The Ultimate Road Trip

I have been planning the details of this trip for 6 months. I have been considering it for at least a year. And finally my plan has come to fruition - an epic trip into the northermost Scottish wilderness. For an adventure seeker, this trip contained everything - hikes, castles, parks, cathedrals, museums, cliffs and hills, mountains, lakes, caves, wilderness, breath-taking scenery, and a healthy amount of unrelentless fog and rain. I can only say that I'm proud of this mesmerizing experience and consider it truly a lifelong achievement.

Day 1 - Arriving in Edinburgh

We step off the plane in the Edinburgh airport and taste the damp humid air. The ground is wet. Almost constant drizzle wets all the outdoor surfaces. The earth is shaky with excitement for what is to come. The first pet we see - a Scottish terrier. We quickly catch a bus to St. Andrews' square in Edinburgh and leave our luggage in the quaint and traditional Old Waverley hotel - an optimal location where one can base their further exploration. The first step is to get a nice introduction of the city and its history in the Museum of Edinburgh - this included various historic facts, social aspects related to living conditions, healthcare, wellbeing, as well as tales like those of the Greyfriar Bobby. I hold a special interest toward animal stories like that of Bobby the Skye terrier, Unsinkable Sam, or even William Windsor and Nils Olav III.

Right after that, the next logical step is right across the street - the People's Story museum, which focuses more on the living conditions and how the various professions have evolved throught the city's history. One interesting aspect was learning about the poorhouses. The establishment of poorhouses in Edinburgh was a response to the growing issue of poverty and homelessness during the Industrial Revolution. The poorhouse residents, known as "inmates", were required to follow strict rules and perform manual labor in exchange for food, clothing, and shelter. The living conditions were often repulsive, and the quality of food and medical care was often inadequate. Inmates in poorhouses were often stigmatized as "undeserving poor" or "paupers" and were typically segregated by gender, age, and sometimes by their perceived moral character. Throughout the 20th century, poorhouses were gradually modified into the current poor relief welfare programs. A massive endeavour was to clear out (or tear down) various slums as well.

After the museum, we headed over to Calton Hill which is close by. This iconic landmark is one of Edinburgh's key signatures and offers outstanding cityscape which one can marvel at for hours. After that, we visited the Scotch Whisky Experience and Surgeon's Hall. Regarding the former, it was a most-curious tour about how Scotch whisky is made and how the different types like Highland, Speyside, and Islay differ. Regarding the latter, it was probably the most disgusting museum I've been to (e.g. William Burke's pocketbook). Nonetheless, it was very nice to get a sense of how difficult and tricky it can be to operate a da Vinci surgical robot. Also, the various dentistry and pathology collections were quite curious in showing how our modern medicine has evolved.

After 5 pm when the "timed" exhibitions end, one can go explore the city (University of Edinburgh, St. Gile's Cathedral, etc.), or stop for a pint and a nice dinner. On Friday and Saturday the city is alive - an autonomous entity with buzzing agents that create a unique immersive experience - bagpipers playing Amazing Grace, drunkards laughing loudly in the streets, football hooligans screaming in joy. What a sight.

Day 2 - A Full Day at Glasgow

The second day was all about Glasgow - the biggest city in Scotland. Whereas Edinburgh is a boutique and compact city, Glasgow is urban and huge. We caught the train pretty early in the morning and by 9:30 am were in the main station. It was cold and windy. We first went to the Kelvingrove museum - an imposing edifice housing all kinds of artifacts - from natural history to art. A sizeable organ played at 1 pm to the amusement of all visitors. While I didn't care much about the art sections, the natural history collections were more than adequate. From the museum, it's a short hilly walk to the University of Glasgow and its small but nice Hunterian museum. It included various interesting scenes - comparisons of wasp/bee nests and termite hills, corals and lichen structures, fossils and remains, various gems and minerals, as well as a sizeable collection of Lord Kelvin's inventions and Joseph Lister's (pioneer of antiseptic surgery) specimens. It's also Scotland's oldest public museum. The architecture of the university is truly stunning and walking in the gardens between the different sections feels like being in the 16th century.

