NC500 in a day...
Discussion
Yeah I know, long time lurker, very few posts, clickbait etc, however here goes for anyone who is interested.....
I did the NC500 anticlockwise in one day a couple of weeks ago, Setting off from the Black Isle close to Inverness at 05:30 and getting back at 18:05. That included a couple of hours droning, taking pics and visiting Oldshoremore Beach which was a bit off-piste.
There was next to no traffic along the whole route until I approached Inverness on the way back which made the trip fantastic. The weather was hmmm... ok which is amazing for Scotland at any time of year let alone early March.
The first part was fairly mundane on the A9 up the East Coast - and it was dark! From John O'Groats the roads became much more interesting and "animally". I came around one corner to find a Party of Stags crossing the road - an incredible sight. My first instincts were to stop, get the camera out (or even the drone) to capture them, however I decided to just savour the moment which was truly amazing.
From Johnnys' Groats to Durness the road surface and quality was changeable, twisty and in some places the undulations and blind summits were interesting to say the least. At Durness, the first re-fueling stop there was an Alpine A110 sitting at the side of the road, its occupants stretching and brushing their teeth, I'm assuming they slept in it overnight as at this time of year there is next to nothing open.
Durness to Kylesku was brilliant, I've travelled this road a few times many years ago and there are many stretches where you can see for miles, the road surface is superb, the cambers very favourable, and the scenery even better. This section went by in the blink of an eye.
I managed to get some fantastic shots of Kylesku Bridge from the drone and I may even try to post some of them. Unfortunately time, patience and technical prowess are not the mainstays of my skills arsenal.
From Kylesku to Ullapool was another fun section with some tiny slithers of tarmac winding their way through the heather, highland cows, sheep, chickens, grouse and 2 hikers. I took the long way round via the B869 taking in Drumbeg, Lochinver and Badnagyle on the way. This time the roads were a lot narrower but with many passing places and only the very occasional vehicle coming the other way, it was easy to keep up a brisk pace and really enjoy the unexpected around every corner. It was a fairly overcast day and as I mentioned, the weather was just about OK and I can only imagine how spectacular some of the vistas would be on that sunny day which I am assured does happen.
After a quick wander around Ullapool I filled up at the JET filling station and was served by a guy from Bury - my home town. It's a small world!. On the route to Applecross via Gairloch, the roads were much the same mixture as before from great quality wide A roads to twisty undulating ribbons, just great to have virtually to yourself. At one point at the crest of a rise, I spotted a huge oil rig in the far distance. I thought I would take the opportunity to buzz the tower, however it appeared that the flight pattern was full as I just couldn't find where it was. I did some research when I got home and it turns out that it was the Ocean Great White drilling rig which had been moored 15 miles off Lewis that week. It must be a mahoosive rig if I had managed to see if from Gruinard Bay about 35km away!
Once again I took the long way around via Fearnmore to get to Applecross which meant exciting small roads with blind summits, no traffic a splattering (not literally) of wildlife and a faint whiff of brakes.....
On the way up out of Applecross I passed an aging Discovery whose driver appeared to be taking things at a much more genteel pace than I was. Whilst I was droning at the top of the Bealach na Ba pass, said Disco pulled up at the viewpoint with vey smelly and slightly smoky rear brakes. Turns out the driver is a Scouser just titting around the area and realising the his trusty steed was far from ideal for the job. We chatted and agreed that his best course of action was low gear nursing the car down and enjoying the view, so onward he crept. Once I finished getting some epic (for my standards) pictures I set the drone to follow me down the Bealach na Ba which was slow but resulted in some pretty cool footage. I caught up Scouse Disco Bloke whose rear brakes were now stinking and billowing smoke, pads non existent and apparently metal on metal! Not an ideal situation sitting above Loch Kishorn. He refused a lift to the next village, said he would get there somehow, and bade me a safe fun onwards drive.
The last leg was mainly A roads back to Inverness and the Black Isle so not massively noteworthy.
Overall the trip was well worth the 10hrs drive from Kent although we did take in the Snowman Rally and visit the Brother-in-Law (he's a famous author don't you know) the same weekend to make it worthwhile.
The lack of traffic was the absolute clincher as it meant 99.9% of the whole trip was a proper exciting brisk drive. The only potential downside would be that there was hardly anything open. It didn't bother me as I went on my own and stocked up on snacks and drinks with Bury bloke in Ullapool.
Most people and all the websites suggest that the NC500 is done over several days especially if you want to see the gobsmacking views, however my intention was to 'drive' it (responsibly of course) and ignore the views. Didn't quite turn out that way - I was extremely responsible but couldn't resist the views - but it was well worth it.
I would definitely do it again at the same time of year if I could find a suitable weather window. No chance in the height of the season because of the scourge of motorhomes, midges and masses of tourists.
