The North Coast 500 from Inverness

Route description

The North Coast 500 starts in Inverness and heads west on the A835 across the Highlands to Ullapool, a white-painted fishing port on Loch Broom. North of Ullapool the land turns wilder, with the isolated peaks of Assynt rising out of moorland and lochs.

The road narrows as it continues north to the coast, where Smoo Cave, a huge sea cave with a waterfall inside, lies just east of Durness. Durness itself has sandy beaches, and there are more empty beaches in the coves nearby.

The A838 and A836 run east along the north coast past sea lochs, Tongue and Thurso to John o’ Groats. A short drive further, Duncansby Stacks rise from the sea at Britain’s northeastern tip, a short cliff walk from the Duncansby Head lighthouse. The return to Inverness follows the A99 and A9 down the east coast.

Much of the north and west is single-track road with passing places: pull in to let faster traffic by and never park in a passing place. Fuel stations and shops are sparse, so fill up when you can. Late spring and early autumn are quieter than midsummer, when midges can be fierce on still evenings.