After these museums, we walked to the nearest tube and went to the Glasgow cathedral and the Necropolis next to it. The Necropolis itself is striking - it's more or less a park but with ravens and crows cawing around you in the fog. The Cathedral demands equal attention - its Gothic architecture and stained glass windows, make it more memorable than most other churches. After these sights it was already late afternoon, so we headed off to find food and to warm our tired bones for about 30-40 minutes. Sweet sweet rest.

After 5 pm, when museums closed, we decided to simply walk around and soak our eyes in the city. We saw the Glasgow Green park, McLennan arch, Nelson's monument and from there walked along the Clyde river to the busier parts of the city. Curiously, while walking along the river in a neighborhood not particularly suited for tourists, we saw some coppers handling out fines to a group of graffitti artists. After that, we explored Buchanan street along with various points of interest like George Square, Royal Exchange Square, and the Lighthouse. We caught the late train to Edinburgh and had a laugh discussing our travellings that day.

Day 3 - From Edinburgh to Inverness

The previous two days were only warm-up. On the third day the real adventure starts. Our goal for that day was to get from Edinburgh to Inverness while also going on three separate hikes. To that end, we woke up early, caught the bus to the Edinburgh airport and went to rent a car. Soon, we were on our way, crossing the iconic Queensferry bridge - the longest triple tower cable-stayed bridge in the world.

After stopping to stockpile some provisions, the first stop was the Lochleven Castle. We specifically had brought binoculars to the trip which came in quite handy throughout our travels. Along the castle, there was a heavy abundance of wildlife - geese, swans, birds, and pheasants were all a common sight. Travelling north, the second stop, albeit a quick one, was the Scone Palace near Perth. This is a beautiful palace famous for being the crowning place of Scottish kings and for housing the Stone of Destiny.

Further to the north came our first hike for the day - the Hermitage near Dunkeld - a Perthshire classic. Old tall trees covered in moss and lichen in a dense forest create a mesmerizing walk while the water dripping from every leaf creates a fresh and cool feel. The rocks were green and fully covered in moss. The small river near the walk creates a ramling brown noise that further soothes the senses.

The second hike was The Falls of Bruar near Blair Atholl. This was an entirely different setting. It's a beautiful steep climb on the side of the Bruar river with multiple scenic viewpoints of the waterfalls. However, the water had a distinctive bronze colour. Much of Scotland's land, particularly in the Highlands, is covered in peat - a type of soil that forms in wetland conditions from the partial decay of plant material. It's rich in organic matter, which can leach into rivers and streams, coloring the water a dark brown or bronze hue. This, along with other minerals, humic substances, or iron, causes the distinctive brownish colour of the water.

The third hike was at the Uath Lochans - three small lochs near Aviemore, in the northwest of the Cairngorms. Reaching this place was a marvel due to how rapidly the landscape changes. Before the Cairngorms the scenery consists of green plains and numerous sheep. Once you start approaching the mountain range, you start seeing more and more hills, with fewer and fewer forests, only yellow, red, and black shrubs and bushes. It's like you're venturing into a nuclear zone where some of the vegetation has just started reappearing. It's glorious honestly. As was the hike. It was a classical forest biome, with some epic viewpoints sprinkled for good measure. Lots of wildlife as well - pheasants, hares, and grey herons. Around 7.30 pm we continued towards Inverness.

Day 4 - From Inverness to Wick

One of our main goals was to do the North Coast 500 (NC500) route. Today was the first part of that adventure. We left early and first went to see the murky waters of Loch Ness, after which we headed off to the Black Isle, Chanonry Point in particular. It's located at the end of a small spit of land extending into the Moray Firth. There is also a working lighthouse build in the middle of the 19th century. Although the weather was quite harsh - windy and raining, I particularly enjoyed this place. There was a strong particularly strong smell of dimethyl sulfide - often attributed to the smell of the sea. Moreover, walking along the lighthouse along the waves of the water was a particularly meditative experience. I suppose what I enjoyed most was the overall maritime ambiance.

