NC500 - My experience

NC500 - My experience

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littlelewis6

Original Poster:

101 posts

162 months

Tuesday 23rd January 2018
quotequote all
This is a direct copy from the Blog post I wrote but explains what the trip was like for myself, its a bit of a long read, sorry.

A few weeks ago a good friend and I were thinking of road trips we would like to do, we came up with the usual sorts, Nuremberg, Le Mans, Monaco etc, when he suggested the Scottish Highlands, a destination I had never really considered; with it being so close to home I had always just associated it with England and passed it off as okay but not really something to be excited about, this was until we did a little research and found out about the North Coast 500....

The North Coast 500 is Scotland's answer to Route 66, and is fast becoming a very popular attraction for petrol heads, cyclist and explorers alike, with a stunning coast line, scenic mountains, and the best views Scotland has to offer, it's easy to see why this popularity is snowballing. The route guide suggests the start/finish being Inverness however our journey had our first and last nights being at Dingwall. The route takes you up the eastern coast to John O'Groats, across the northern coast, down the western coast and then back across parallel with Inverness to round off the route, a total of 516 miles, okay slightly more than 500 but they're not going to call it the North Coast 516 now are they.

My friend and I met up early in the morning just off the motorway, sorted Sat Nav's, checked our radio's were working and connected to each other, took a mandatory setting off photo and then hit the road. ready for a 450 mile drive from Nottingham to Dingwall, estimated time of 8 hours. We had planned for a few stops and one re-fuel, the trip had began. By the third junction of the motorway I realised that I had forgotten all of the car sweets I had purchased for the trip, and despite my asking we did not turn around to retrieve them. So grumpily the journey continued, we continued for quite sometime without any drama and soon enough we were getting lower on fuel, we had budgeted for a fuel stop and so decided now would be a good opportunity to fill up and give our legs a stretch, as comfortable as the GT86 is, it is still a low, firm sports car, and my legs were appreciative of the chance to be vertical rather than horizontal.

We soon crossed the border into Scotland and  our stomach's dictated that it was time for our second stop, this may have been a bit later on if I had been allowed to retrieve my sweets... McDonald's lunch was out of the way and we were on to the home stretch, the mileage greatly reduced and our journey time was only around 4 hours so far, we (wrongly) assumed things would continue as they were and we would smash our ETA. We had not realised that the Scottish road system didn't need to cater for quite as much volume as the English motorway system, and had not really known that rather than a steady flow of three lanes we would be reduced to single file with occasional dual carriageways for passing. Fortunately traffic was relatively light and I amused myself by overtaking whenever possible just to break up the monotony of following the same tail lights for miles on end. We eventually reached Dignwall at roughly 5pm, found our stop for the night and set about finding dinner.

We had a wander through the town and I decided rather quickly that I was having a takeaway pizza, we wandered into the local takeaway, Dingwall Pizza, and after ordering I was chatting to the owner when a couple from the guest house we were staying arrived, we made small talk and eventually I was asked what our cars were, our new friends being from overseas they hadn't really seen them before. As soon as I had said the word GT86 the owner of the takeaway lit up in enthusiasm, it turns out they are his favourite car, having test driven one in the past and being told by his daughter that he needed to get one, having two in his town had rejuvenated his enthusiasm. We took our pizza and headed back to our room, agreeing on the way that we should bring the cars back around to show him. Upon returning to the takeaway with our cars we gathered a little more attention than we expected to,  but our new friend was ecstatic, he immediately saw the Coffees.Cars sticker on my rear window, asked if I was a fan of coffee, which I am, and informed me that he also owned the cafe on the corner which he opened up just for me to try his coffee, it was fantastic. We thanked him for his hospitality, gave him an in depth look around the cars, headed to the bar for a quick whiskey, because Scotland, and called it a night, a fantastic new memory to remember and a new friend made.

Our second day started with a lovely cooked breakfast accompanied by some good conversation with an american petrol head, swapping car photos and planning future road trips, we then set off on our official first day of adventure which took us as far north as it is possible to go without hopping onto a ferry or plane, many believe this to be John O' Groats, it is actually Dunnet Head, so to be sure we had been as far north as we could, we went to both. Dunnet Head was by far the prettier of the two destinations, and was much quieter, with John O' Groats being full of people and very much a tourist destination it was difficult to appreciate the views and scenery. Dunnet Head however was much quieter, and the scenery was much clearer, with beautiful cliff faces and stunning oceanic views it was a real highlight point to have gone to. The roads along the eastern coast were an absolute blast, although the roads around the entire trip were so it is difficult to make comparison, the highlighting factor about the eastern coast is that it is the route to John O' Groats, and so the roads are built to cater for larger volumes of traffic, with a continuous flow of tourists, there are two clearly defined lanes, with clear straights and smooth surfaces, and as the weather was on our side it made for a days worth of fantastic driving.

We arrived at Thurso in the early afternoon and proceeded to drive around the town roughly three times before finding a place to park and gather our bearings, with us being earlier than expected we couldn't go straight to the hotel to check in. Thurso appears to have two sides to it, with a river running through the centre dividing the sides, one one side is a relatively pretty seaside town, with access to quiet beaches, a small town centre and a picturesque church. The other side appears to be a council / industrial estate, with houses stretching back and grey scale buildings for quite some stretch, it does however have a Tesco which is useful. We managed to kill time in a local cafe, scouring out a small route for the afternoon to try and explore and before we knew it the hotel check time was upon us. We immediately found out that when the hotel said there was parking it actually meant, there are 5 spaces, each divided by railway girders and no, your cars probably wont fit... We got lucky and snagged the last two spaces. After check in we decided to have a ride out to the nearest castle, which as it so happens was not in fact a castle but a small church in the centre of a small village, nothing exciting or picturesque about either of those, especially not in comparison to some of the sights we had seen so far on the trip. We returned to Thurso relatively disheartened and set about finding dinner, a chippy by the harbor provided us with the evenings sustenance and we headed back to the hotel, only to find that other guests had arrived but seemingly none had left, meaning the car park was now full, we were forced to park on a side street and pray our cars were safe. We headed back to our room and were shocked to find that the TV did not have the channel Dave, which usually provides a steady supply of top gear re-runs and the best of British satire, we were devastated, nothing to watch, not much to do, and no parking, we resorted to watching a show about engineering and fell asleep.

Following our sleep in Thurso we were up relatively early, in time for breakfast, and made no hesitation in getting ready to get on our way, the main section of north coast ahead of us and the majority of  low levels of population we were eager to hit the road. With our stop in Ullapool almost as far away as possible from Thurso without leaving the NC500 we decided to split the day into two and use Smoo cave as our midway point. The drive across the northern coastline was some of the most beautiful and engaging roads I have ever been on, growing up the Derbyshire countryside that's a relatively bold claim, and I don't think that I have ever enjoyed being behind the wheel of a car more than I did that day, with a good friend in an equal car driving with equal amounts of enthusiasm and joy, there was no place I'd rather have been, the rest of the world dissipated and the only thing that mattered was what corner was coming next and which view were we going to be astounded by.

As we were having so much fun we very quickly made our way through the B roads along the first parts of the coast and approached some less accommodating tarmac, narrow and with only short stretches of visible road ahead we were forced to take things steady. This however allowed us to really appreciate the surroundings in which we found ourselves; the Scottish Highlands, one of the most beautiful places in the British Isles, if not the world. The mountains were slightly less abundant near the coast as they were more inland however the oceanic views and rolling roads were a beauty in their own right.

On our approach to Smoo cave we happened upon a brand new Civic Type R, with an equally enthusiastic driver behind the wheel, this made for some fun blasts during the moments when the roads were clear, with the 86's being light, nimble and RWD but less on power and the Civic being FWD, turbo'd and chunkier, it made for a great bit of driving fun and a close comparative on speed and ability. We quickly reached traffic that had been far ahead of us and took it steady until Smoo cave, the 3 cars all parked up, we had a quick natter with the driver and began our little excursion for the day.

Following our wander around Smoo cave we decided to head for some lunch, we located a small cafe not to far away and set off. We arrived to find that the Civic we had previously been having fun with had also decided to head for the same cafe and had met up with some friends in a Fiesta ST, we had a brief greeting, got ourselves some lunch and then got back onto the road, Ullapool set in the sat-navs and off we went.

The drive to Ullapool was again a mix between brilliant B road blasts and some tighter and therefore slower country lanes with breathtaking views being a constant feature for the duration of the journey. We at one point reached a particularly stunning bridge, which had been built to pass a lake standing at the base of a beautiful mountain range. Obligatory photos and lots of staring into the distance done, we hit the road and reached Ullapool by mid afternoon, an amazing day of driving, gawking at scenery, and chasing down mountain ranges from horizon to under-wheels done, we decided to get some fish and chips and get checked in.

As had become customary we were up for breakfast the next morning, with this being our last day of North Coast 500 driving we were slightly disheartened our trip was coming to a close however equally excited to get on the road. With ourselves and the cars filled up we were quickly on the road.

We had decided that it wouldn't be the real North Coast 500 if we did take the longer and tighter route around to Fearnmore, there is a route that takes you directly to Applecross and cuts out a chunk of narrower and less accommodating road, however as this was our last true driving day, and we didn't really want the fun to end, we agreed to tackle the tighter stuff head on, the real experience.

What we were rewarded with for our efforts was some truly stunning pieces of coastal scenery, and although our path was at one point blocked by a herd of highland cattle, it was definitely worth the extra miles. The roads were at times a little narrow, bumpy and uneasy to pass, however a few segments were clear and engaging to drive, rising up and around the coast and being much quieter than the less arduous roads would have been, we had a whole section of Scotland effectively to ourselves.

This however was nothing, we reached the Applecross pass, and absolute highlight of the trip. We rose slowly up a winding passage towards the summit of a daunting mountain, unknowing to us what was on the other side. What this turned out to be was a breathtaking stretch of narrow snaking tarmac through a staggering valley leading down towards a crystal blue lake. There was no way to take this section of the trip quickly due to the nature of the road and the traffic which meant stopping every 200 metres to let a motorcycle or a car, and at one point a camper van, pass. Going slowly meant that we were forced to take in just how staggering the place we were driving through was, the moment we turned the final corner at the summit of the mountain and the view of the entire valley, the road, and the lake came into my windscreen, is a moment that really highlights just how much this trip was worth doing. It is a part of the trip I have told most to people since we returned.

Following the decent of the Applecross Pass, we returned to the normal A roads and encountered an unusual couple of playmates, a Skoda Octavia Tdi estate and a Sportsbike, the Skoda let us pass without much persuasion however once we were ahead he followed us as tightly as he could, overtaking where possible and taking the racing lines as we did, it was a brilliant piece of unexpected fun, which just goes to display that although not every petrol head has a sports car or a motorbike, they are everywhere, just waiting for the right moment to have a play. The bike was unexpectedly not as quick as we had expected, on some of the tighter sections of road, we quickly lost him from our rear-view mirrors and it wasn't until some of the clearer straights did he return again. This being a re-affirming display of both our cars ability to take down roads and our ability to use their potential.

Due to our playing nicely with others, we quickly returned to the ever-familiar Dingwall, and upon entry to the town, passed a police van, as we passed a fair amount of interference came through our radios, to which I queried  to Sam. Wondering if the Police were on our frequency and could hear our conversation, we received quick confirmation that they could indeed hear us and that they were listening, by them responding to my message. We decided some radio silence would probably be a good idea as we found our lodgings for the night, unfortunately not the same lovely guest house we had previously stayed in, and parked up. We got ourselves checked in to the hotel and immediately made our way into town, to find Saeed's cafe to hope that it was still open.

Fortunately for us it was, and he was there! We were swiftly ushered into seats, provided with a hot drink by his lovely cafe manager, and began to recall our trip. Saeed immediately offered us food in the form of delicious homemade carrot and beetroot soup, and a ham and cheese toastie. We sat chatting and recalling the trip before fetching the cars around again for Saaed to have another look over. After eating up and having a laugh at the expense of a Skoda Octavia VRS driver who was sat revving in the town centre opposite our cars, we returned to the hotel and got settled.

We were up again for breakfast, filled the cars, and set off on our journey home, although we were sad to leave this beautiful country with its amazing scenery, accommodating people, and brilliant roads, we had to get back and return to normal life, fuel and money were not an unlimited commodity for us, so we hit the road and used the time to plan our next adventure...

https://wordpress.com/post/coffeesandcars.wordpres...

I Love Cake

2,947 posts

186 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
Great read, thank you. I'm heading up for 2 weeks of stunning scenery and driving fun in February. This had made me even more excited about the trip.

littlelewis6

Original Poster:

101 posts

162 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
I Love Cake said:
Great read, thank you. I'm heading up for 2 weeks of stunning scenery and driving fun in February. This had made me even more excited about the trip.
It's an amazing trip, the views alone are worth going for, never mind the amazing roads! Hope you have fun!

