Our Tour of the Highlands

EdinburghGary

EdinburghGary

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Gary
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Well,

Myself, Woodsy and Blapto are going on a road trip!!! A route has been created, and whilst it is a HELL OF A LOT for a week, if the weather AND light is nice, we might just manage it!!!

Let me know your thoughts, ideas, and anything else you can offer to help make this trip and epic success. I will be creating a MEET thread at some point to see if any of the highlanders want to catch up on route!

We will be roughing it in the mobile palace, for the week :D



Day 1 : Saturday


Arrive in Edinburgh
Shoot Edinburgh Street, and an Edinburgh sunset
Have meal
Leave for and wild camp at Glenetive (Edi to Glenetive: 114 miles – about 2 hours 51 mins)

DAY 2: Sunday


Wake in Glenetive, shoot Buachaille Etive Mor (Sunrise - however sun will be behind us, pray for good light)
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=Buachaille+Etive+Mor&m=text


Shoot Glencoe (Absolutely insane amount to see)
http://www.flickr.com/search/?ss=2&w=all&q=Glencoe&m=text


Take in Sunset in Glencoe
http://www.flickr.com/search/?ss=2&w=all&q=Glencoe+SUnset&m=text


Leave for "The Quiraing, near Staffin", Isle of Skye (Glencoe to Staffin, Isle of Skye: 142 miles – about 3 hours 25 mins)

DAY 3: Monday

* Wake in Elgol. Good visibility is a must, or a wasted waypoint. One of the most epic scenes in Scotland, IF visibility is good.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=Elgol+Cuillins&m=text

* Once finished in Elgol, we aim for "The Quiraing, near Staffin". The route will be littered with fantastic scenery, and as a result, we will do a lot of stopping. (Elgol to Staffin: 57.1 miles – about 1 hour 28 mins)

* Shoot the last of the days light at The Quiraing.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=The+Quiraing&m=text

* Head for Eileen Donan Castle, for a good nights sleep! (Staffin to Balmacara: 54.7 miles – about 1 hour 21 mins)


DAY 4

* Wake at Eileen Donan Castle. Hope for good light, sun behind us I think.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=eilean+donan+castle+sunrise&m=text

* Head for the "Pass of the Cattle" (Bealach na Ba), the highest road in the UK. Get to the top and pray for good visibility. The view that awaits in the right light, is BREATHTAKING. The road is not for the faint hearted. If we take time, we will be fine. If conditions are adverse (Wind, Snow etc), then we will not be able to risk this road in the camper. However, we can park up and hitch a ride up and back down I bet.

* Head for Applecross Beach. Another excellent view to be had, and a potential sunset to die for. (Balmacara to Applecross VIA Bealach na Ba: 36.9 miles – about 1 hour 1 min)

* Head for Upper Loch Torridon, avoiding Bealach na Ba, once is enough! Therefore, we head north from Applecross to Upper Loch Torridon (via Fearnmore). (Applecross to Upper Loch Torridon via Fearnmore: 29.1 miles – about 58 mins)


DAY 5

* We wake for sunrise over Upper Loch Torridon.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=Upper+Loch+TOrridon&m=text

* We head to Torridon and Liathac and see if we can make good of a lower viewpoint (all the good photos I have seen are from the tops of mountains)
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&ss=2&w=all&q=Liathac&m=text

* After we have taken in Torridon, we make the long drive to Stac Pollaidh (and in fact: Loch Lurgainn), via Ullapool. We should arrive with ample time to catch the last of the days light. (Torridon to Loch Lurgainn: 80.5 miles – about 1 hour 58 mins)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25456755@N03/2778959303/

* We settle here for the night.


DAY 6

* We spend the morning taking more shots of Stac Pollaidh, before leaving for Achmelvic for some coastal scenery. (Stac Pollaidh to Achmelvic: 19.4 miles – about 43 mins)
http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=achmelvich&w=all&s=int

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/11035083

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/10001292

* We head to Quinag (and Loch Assynt) for some photos



* Once finished at Quinag (Assynt), we make the trip to Durness and take in any scenery on route. (Achmelvic to Durness, via Loch Assynt: 55.0 miles – about 1 hour 20 mins)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26022506@N08/2495198294/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32087179@N02/3023578870/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fishsuckeggs/317055136/

* We shoot the sunset in Durness.