After that we hiked to the Fairy Glen Falls, again in the Black Isle. While not bad, this was definitely the least impactful experience of the trip. The two waterfalls were nice, but the path to them was quite muddy, due to the adverse weather conditions. After that, we continued north to the Glenmorangie distillery and Dunrobin castle, a picturesque stately home where once aristocratic families from the Clan Sutherland lived. The castle has a impressive garden and a whopping 189 rooms! Further up the road is the Cairn Liath broch which was a nice quick educational sight shedding light on how primitive people lived in the Bronze Age.

On the way to Wick the landscape becomes rather epic. The cities become fewer, only invidual farms and houses constitute most of the buildings. The road trails the coast and the sea is a constant sight. On the right, sharp cliffs become more and more noticeable. We skipped the Whaligoe steps on the way to Wick because of bad weather and not enough time. In Wick we stayed in the Bank Guest House hotel which is one of the most authentic hotels I've been in. It had a old rustic smell, an Axminster carpet, and nice comfortable apartments. In the following morning, while I was eating my Highland breakfast, the radio was on and some gentlemen on BBC Four were debating whether an increase in taxes would lead to people becoming unmotivated to work hard.

Day 5 - From Wick to Tongue

This was a busy day. Awoken by the sun and the squawking of seagulls, we had breakfast and quickly rushed off back to the Whaligoe steps. What a breathtaking view - 365 steps descending the steepest cliffs where only gulls and puffins roam. Hundres of years ago, this rugged piece of coastline was bustling with trade during the herring days. Fishermen would bring the boat into the small inlet, haul it using a winch-like device, and offload the cargo. The herring would then be carried manually all the way to the markets in Wick.

After Whaligoe, we went to the Old Pulteney distillery and the Wick Heritage Museum. The small museum was in fact, one of the best museums I've ever visited - small and compact, but meticulously filled to the brim with content. It explores Wick's maritime history as once the "herring capital of Europe". Beautiful artifacts from the workshops, harbours, and ships give a detailed account of how the fishing industry worked and what life was back then.

North of Wick, one can find the ruins of Castle Sinclair Girnigoe. This was another awesome castle where one has the opportunity of going inside the ruins or around the bottom, close to the sea. Further north is John o' Groats - a small village which overlooks the Orkney archipelago. Here travellers can marvel at the calmness of the sea, walk the docks, or enjoy various craft beers. Closeby is the popular Duncasby Head lighthouse where one can walk miles along the cliffs to their heart's content. We spent a significant amount of time here walking to the Duncasby sea stacks and observing the various birds nesting.

At this point we turned west. Passing the Castle of Mey one reaches the beautiful Dunnet beach and Dunnet Head - the most northerly point of mainland Britain. When we were there the weather was not particularly favourable and it felt as cold as absolute zero. Nonetheless, the place is epic. It was like you're standing on the edge of the world and the wind will push you over. Continuing further to the west, one finally reaches Tongue.

Day 6 - From Tongue to Ullapool

Another beautiful day of travel and tiring adventure. We started the day with a walk to the ruins of Castle Varrich. It's a nice castle offering splendid views of land, sea, and sky. The road to the castle is hilly and peaceful. We saw the first set of wild deer here. Continuing west one reaches a very unique biome - numerous hills cover the horizont with many small lochs around the sides of the road. At the time of our visit - early May - most of the grass was still not green yet, which gave the hills a unique wasteland-like color palette of crimson red, black, and yellow. This region around loch Eriboll was full of sheep as well, which carelessly wander across the road without minding the drivers.

Furthernorth one passes along one of the most beautiful and stunning beaches I've ever visited - Ceannabeinne beach. Following a steep grassy slope, we reached the magnificent ultra wide sandy white beach. Here walking opportunities abound and the various rocks give an extra nordic appearance to this place. But make no mistake, the water is very cold and it's a matter of second before your feet turn limb from the low temperature. Talking from experience. A bit further is Smoo Cave - a Lovecraftian big dark cave under a small village. I recommend doing the cave tour with the boat - it involves going on a small boat trip in the cave. It's also worth going on a short hike to the cliffs over the sea nearby for another scenic viewpoint.

At this point the road turns south. One can also do big detour to Cape Wrath, but we've left that for another time. The NC500 road then goes over the Kylesku bridge and into a region called the Northwest Highlands Geopark. his region is most famous for the Moine Thrust Belt, a major geological feature where older rocks have been pushed over younger ones. This was one of the first places in the world where thrust faults were identified, making it a key site in the history of geological science. Much of the bedrock in this region is composed of Lewisian Gneiss, one of the oldest rocks in the world, dating back to around 3 billion years ago. Other interesting types of rocks encountered are Lewisian Gneiss, Torridonian Sandstone, Cambrian Quartzite, and limestone.

After more hours of driving along the NC500 road, we saw the scenic ruins of the Ardvreck Castle on loch Assynt. The final destination for the day was none other than the famous Bone Caves of Inchnadamph, where various bones of polar bears, reindeer, arctic foxes and lynxes have been found throughout the years. This was a tiring but rewarding hike. Around 8 pm, when we were done with it, we continued hastily to the quaint village of Ullapool to find the hotel and get food.

Day 7 - From Ullapool to Skye

No time to dilly-dally. The first stop today was the Corrieshalloch Gorge. It's approximately 1.5 km long, 60m deep, and was formed at the end of the last ice age (around 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago) by rapid erosion caused by meltwater. After returning and grabbing a tea, we continued south, following the rugged western coastline. The next stop was the Mellon Udrigle beach and the Inverewe garden - a big botanical garden with representative flora from all around the world. The road then passes through the picturesque town Gairloch, Kinlochewe, and Torridon.

Torridon we particularly enjoyed. It's a small elongated town. On one side it's surrounded by sizable mountains, on another side is the vast boggy wasteland, and on the third size is the sea. In fact, the ambiance is quite unique. Most of the ground is covered with "peatlands" or "bogs". The key characteristic of a bog is that it accumulates peat, a type of soil made up of decayed vegetation material. One particular feature of these areas is something known as "peat hags". These are jagged, eroded areas of peatland where the peat has been cut away, often by water movement, leaving a rugged, uneven surface. These can sometimes form pits or hollows. If they fill up with water, they're called "bog pools" - small bodies of water that form in depressions in the peatland. Near the shore, there's a seaweed known as "bladder wrack" (Fucus vesiculosus). The distinctive feature of bladder wrack are its "bladders" – pairs of air-filled sacs or bulbs along the length of the seaweed. These bladders help the seaweed to float, allowing it to reach sunlight in the water for photosynthesis. When bladder wrack washes ashore and dries out it turns a dark brown color. Quite alien-like if you ask me.

After Torridon and into the Applecross peninsula the road becomes quite epic. A certain amount of adrenaline starts building up into your bloodstream as you drive around the deserted, hilly, and rugged terrain. After perhaps an hour or so, one reaches the culmination of this effort - the glorious Bealach na Bà. After we passed the highest point, driving down the winding road with a massive amphiteatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion in sight was invigorating.

After that, having skipped Castle Strome and Caisteal Maol, we finally reached our hotel apartment in the Isle of Skye. It was located on the shore of Loch Ainort. The crystal clear loch and the mythical mountains were right in front of us. The bleating of the sheep and the far-reaching call of a cuckoo were all around us...

Day 8 - A Full Day at Skye

It's not a complete Scotland trip if you don't visit the Isle of Skye. And it's not a complete visit of Skye if you don't go hiking. Our first stop was directly at The Old Man of Storr in the Trotternish. The weather was unusually clear which contributed to a fantastic hike up the trail. The viewpoints were definitely worth the tiring climb. Further north, other highlights were the Lealt Falls and the An Corran beach. The latter has black sand, composed largely of basalt, which has been eroded by the water and the wind over millions of years. Additionally, when the tide is low, one can see multiple fossilized dinosaur footprints, preserved straight from the Middle Jurassic period.

The second hike was heroic - The Quiraing. It's a long, quite steep and dangerous at some places, but immensely rewarding at all times. The winding trail takes you along iconic viewpoints, scary precipices, and wide plateaus. And just when you think you've reached the end, guess what, there's more, a lot more. The suspense factor was quite strong here. A legendary hike that I am proud to have gone on.

