In the far north of Scotland, there are stretches of coastline that many people may not be aware of or include in their travel plans. But that would be a shame…
Intro and travel report
This stretch of coastline is part of the North Coast 500 route, which I have already written about. I have also already commented extensively on the fact that the western part of the NC500 is in very poor condition: very narrow and often single-lane roads, some of which are very badly damaged.
My recommendation was not necessarily to drive the entire NC500, but perhaps to make a detour from Inverness to Ullapool, and another detour from Inverness to the north coast, to about Bettyhill – and to skip the western part if you don’t feel like driving on really bad roads.
This article is about the north and north-east coast, i.e. north (above) Inverness. The roads are quite good up to that point – and the coastline is absolutely enchanting!
We drove the route from Bettyhill to Inverness in our motorhome. The really bad sections of the NC500 were now behind us and I was very relieved to be back on decent roads, which later became dual carriageways.
Bettyhill is actually just a small village, but at least it can be found on Google Maps. The A838 runs along the north coast. Farr Bay is located near Bettyhill. A small car park right next to the country road allows us to park the motorhome.
A small path leads across sheep pastures to a small river, and a small bridge takes you to the other side. In front of you is a beautiful, wild bay with a wonderful sandy beach.
But this gem is just one of many, because along the entire rocky north coast you will find small and large bays with enchanting sandy beaches.
The beach is almost white and the water is almost turquoise, and you could believe you were standing in the Caribbean and not in the far north of Scotland.
Other great beaches can be found at Armadale, Strathy, Melvich, Reay and Castletown, for example.
Thurso is a typical Scottish small town and probably the largest place in the region. If you want to run some errands or are looking for a place to stay, then this is definitely the place to be. And yes, Thurso also has its own beach – with a small castle ruin right on the water.
In Thurso, the paths diverge: you can either continue along the coast and visit John o’ Groats, the northernmost point of Scotland and thus also of Great Britain. In that case, you can take the A9 via Wick, which will take you comfortably to Inverness.
Or you can cut the northern tip a little short and take the A9 directly via Latheron towards Inverness. That’s what we’re doing today, as I’ve been to John o’ Groats before.
At Dunbeath, we leave the A9 to take a break at the small fishing harbour. We find a fish snack bar. The man fishes, the woman sells, and the crab sandwiches are fantastic!
We like the small harbour. It is located just outside the village and is not a marina, but a small, cosy fishing harbour with small fishing boats.
There is a small statue and an old warehouse. Next to the warehouse, crab pots are stacked up and the small cul-de-sac leads around a rocky outcrop to a small park. There are benches and a lawn and a small beach with coarse pebbles.
At the other end of the small bay, we see a white castle on the cliffs. We strike up a conversation with a local couple and they tell us about Old Castle Dunbeath, which is privately owned and not open to the public.
Two motorhomes are parked here in the quiet cul-de-sac and we find a sign: you can stay here for one night, should register via a website and are welcome to make a small donation to the community.
We actually wanted to drive a little further, but we are taken with this peaceful spot on the coast, so we stay, register and make our donation.
The next morning, we set off again and follow the A9 further south. But only for a short distance, because I have discovered a flat, sandy headland on Google Maps that juts far into the bay. At its tip lies a small village with a harbour: Portmahomack.
Before that, we pass Dunrobin Castle, the attraction of this stretch of coastline. From the country road, we catch a brief glimpse of the castle. It is not a grey fortress, but a white dream castle surrounded by wonderful gardens and a forest. And it is right on the water!
I looked it up on the internet and I’m sure it’s absolutely worth seeing. It doesn’t fit into our plans today, but maybe next time. (See also: https://www.dunrobincastle.co.uk)
We drive to the headland at Portmahomack. The little village is super cute! Once clearly a fishing port, the area is now a holiday resort.
However, there are still plenty of small fishing boats in the pretty little harbour. The old cottages at the harbour are mostly white. There are also newer cottages on the shore with colourful doors or windows.
The beautiful sandy beach on the waterfront invites you to take a stroll. The view stretches far across the bay to the opposite shore.
Now, at low tide, I can walk across the sandy beach almost to the harbour basin. Fish traps are stacked at the edge of the harbour basin and small boats bob in the water.
There is a statue of Jesus by the water, where families probably used to pray for the safe return of the fishermen. Perhaps they still do today?
We stroll through the town for a while and then continue our journey to Inverness. Incidentally, I have already written an article about Inverness, which I will link to below.
Conclusion
We really enjoyed the north coast and the north-east coast (north of Inverness). Beautiful coastlines, beautiful towns, beautiful harbours, beautiful beaches, everything was great!
If you’ve been to the Highlands before and seen enough amazing mountains, then here you can see beautiful Scottish coastlines that are by no means overcrowded!
This is because many travellers only go as far as Inverness, which is correspondingly busy, but don’t continue further north. Instead, they make a detour back to Edinburgh or Glasgow. This is understandable if you don’t have much time. But if you have a little more time, then a trip to the north will enrich your journey.
More interesting articles for you
FINDHORN AND THE ‘CARIBBEAN’ BEACHES OF THE SCOTTISH NORTH-EAST COAST
ULLAPOOL AND THE WILD NORTH COAST 500
INVERNESS
Image credit cover photo: At Dunbeath pebble beach (photo: Ulrich Knüppel-Gertberg)