* Spend the remainder of the night in Durness.


DAY 7

* Durness Sunrise, before we start the first epic drive of the day. Loch Ness, here we come. (Durness to Loch Ness: 125 mi – about 2 hours 59 mins)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jd-photos/2971249245/

* Once finished at Loch Ness, we head back to EDI and grab any scenery we fancy on route...

Phew! :)

ROUTE MAP:
http://tinyurl.com/85ut3t

Going to be AWESOME! :D :D :D :D :D

Gary.
 
Good luck chaps, Make sure you take a hardrive to back your images up!!!
 
On day 5 you may want to think about shots of Slioch at Loch Maree as you will be driving right past and also Ben Eighe.
 
erding said:
On day 5 you may want to think about shots of Slioch at Loch Maree as you will be driving right past and also Ben Eighe.
Click to expand...

Thank so much, will incorporate these into the route. Do you think this is doable mate, timescale wise?

Gary.
 
my god man, that is one hell of a road trip, major jelousy here too!

all the best and don't forget to post all images! :D
 
Chaps, sounds absolutely epic. Have a great time and really looking forward to seeing some results and ofcourse hearing some stories!
 
flippin eck Gary ;)

"Pass of the Cattle" (Bealach na Ba) is the road my mates refer to as Applecross pass i think, have been up there and the road is entertaining in a 300bhp 4wd rally car ;)

To the guys going with him, beware of the Curries ! have heard some horrific stories from people sharing space after he has had a "hot" curry from my last trip up to Scotland ;)
 
IanC_UK said:
flippin eck Gary ;)

"Pass of the Cattle" (Bealach na Ba) is the road my mates refer to as Applecross pass i think, have been up there and the road is entertaining in a 300bhp 4wd rally car ;)

To the guys going with him, beware of the Curries ! have heard some horrific stories from people sharing space after he has had a "hot" curry from my last trip up to Scotland ;)
Click to expand...

Oh yeah.....the curry "incident" :D

I have had the camper up the pass of the cattle once before Ian. Absolutely crapping myself, and all other car drivers just pointed and laughed at me.

I will need to prepare my nerves of steel!!! God help the poor passengers ;)

Gary.
 
that;s one heck of a trip and looks fantastic - will you be sharing the driving around and turn taking to be the person not drinking whisky? :)
 
Let me know what dates your "day one to day seven" actually are and I'll see if I can catch up with you for a day or two with the "mini palace on wheels" I really do fancy seeing Applecross, Torridon and Skye again. :)

Last time I was up there, the pass was closed due to snow and I had to pass on by.........all the way to Inverness because if I had stopped, I would have been there, in the snow, for days.
 
these are a bit small but you will see what he means ;)

Pass1.jpg


Pass2.jpg


Took some pics at the top but it was just toooo grim you couldnt see from one side of the road to the other lol
 
ifotou said:
that;s one heck of a trip and looks fantastic - will you be sharing the driving around and turn taking to be the person not drinking whisky? :)
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, I am the only driver due to two provisional license holders!!! :razz:
 
EdinburghGary said:
Thank so much, will incorporate these into the route. Do you think this is doable mate, timescale wise?

Gary.
Click to expand...

Ben Eighe is about 5 miles from Torridon and is on the same road that you will use from Torridon to Ullapool. At Kinlochewe which is on this road you can go up to Siloch and Loch Maree.
 
erding said:
Ben Eighe is about 5 miles from Torridon and is on the same road that you will use from Torridon to Ullapool. At Kinlochewe which is on this road you can go up to Siloch and Loch Maree.
Click to expand...

Oh sorry I meant overall :D Any other must see sights?

Gary.
 