GetCarter

30,194 posts

294 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
OP... thought you might like to see this... aerial shot of the road you mention from Applecross.



...and a short vid of the descent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idSuotx4HsY&lc...

Out of interest, the lake you mention is Loch Kishorn and is actually the North Atlantic smile

(I live near Fernamore BTW)

Edited by GetCarter on Wednesday 24th January 12:33

Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
Excellent write up. thumbup

Just to add,

littlelewis6 said:
Following our wander around Smoo cave we decided to head for some lunch, we located a small cafe not to far away and set off.
White Heather Cafe? - https://goo.gl/maps/RKzr3BgzY5F2
Not been there myself. We usually stop at the Sango Sands Oasis for lunch.
Then go for a stroll on the beach.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bPNdga3THFx3tfg4J...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uvZrX_JzUKk5ZAOXb...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NdzZzYkDXfVRb8rF0...

Oh, and the sign there is far superior to the tourist-oriented offering at JoG. smile
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rmQg60OyOXpzSJVg2...

littlelewis6 said:
The drive to Ullapool was again a mix between brilliant B road blasts and some tighter and therefore slower country lanes with breathtaking views being a constant feature for the duration of the journey.
Sassenachs who have never previously visited the Highlands often make this mistake. wink
The official NC500 route between JoG and Ullapool is 185 miles.
Only 22 of them are on a B road, the B869, and there is no way you can have a blast on that road!
The rest are all A roads, even the single track ones with passing places.

A836 - JoG to Tongue
A838 - Tongue to Laxford Bridge
A894 - Laxford Bridge to (south of) Unapool
B869 - Unapool to (north of) Lochinver
A837 - Lochinver to Ledmore Junction
A835 - Ledmore Junction to Ullapool

littlelewis6 said:
We at one point reached a particularly stunning bridge, which had been built to pass a lake standing at the base of a beautiful mountain range.
Scotland doesn't have lakes, it has lochs/lochans. Most are freshwater (e.g. Loch Assynt) but many are open to the sea and tidal like those at Kylesku.
Kylesku Bridge spans the narrows linking Loch a' Chàirn Bhàin with Loch Gleann Dubh. Prior to its opening in 1984 the only way across was by the Kylesku-Kylestrome ferry.

littlelewis6 said:
We had decided that it wouldn't be the real North Coast 500 if we did take the longer and tighter route around to Fearnmore, there is a route that takes you directly to Applecross and cuts out a chunk of narrower and less accommodating road, however as this was our last true driving day, and we didn't really want the fun to end, we agreed to tackle the tighter stuff head on, the real experience.
confused Er, don't you mean 'if we didn't'? The entire Applecross loop from Shieldaig to Tornapress (or vice-versa) including the Bealach na Bà is part of the NC500 route.
It's the only section other than the B869 (above) which is not an A road.

A835 - Ullapool to Breamore Junction
A832 - Breamore Junction to Kinlochewe
A896 - Kinlochewe to (south of) Shieldaig
Unclassified - Shieldaig to Tornapress (via Applecross)
A896 - Tornapress to Strathcarron
A890 - Strathcarron to Achnasheen
A832 - Achnasheen to Garve
A835 - Garve to Tore
Thence A9 to Inverness.

littlelewis6 said:
What we were rewarded with for our efforts was some truly stunning pieces of coastal scenery, and although our path was at one point blocked by a herd of highland cattle, it was definitely worth the extra miles.
Yep: these critters - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HiQTuhPs0DuPUJqSZ...

I have encountered a herd on the coast road more than once. Usually just over the brow here - https://goo.gl/maps/fLFnxZWFfSt
On one occasion I saw the owner and his 4x4 parked up next to them. I had only just got going after stopping to take some pics.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XmDw_BEuFJ9mCHySl...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xGjb_MGIoEE5ZJWrB...

GetCarter

30,194 posts

294 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
...and today's weather:


littlelewis6

Original Poster:

101 posts

162 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
GetCarter said:
OP... thought you might like to see this... aerial shot of the road you mention from Applecross.



...and a short vid of the descent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idSuotx4HsY&lc...