The last stop for the day was the Isle of Skye's westernmost location - Neist Point. Similarly to the other locations, this place is iconic - an old lighthouse standing alone on the edge of the dramatic black isometric cliffs. I think this place offered the strongest nautical feel so far in the trip - an isolated lighthouse, the constant waves crashing, the salty air, and the constant drizzle. I could stay there for hours just looking out to the sea and thinking. But time is short, and it was already getting late, so at the end, after another great day, we headed back to the hotel.

Day 9 - From Skye to Edinburgh

We were not quite done with Skye yet. We had some unfinished business. The first point of interest that day was the Fairy Pools - a set of natural pools formed by the water from the mountain streams nearby. After that, we visited the Talisker distillery where fine whisky is made. I was not much into whiskys before this trip and must say that visiting these distilleries has opened my eyes to the wonders of whisky tasting.

After that, we headed towards Edinburgh which was quite a long way at this point. While travelling one can visit the Eilean Donan castle and the particularly-named loch Lochy, and the Dalwhinnie distillery - another quite famous one. The road then circles around the Cairngorms and continues to Pitlochry. Initially, I had planned a hike here to the summit of Ben Macdui but since the mountain is haunted by the Am Fear Liath Mòr creature, we decided to skip the rocky climb this time.

We then visited the beautiful Blair Athol distillery in Pitlochry. This distillery is quite old (founded in 1798) and is quite distinct compared to the others we visited. Whereas Talisker and Dalwhinnie are white in colour are quite reasonably sized, this one is big, consisting of multiple buildings, and black in colour. Moreover, all the walls are covered in vines - which gives it a greey, red, or brown layer, depending on the time of the year. And as you walk around the buildings, you can actually smell various whisky aromas from the wall slits.

When we arrived at Edinburgh, the weather was quite foggy and it was raining. We only had one day left - a full day at the city which also functioned as a buffer in case anything went wrong with the travels in the highlands. We checked into the hotel, this time in the area around George St and went out to get food.

Day 10 - A Full Day at Edinburgh

For the last day, we had left the big attractions - Edinburgh Castle, and National Museum of Scotland - so that was the plan for today. We headed to the Mound and onto the Royal Mile which was already crowded even at 10 am. Our first stop was the small yet comprehensive Writer's Museum, where one can learn about Scottish poet Robert Burns and novelist Walter Scott.

From there we entered the National Museum of Scotland - one of the biggest museums I have ever seen. Pressed by time, we stayed there for about 3.5-4 hours which was enough to get the gist of it, but not nearly enough to get a detailed understanding of any of the collections. The museum has six floors and contains all kinds of exhibits - natural history ones, historical ones, scientific, ethnographic, and so on. I particularly enjoyed the exhibits about the peculiar nature in Scotland, the geology, as well as all the scientific exhibits - steam engines, hot air balloons, communication and navigation devices, robots, and so on. Another interesting sight was the Kiribati armour - a type of armour from Oceania made from woven coconut fibre and remains of various aquatic animals and shells. It reminded me of the chitin armour from Skyrim.

After the museum, we went to see the famous St Giles' Cathedral, which was quite impressive, and subsequently rushed to buy more miniature whiskys from the nearby specialized stores. After a few minutes of marvelling at a nearby great horned owl demonstration (like falconry but with owls), it was time to enter the castle. Needless to say, it's iconic - a scenic fortress perched on a craggy extinct volcano in the heart of Scotland's capital city. We visited the Crown Jewels (oldest royal regalia in the UK), St. Margaret's Chapel (oldest surviving building in the UK), the Royal Palace, the National War Museum, the Great Hall, the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards Museum, Mons Meg (a big medieval cannon), the prison vaults, and the One O'Clock gun. Definitely worth it. After dinner, while walking back to the hotel, we were grateful for this amazing trip and the incredible things we had seen.

Day 11 - The End

The toughest day of them all. Leaving this place was hard. I felt like I was handling over the city to those tourists who have just landed. I've only felt like that once before - when I was standing on Waterloo bridge on the last day of a long trip to London about a year and a half prior. The more objective and critical you are in your assessment of the places you visit, the more likely it is that you'll find destinations which you enjoy more than the place you have to travel back to. But that only makes the holiday all the more special.