IanC_UK said:
these are a bit small but you will see what he means ;)

Pass1.jpg


Pass2.jpg


Took some pics at the top but it was just toooo grim you couldnt see from one side of the road to the other lol
Click to expand...

brings back the memories - not many passing places on that track.
 
WOW, that is one hell of a trip, that will be amazing,
i need to do a trip like this sometime.

one suggestion....

This is a place that i would love to go and see in Skye, dont know if its maybe a bit off course. Fairy Pools
Its near Glen brittle i think.

hope you have a great time, and hope the weather is great for the lot of you.
cant wait to see the photos.
 
chrisgrieve said:
WOW, that is one hell of a trip, that will be amazing,
i need to do a trip like this sometime.

one suggestion....

This is a place that i would love to go and see in Skye, dont know if its maybe a bit off course. Fairy Pools
Its near Glen brittle i think.

hope you have a great time, and hope the weather is great for the lot of you.
cant wait to see the photos.
Click to expand...


Cheers mate, know EXACTLY where it is. Possibly doable depending on how much time we spend at Elgol.

Gary.
 
fantastic guys, some awesome scenery great shots to be had, im not too jealous i be to busy picking up my GF puppy's dog mess how how fun lol

enjoy ya selfs cant wait to see the images come feb!
 
EdinburghGary said:
Oh sorry I meant overall :D Any other must see sights?

Gary.
Click to expand...

I would say its edging on the side of being a bit ambitious and heavily dependent on good weather conditions. You may want to consider a fall back plan to cover such a situation.

Durness is on the North coast - you may want to think about more the West coast for sunsets - particularily just north of Ullapool as you will have the Western isles as a backdrop with the sunset.

Other places that come straight to mind are at Loch Assynt you have Ardverk castle & Cade house. There are some good roadside spots to take Quinag from - I'll dig out the map details and post during tomorrow.
 
Great road trip you have planned mate, must do something like that soon (y)
 
Thanks for the PM Gary. I have so much to tell you that we should TALK. 07740 200200 ;)

First immediate observation. Elgol is west side of Skye, Quirang is east; you might want to do the east first and follow the sun. (y)

Eilean Donan to the pass of the cattle. loads in between including Lochcarron. The sun is so low that time of day is almost secondary to quality of light prevailing at the time. Pick a site and wait it out - flasks required.

Torridon. 9am before any sun breaches the flanks unless you are HIGH. Start hill walk 2-3 hours before sunrise. Suggest Ben Damph for views of Liatach & Alligan.

Assynt. Find low water out of wind close to any of the hills and you will make a great landscape. Sun late in day for best choices at this time of year.

Durness for sunrise? Fahraid head might be best option. Drive to Loch Ness will take a bit of time. Suggest go with weather and pick one or two stops only.

Can suggest waterfalls etc for when light not obliging. Also know mileages, travelling times, etc rather well as been beating these routes since I was a sperm ;)

Sounds like a good time a coming mate. (y)
 
Wow, that's quite an itinerary! I'm not too sure about some of the timings TBH. Many stretches of road are single track, with passing places and can be very slow to journey along. A lot will depend on the weather, its been very variable recently, with some very cold days and snow. Bealach Na Ba may not be passable at this time of year, but even if you can't get right up and over, there's a quaint bridge and photogenic burn part way up the road that's worth a look.
Another stop worth making is the road to Loch Quoich, often overlooked in favour of Glen Garry. There's a turning off the A87 on the left past Munerigie and runs alongside Loch Garry. Some stunning mountains and loch views along there.
Loch Ewe has a fascinating history and there's a lovely beach at Firemore and a memorial to the Atlantic Convoys from WW2 at the very end at Rubha nan Sasan, which is quite evocative. Realistically though, I don't think its practical given your epic journey, but worth filing away in case you have to change your plans en route.
Not sure what route you'll take when you reach Inverpolly, but you mention Loch Lurgainn, so you may already be planning this, but there is a single track road, that heads north that leads round to Lochinver and the views are to die for along there. In the same general area there are the bone caves at Inchnadamph.
Up north, there's also Smoo Cave which could be worth a look and there are some beautiful white sandy beaches along that coast road (A838). The beach at Balnakiel is very picturesque, but watch out for the highland cows that occasionally frequent it! :LOL:
Have a great time and I look forward to seeing some shots when you get back. :)

Edit:
En route to Elgol from Broadford there is the ruin of an old church Cill Chroisd that's worth a look and on the way to Quiraing take a look at Sligachan, there's a very photogenic loch on the A863 a few hundred yards up the road.
 