Out of interest, the lake you mention is Loch Kishorn and is actually the North Atlantic smile

(I live near Fernamore BTW)

Edited by GetCarter on Wednesday 24th January 12:33
Wow that's an amazing shot! I unfortunately didn't get any good ones from that part of the trip "/ I wish the road was that clear and we had that amount of visibility whilst we were on it, would have made for a fun little blast. Too much traffic / rain for us to really appreciate anything other than the scenery.

The part of the world which you live in is absolutely stunning, I am jealous of the scenery and not at all envious of the weather!

littlelewis6

Original Poster:

101 posts

162 months

Wednesday 24th January 2018
quotequote all
Red Devil said:
Excellent write up. thumbup

Just to add,

littlelewis6 said:
Following our wander around Smoo cave we decided to head for some lunch, we located a small cafe not to far away and set off.
White Heather Cafe? - https://goo.gl/maps/RKzr3BgzY5F2
Not been there myself. We usually stop at the Sango Sands Oasis for lunch.
Then go for a stroll on the beach.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bPNdga3THFx3tfg4J...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uvZrX_JzUKk5ZAOXb...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NdzZzYkDXfVRb8rF0...

Oh, and the sign there is far superior to the tourist-oriented offering at JoG. smile
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rmQg60OyOXpzSJVg2...

littlelewis6 said:
The drive to Ullapool was again a mix between brilliant B road blasts and some tighter and therefore slower country lanes with breathtaking views being a constant feature for the duration of the journey.
Sassenachs who have never previously visited the Highlands often make this mistake. wink
The official NC500 route between JoG and Ullapool is 185 miles.
Only 22 of them are on a B road, the B869, and there is no way you can have a blast on that road!
The rest are all A roads, even the single track ones with passing places.

A836 - JoG to Tongue
A838 - Tongue to Laxford Bridge
A894 - Laxford Bridge to (south of) Unapool
B869 - Unapool to (north of) Lochinver
A837 - Lochinver to Ledmore Junction
A835 - Ledmore Junction to Ullapool

littlelewis6 said:
We at one point reached a particularly stunning bridge, which had been built to pass a lake standing at the base of a beautiful mountain range.
Scotland doesn't have lakes, it has lochs/lochans. Most are freshwater (e.g. Loch Assynt) but many are open to the sea and tidal like those at Kylesku.
Kylesku Bridge spans the narrows linking Loch a' Chàirn Bhàin with Loch Gleann Dubh. Prior to its opening in 1984 the only way across was by the Kylesku-Kylestrome ferry.

littlelewis6 said:
We had decided that it wouldn't be the real North Coast 500 if we did take the longer and tighter route around to Fearnmore, there is a route that takes you directly to Applecross and cuts out a chunk of narrower and less accommodating road, however as this was our last true driving day, and we didn't really want the fun to end, we agreed to tackle the tighter stuff head on, the real experience.
confused Er, don't you mean 'if we didn't'? The entire Applecross loop from Shieldaig to Tornapress (or vice-versa) including the Bealach na Bà is part of the NC500 route.
It's the only section other than the B869 (above) which is not an A road.

A835 - Ullapool to Breamore Junction
A832 - Breamore Junction to Kinlochewe
A896 - Kinlochewe to (south of) Shieldaig
Unclassified - Shieldaig to Tornapress (via Applecross)
A896 - Tornapress to Strathcarron
A890 - Strathcarron to Achnasheen
A832 - Achnasheen to Garve
A835 - Garve to Tore
Thence A9 to Inverness.

littlelewis6 said:
What we were rewarded with for our efforts was some truly stunning pieces of coastal scenery, and although our path was at one point blocked by a herd of highland cattle, it was definitely worth the extra miles.
Yep: these critters - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HiQTuhPs0DuPUJqSZ...

I have encountered a herd on the coast road more than once. Usually just over the brow here - https://goo.gl/maps/fLFnxZWFfSt
On one occasion I saw the owner and his 4x4 parked up next to them. I had only just got going after stopping to take some pics.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XmDw_BEuFJ9mCHySl...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xGjb_MGIoEE5ZJWrB...
Thanks for the feedback smile

I am very much a tourist (Sassenach?) and definitely not the planning party of the trip, more of the gung-ho lets get out and drive guy, apologies that my facts aren't up to scratch but thank you for the clarification, much appreciated smile

Crazy to thing that all of those roads are A roads, the amount of time spent squeezed as far to the left as possible or crawling along at 20 really indicated otherwise!

Again thank you for your feedback, I can't profess to be a writer or that precise in my descriptions, but I do aim to try and get the wonder I felt on the trip down more than anything, it really is an amazing experience that I feel is really worth spreading the word about.

Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Thursday 25th January 2018
quotequote all
Sassenach : derogatory Scottish word for an English person. wink
Derived from the Gaelic word for Saxon.

The wonderment most definitely came across in your description. It's exactly how I felt on my first visit. smile
I'm completely hooked and this year will be my tenth trip. Even so there are still roads/places I haven't explored.

Unfortunately I live in the far south eastern corner of England so it's a very long trek to get there.
By the time I reach Scotch Corner I've had enough of motorways/dcs. After that I head cross country.
First overnight stop will depend on whether I'm going clockwise or anticlockwise thereafter.









leggly

1,850 posts

226 months

Thursday 25th January 2018
quotequote all
Red Devil said:
Sassenach : derogatory Scottish word for an English person. wink
Derived from the Gaelic word for Saxon.

It’s not derogatory at all (or at least it wasn’t.)


Sasanach means Lowlander. And unfortunately applies to anyone that doesn't live in the Highlands. Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic are very similair but since dialect has evolved over the centuries the original meaning of the word has been forgotten. It was the term for the Saxon invaders who all came from the 'Lowlands'. Nowadays most dictionaries will say that Sasanach means Englishman and the Scots do tend to use it in jest to refer to the English but usually only by people from the Lowlands of Scotland who have never spoken Gaelic in their lives and therefore have no idea that they are actually refering to themselves as well. I've never heard Highlanders use the phrase. How the Irish use it, I have no idea.

Ya live and learn. thumbup




Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Thursday 25th January 2018
quotequote all
leggly said:
It’s not derogatory at all (or at least it wasn’t.)


Sasanach means Lowlander. And unfortunately applies to anyone that doesn't live in the Highlands. Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic are very similair but since dialect has evolved over the centuries the original meaning of the word has been forgotten. It was the term for the Saxon invaders who all came from the 'Lowlands'. Nowadays most dictionaries will say that Sasanach means Englishman and the Scots do tend to use it in jest to refer to the English but usually only by people from the Lowlands of Scotland who have never spoken Gaelic in their lives and therefore have no idea that they are actually refering to themselves as well. I've never heard Highlanders use the phrase. How the Irish use it, I have no idea.

Ya live and learn. thumbup
All the Celtic peoples had their word for the Saxon invaders.
Gaelic (Irish): Sacsanach
Gaelic (Scottish): Sagsannach
Cymraeg (Welsh): Sacsoniaid/Seisnig
Kernowek (Cornish): Sawsnek

It's much more about language than geography.
Sacsnach/Sagsannach referred to someone who was not a native who spoke Gaelic or a derivative thereof.
In those days the 'border' was not a clear demarcation like it is today.

The chances are if someone from Éire calls you a Sacsanach they're not being polite. wink

littlelewis6

Original Poster:

101 posts

162 months

Thursday 25th January 2018
quotequote all
Red Devil said:
Sassenach : derogatory Scottish word for an English person. wink
Derived from the Gaelic word for Saxon.

The wonderment most definitely came across in your description. It's exactly how I felt on my first visit. smile
I'm completely hooked and this year will be my tenth trip. Even so there are still roads/places I haven't explored.

Unfortunately I live in the far south eastern corner of England so it's a very long trek to get there.
By the time I reach Scotch Corner I've had enough of motorways/dcs. After that I head cross country.
First overnight stop will depend on whether I'm going clockwise or anticlockwise thereafter.


Red Devil said:
leggly said:
It’s not derogatory at all (or at least it wasn’t.)


Sasanach means Lowlander. And unfortunately applies to anyone that doesn't live in the Highlands. Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic are very similair but since dialect has evolved over the centuries the original meaning of the word has been forgotten. It was the term for the Saxon invaders who all came from the 'Lowlands'. Nowadays most dictionaries will say that Sasanach means Englishman and the Scots do tend to use it in jest to refer to the English but usually only by people from the Lowlands of Scotland who have never spoken Gaelic in their lives and therefore have no idea that they are actually refering to themselves as well. I've never heard Highlanders use the phrase. How the Irish use it, I have no idea.

Ya live and learn. thumbup
All the Celtic peoples had their word for the Saxon invaders.
Gaelic (Irish): Sacsanach
Gaelic (Scottish): Sagsannach
Cymraeg (Welsh): Sacsoniaid/Seisnig
Kernowek (Cornish): Sawsnek

It's much more about language than geography.
Sacsnach/Sagsannach referred to someone who was not a native who spoke Gaelic or a derivative thereof.
In those days the 'border' was not a clear demarcation like it is today.

The chances are if someone from Éire calls you a Sacsanach they're not being polite. wink
I shall approach anyone saying this in my direction with some caution then, hopefully myself and a few friends will be heading back up, possibly August time, if we are fortunate enough to bump into each other your knowledge and experience would be greatly appreciated smile

Atomic12C

5,180 posts

232 months

Friday 26th January 2018
quotequote all
Red Devil said:
Scotland doesn't have lakes, it has lochs/lochans.
Lochs are simply the Gaelic word for Lake. And vice/versa.
Both describe a body of water localised in a 'basin'.

So, not wishing to come across as too pedantic about the use of the word(s), but Scotland does have 'lakes' if you are to describe them in pure English language. Scotland also has 'lochs' if you wish to use native Gaelic/Celtic language.

Another confusion that is sometimes brought up is saying there is only one lake in the Lake District (ie. Bassenthwaite Lake), describing all the others as 'tarns', 'meres' or 'waters'. This purely refers to named title rather than the actual water entity which is still a lake.

Having said that, each word in use can be found to have international definitions that vary from local definitions. wink


p.s.
good write up OP - enjoyable reading

Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Friday 26th January 2018
quotequote all
littlelewis6 said:
...hopefully myself and a few friends will be heading back up, possibly August time, if we are fortunate enough to bump into each other your knowledge and experience would be greatly appreciated smile
Sorry, no chance: wrong time of year.

School summer holidays/tourists in campervans/SUVs/midges.
Plus high season accomodation prices on top. All reasons to stay well away.
April and late September/early October are when I go.

Atomic12C said:
So, not wishing to come across as too pedantic about the use of the word(s), but Scotland does have 'lakes' if you are to describe them in pure English language. Scotland also has 'lochs' if you wish to use native Gaelic/Celtic language.
rofl Anyone from England who visits Scotland and starts wittering on about Lake X, Y, or Z would be considered either uneducated/weird/or taking the p***.

I can just imagine the looks you would receive if you started talking about the Lake Ness Monster...

GetCarter

30,194 posts

294 months

Saturday 27th January 2018
quotequote all
Red Devil said:
rofl Anyone from England who visits Scotland and starts wittering on about Lake X, Y, or Z would be considered either uneducated/weird/or taking the p***.

I can just imagine the looks you would receive if you started talking about the Lake Ness Monster...
Similarly, asking for directions to Loch Windermere would raise a few eyebrows wink

When in Rome...

revvingit

444 posts

95 months

Saturday 27th January 2018
quotequote all
GetCarter said:
OP... thought you might like to see this... aerial shot of the road you mention from Applecross.



...and a short vid of the descent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idSuotx4HsY&lc...

Out of interest, the lake you mention is Loch Kishorn and is actually the North Atlantic smile

(I live near Fernamore BTW)

Edited by GetCarter on Wednesday 24th January 12:33
You must be one hell of a driver to take those corners at them speeds, thought you were going to off yourself at one point. Good job there's no cameras.

Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Sunday 28th January 2018
quotequote all
revvingit said:
You must be one hell of a driver to take those corners at them speeds, thought you were going to off yourself at one point. Good job there's no cameras.
rofl What happened to the smiley/wink icon?

billzeebub

3,885 posts

214 months

Sunday 28th January 2018
quotequote all
Thanks for posting, a good read. I'm up there in April for 10 days. Counting the weeks/days/hours!

Trevor555

4,776 posts

99 months

Sunday 28th January 2018
quotequote all
billzeebub said:
Thanks for posting, a good read. I'm up there in April for 10 days. Counting the weeks/days/hours!
Me too, 18th - 24th, look out for a silver Z3 if you're between these dates.

Red Devil

13,304 posts

223 months

Tuesday 30th January 2018
quotequote all
Trevor555 said:
billzeebub said:
Thanks for posting, a good read. I'm up there in April for 10 days. Counting the weeks/days/hours!
Me too, 18th - 24th, look out for a silver Z3 if you're between these dates.
Exactly the same as us. Will do. thumbup