Finally what car did I do it in and given the choice of any car available what would I do it in next time? Same answer to both questions and I can anticipate the groans of "not another one on the bloody bandwagon". I do however have some qualifications to add to my choice of vehicle for the trip as I've owned it for almost 2 years, covered 20,000 miles which includes 3 European Road trips, track days, a Drive Limits Day, and just countless countless smiles..... Answer - A GR Yaris of course! I could go on and on about the car but you've probably heard it all before.
Och aye, see you Jimmy and all that keech.
D
I did the NC500 anticlockwise in one day a couple of weeks ago, Setting off from the Black Isle close to Inverness at 05:30 and getting back at 18:05. That included a couple of hours droning, taking pics and visiting Oldshoremore Beach which was a bit off-piste.
There was next to no traffic along the whole route until I approached Inverness on the way back which made the trip fantastic. The weather was hmmm... ok which is amazing for Scotland at any time of year let alone early March.
The first part was fairly mundane on the A9 up the East Coast - and it was dark! From John O'Groats the roads became much more interesting and "animally". I came around one corner to find a Party of Stags crossing the road - an incredible sight. My first instincts were to stop, get the camera out (or even the drone) to capture them, however I decided to just savour the moment which was truly amazing.
From Johnnys' Groats to Durness the road surface and quality was changeable, twisty and in some places the undulations and blind summits were interesting to say the least. At Durness, the first re-fueling stop there was an Alpine A110 sitting at the side of the road, its occupants stretching and brushing their teeth, I'm assuming they slept in it overnight as at this time of year there is next to nothing open.
Durness to Kylesku was brilliant, I've travelled this road a few times many years ago and there are many stretches where you can see for miles, the road surface is superb, the cambers very favourable, and the scenery even better. This section went by in the blink of an eye.
I managed to get some fantastic shots of Kylesku Bridge from the drone and I may even try to post some of them. Unfortunately time, patience and technical prowess are not the mainstays of my skills arsenal.
From Kylesku to Ullapool was another fun section with some tiny slithers of tarmac winding their way through the heather, highland cows, sheep, chickens, grouse and 2 hikers. I took the long way round via the B869 taking in Drumbeg, Lochinver and Badnagyle on the way. This time the roads were a lot narrower but with many passing places and only the very occasional vehicle coming the other way, it was easy to keep up a brisk pace and really enjoy the unexpected around every corner. It was a fairly overcast day and as I mentioned, the weather was just about OK and I can only imagine how spectacular some of the vistas would be on that sunny day which I am assured does happen.
After a quick wander around Ullapool I filled up at the JET filling station and was served by a guy from Bury - my home town. It's a small world!. On the route to Applecross via Gairloch, the roads were much the same mixture as before from great quality wide A roads to twisty undulating ribbons, just great to have virtually to yourself. At one point at the crest of a rise, I spotted a huge oil rig in the far distance. I thought I would take the opportunity to buzz the tower, however it appeared that the flight pattern was full as I just couldn't find where it was. I did some research when I got home and it turns out that it was the Ocean Great White drilling rig which had been moored 15 miles off Lewis that week. It must be a mahoosive rig if I had managed to see if from Gruinard Bay about 35km away!
Once again I took the long way around via Fearnmore to get to Applecross which meant exciting small roads with blind summits, no traffic a splattering (not literally) of wildlife and a faint whiff of brakes.....
On the way up out of Applecross I passed an aging Discovery whose driver appeared to be taking things at a much more genteel pace than I was. Whilst I was droning at the top of the Bealach na Ba pass, said Disco pulled up at the viewpoint with vey smelly and slightly smoky rear brakes. Turns out the driver is a Scouser just titting around the area and realising the his trusty steed was far from ideal for the job. We chatted and agreed that his best course of action was low gear nursing the car down and enjoying the view, so onward he crept. Once I finished getting some epic (for my standards) pictures I set the drone to follow me down the Bealach na Ba which was slow but resulted in some pretty cool footage. I caught up Scouse Disco Bloke whose rear brakes were now stinking and billowing smoke, pads non existent and apparently metal on metal! Not an ideal situation sitting above Loch Kishorn. He refused a lift to the next village, said he would get there somehow, and bade me a safe fun onwards drive.
The last leg was mainly A roads back to Inverness and the Black Isle so not massively noteworthy.
Overall the trip was well worth the 10hrs drive from Kent although we did take in the Snowman Rally and visit the Brother-in-Law (he's a famous author don't you know) the same weekend to make it worthwhile.
The lack of traffic was the absolute clincher as it meant 99.9% of the whole trip was a proper exciting brisk drive. The only potential downside would be that there was hardly anything open. It didn't bother me as I went on my own and stocked up on snacks and drinks with Bury bloke in Ullapool.
Most people and all the websites suggest that the NC500 is done over several days especially if you want to see the gobsmacking views, however my intention was to 'drive' it (responsibly of course) and ignore the views. Didn't quite turn out that way - I was extremely responsible but couldn't resist the views - but it was well worth it.
I would definitely do it again at the same time of year if I could find a suitable weather window. No chance in the height of the season because of the scourge of motorhomes, midges and masses of tourists.
