to animals, fitted to their bikes to scare them off.
Don’t know that I would entrust my life to something I cant hear, but suppose its better than nothing
Arriving at Braemore, the road on up to Ullapool is like my own personal race track. So smooth, with no overbanding, pot holes etc. And yet again bends that go on forever and ever, but sadly over far to quickly as you get very throttle happy!
Stopped in Ullapool for lunch and fuel stop. Now for the run to Durness. Another 65 miles of my own personal race track. This road has so much grip its never been touched or dug up since the day it was lain.
Just like all the roads before the scenery is fabulous.
It is so tranquil here you maybe only see one or two cars every 15/20 minutes. The bends again are so smooth with ½ mile vision ahead. Absolutely great blackbird country.
Arriving all too soon at Durness, but am very tired, time to stop for the day, riding these roads, although the most enjoyable experience, is also very demanding.
Set up camp and the view from my tent is spectacular, so I am just chilling with a few beers and a Barbie.
Later I head for the only pub in Durness in search of JEFF to pass on the message. . Sure enough he was there.
A Motoguzzi club arrived and pitched up beside me. A mixture of German and British bikers. We spent the next few hours sharing views and copius amounts of beer, before I had to finally give in and crawl off to my tent, in the wee small hours of the morning
Thursday 7th June
Once again my head is fuzzy, so I have a long lie before setting off for John ‘O’Groats. Well that was the plan but I have been there done that and the roads are not that great the further east you go so I decideto head back down my race track to Ullapool.
Since setting off from home I have been using my newly acquired Autocom. When I finally got it set up properly it was glorious. Music booming in my ears, Dire Straits, yes I know not everyone’s cup of tea, but as Mark Knofler is a biker himself, I could swear he wrote some of his stuff for the roads up here.
Am scaring myself a bit though, am pushing the bird way too hard with all this extra weight from the luggage on board. The Avon storms are great but am sure they were getting a bit squidgy with the heat and the weight the rear was carrying.
Once back in Ullapool, I get unloaded, set up camp and head back out for more fun. Took in a few of the other roads for the rest of the day before heading back down for some refreshments.
View from the beer garden in Ullapool
Friday 8th June
I had planned to go down to Inverness the long way round via Gairloch but once I got near Inverness the weather was turning iffy. After much deliberation, I decided just to head for a very fast, high speed blast home. Unfortunately just past Aviemore, I came across a camera van sitting on the A9, one of the new high tech vans with the glass dome on the side! Am not sure if I managed to slow down enough to get away with it this time, DOH ! I should know better there are always mobile units on the A9.
840 miles later home safe and sound. Once again the bird performed impeccably. With the new suspension set-up courtesy of Jaws and the new Avon storms, it just gets better and better.
No amount of pictures/words can do the North of Scotland justice when the weather is good. It seems I was in another world not just a few hundred miles away. Every day life is so far removed from the tranquillity and serenity up in the north. Hope you can get a feel of this from my trip.
Which type are you?