I have a new battery on the camper and she's booked for her MOT on Friday, all going well I might just be making an appearance for a couple of days between Monday and Friday. I love it up there so looking forward to being able to see it again with some fab fellow togs :) I do have to coordinate one stepdaughter but I'll see how many days I can run away for!
 
http://s24.photobucket.com/albums/c30/addlestonespur/A%20Shot%20of%20Scotch/?action=view&current=1159801025.pbw

Hope the link works it's just a small slide show. I went to Scotland a couple of years ago to walk up the Ben and across The Mamores. I bagged seven Monroes in one day but drank three litres of fresh Scottish spring water!

Due to it being a walking trip rather than Photography I only had a Minolta Dimage xt with me but still managed some nice shots

Have a Great Time Gary, my mums Scottish it's a lovely part of The World!
 
For Ardverk castle, you'll be on the A897 at Loch Assynt, just after you pass Inchnadamph there is a small downhill section with a pull off area on the LH. If you have any long lenses with you that is a good spot for a distance shot of the castle and loch. Past that point and before the castle there is a ruined building on the LH, Cade house, good shots from within the runs overlooking the loch & the castle. There is a pull off area there. At Ardverk Castle there is a parking area and from there the main shooting spots are from the front or side depending on the time of day. A little further past the castle is another pull off area where again you can take the castle but with a mountain backdrop - which should have snow on.

Past the castle you will go on the A894 for Quinag & Durness, there are several pull off areas as you go up the hill - about 1/2 mile - from these you should get some good pano shot looking down on Loch Assynt with snowy mountain backdrop.

If you go to google maps and enter Quinag you will see the A894 and there is a loch by the road by a hairpin bend. You don't see that loch from the road, but there is a stopping point by that hairpin at the top. You should get some good pano's from that spot. Behind you is a small hill and good shots of Quinag from there.

Also go to the little hill on the same side of the road as the stopping point - different perspective for Quinang but also look behind you as you that loch with Glas Bheinn behind you.

As you carry on down the hill, the road goes round to the left - there is a pull off spot on the RH by the bridge over a small river. Good shots of looking up at Quinang from a low angle if you go down into the river's gully.

For Loch Ness you have Urquart Castle and if time allows think about Loch Affric which is towards the Inverness end of the loch.

Very likely to see deer in these areas in close proximity to the road at this time of year.
 
Wow, thanks for all the great help! Erding, awesome info and tips! Gary, thank you for the mobile I will defo call you too.

I will have to revise the route slightly based on the stellar advice!

Gary.
 
Well awesome tour I still remember that trip up the pass of catle road :) Hope the weather gods are kind to you :).There should be a pair of size 7 welly`s kicking about in the van if anyone needs them lol :p
 
Sounds and looks like a great trip.

One idea is when you leave Durness, instead of taking the same road south, head along the coastal road to Tongue, there are some great shots to be had along there. Then head south and it will take you back to your original route.

Enjoy.
 
Have fun lads! I'm sure you'll have a great time and I'm very jealous!
 
Caledonia said:
Sounds and looks like a great trip.

One idea is when you leave Durness, instead of taking the same road south, head along the coastal road to Tongue, there are some great shots to be had along there. Then head south and it will take you back to your original route.

Enjoy.
Click to expand...

I agree. Turn off the Tongue road just before the causeway and head to Talmine, great beach and views back toward Ben Loyal. Then take the A836 back to Lairg. Great scenery and Loch Loyal as well.

Enjoy boys, sounds like a great laugh.

Andy
 
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