Finally what car did I do it in and given the choice of any car available what would I do it in next time? Same answer to both questions and I can anticipate the groans of "not another one on the bloody bandwagon". I do however have some qualifications to add to my choice of vehicle for the trip as I've owned it for almost 2 years, covered 20,000 miles which includes 3 European Road trips, track days, a Drive Limits Day, and just countless countless smiles..... Answer - A GR Yaris of course! I could go on and on about the car but you've probably heard it all before.
Och aye, see you Jimmy and all that keech.
D
plenty said:
Nice trip report. You still got the red roadster, Darren? I chased you in it on the Camberring one morning many moons ago...
still got the Imola Roadster - Charlotte, will never sell her, she's a part of the family!!The Camber Ring is not what it used to be, the surface is totally f
ked in may places, it's a real shame. what were you driving at the time? I probably have some video footage of the occasion....Olivera said:
Blasting around the whole thing in 1 day is absolutely abysmal. Give it at least 2-3 days (preferably more) to see and do things.
whatever - if you want to take 3-4 days, you will have to do it in the summer and put up with all the traffic and that's not the way I wanted to do it.Each to their own. it definitely was not 'abysmal'
Dazanator said:
Olivera said:
Blasting around the whole thing in 1 day is absolutely abysmal. Give it at least 2-3 days (preferably more) to see and do things.
whatever - if you want to take 3-4 days, you will have to do it in the summer and put up with all the traffic and that's not the way I wanted to do it.Each to their own. it definitely was not 'abysmal'
Dazanator said:
The Camber Ring is not what it used to be, the surface is totally fked in may places, it's a real shame. what were you driving at the time? I probably have some video footage of the occasion....
Last time I drove it in 2020 there was one stretch of long straight close to Lydd Airport that has a huge hidden ripple. You will get air if pressing on but it's completely invisible and takes you by surprise.ked in may places, it's a real shame. what were you driving at the time? I probably have some video footage of the occasion....Think our run was in 2011. I was in a blue Porsche 968. We also were on the same Kent Runs in Oct 2010 and May 2011.
https://youtu.be/Gfn7st8afDM
Absolutely love the NC500, we’ve done a few videos on it.. this one was one of the latest.
Absolutely love the NC500, we’ve done a few videos on it.. this one was one of the latest.
hiccy18 said:
leggly said:
What a waste of a journey. It’s utterly pointless to travel the north of Scotland in one day.
Unless you want to of course, and there's no better reason than that.More power to you OP, interesting read.
MikeGTi said:
I must admit I often wake up early if I can't sleep and think, "should I just drive to John O' Groats for the giggles?", maybe I should.
I did exactly that last weekend, except it was Land's End not John O'Groats. Realised Friday that it was the first weekend of the year with reasonable weather and no salt on the roads. Friday evening, plotted a route to Land's End taking in all of the best back-roads there and back.
Left Saturday lunchtime and returned Monday, having covered 775 miles almost all of which were twisties.
I only actually stopped at Lands' End for about 10 minutes. A spontaneous trip simply for the love of driving.
plenty said:
MikeGTi said:
I must admit I often wake up early if I can't sleep and think, "should I just drive to John O' Groats for the giggles?", maybe I should.
I did exactly that last weekend, except it was Land's End not John O'Groats. Realised Friday that it was the first weekend of the year with reasonable weather and no salt on the roads. Friday evening, plotted a route to Land's End taking in all of the best back-roads there and back.
Left Saturday lunchtime and returned Monday, having covered 775 miles almost all of which were twisties.
I only actually stopped at Lands' End for about 10 minutes. A spontaneous trip simply for the love of driving.
When I first started work, I needed to travel and a hire car would be arranged. Being 21, Hertz limited me to an Escort 1.4. This was the era pre-24hr opening and even my local branch was closed at weekends. Back then the larger major airports closed their hire car desks around midnight.
So if I needed a car to travel somewhere for work on Monday, I would have one delivered to me on Friday - a free car with unlimited mileage for the weekend!
We would travel to the extremities often arriving in the early hours with us taking a picture of us standing next to the sign - Kent to Lands End, John O'Groats, Holyhead, Fishguard, Lowestoft, Newcastle, Berwick, Barrow etc. We would take turns driving/sleeping. The lowest mileage we would cover over a weekend would be around 750 miles and the highest was 2,300 on the John O'Groats trip - but hey, unlimited mileage!I remember on one trip driving home down the A9 and being flagged down by a stranded motorist. He couldn't find his wheel brace and asked if he could borrow ours to fix a flat tyre - his car was a Ford too, so it fitted. I told him to open the boot and get it whilst I put on my jacket. He saw the dealer name on the number plate "Eastbourne Ford" and said "f
k me, you guys have travelled all the way from Eastbourne?!" We told him we were only 50 miles from there but likely to cover 2,000 miles that weekend.Gassing Station | Roads | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff