A Land Rover takes on the UK’s best driving adventure
You really don’t have to head overseas to experience a truly epic drive. Octane tackles the North Coast 500, reputedly the UK’s Route 66
Scotland isn’t so much a country that you drive through, it’s largely driven over. There are that many hills, Munros, mountains and peaks, that your first question when choosing a car for any kind of road trip north of the border should simply be: ‘Will it get me there?’
Scottish driving, and on this particular adventure, Scottish driving in the winter, needs something reliable, sturdy, practical. Like a good pair of walking boots, rather than shiny dress shoes. For us there was only one car that could tick all those boxes for our January jaunt around Scotland’s North Coast 500, and that was a Land Rover Defender.
Scotland’s answer to Route 66, as the North Coast 500 is commonly referred to, is nothing like the iconic American highway. It’s not linear, for a start: there is no A to B. Technically you can begin your journey on any part of the 516-mile loop, but most people, mainly for practical reasons, choose to start in Inverness. Then there is the decision as to whether to go left or right, clockwise or anti-clockwise. My preference would always be the east coast first, saving those west coast sunsets for your final days. And then, as I have already mentioned, there is your choice of vehicle. It is a route popular with ’bikers, campervanners and well, anyone and everyone with two or four wheels. And why not? It is a stunning drive. From the magnificent castles dotted all along the east coast, through to the beautiful white sand beaches of the wild and rugged north, to the steepest ascent of any road in the UK in the mountainous west, it will leave you breathless and awestruck by the time you finally make it back to the start at Inverness.
And the Land Rover Defender turned out to be our perfect companion. Yes, there would be shivering mornings, waiting for the heater blower to melt away the ice from the windscreen. Yes, we would have to wear all of our clothes, hats, gloves and scarves as the bitter Scottish wind blew through the door gaps. And yes, we would feel every spine-jolting bump in the road as we bounced our way along single-track lanes, halting for the occasional herd of free-roaming sheep to cross. But our Defender would do us proud. Most importantly, it would ‘get us there’.
In 1947, when Maurice Wilks first sketched the shape of an off-road vehicle, based on his love of the American Willys jeep, he couldn’t have known how synonymous with adventure the Land Rover would become. Although it was conceived for agricultural use, its possibilities as an all-terrain vehicle for everyone were mentioned in the original sales brochure, with the strapline ‘the go anywhere’ vehicle. So Land Rovers have gone everywhere, from London to Sydney and back in 1957 with Eric Edis at the helm, to the Camel Trophy offroad expeditions of the ’80s and ’90s, to our own more recent exploration of the NC500, where we watched mesmerised as the winter sun dipped behind the black, jagged ridge of the Cuillin mountains on the Isle of Skye.
Our journey had begun five days previously, its start point the uninspiring tarmac car park of Inverness airport, rather than the ‘official’ one of the red sandstone Inverness castle. It is here that I discover that you don’t step into a Defender: you climb, a well-placed hand strap on the roof of the car being a lifesaver for anyone under six feet tall.
It soon becomes apparent that this is not going to be the most comfortable 500 miles. The seats are rigid and unheated, the noise from the speakers tinny, and the wipers screech as they move backwards and forwards across the screen. Even so, just sitting in this vehicle makes it feel like we are going on a ‘proper’ adventure. That we too can ‘go anywhere’.
The road out of Inverness is straightforward , following the A862 along the Firth of Beauly, before picking up the A9 trunk road once north of the Muir of Ord. There are a few NC500 signposts along the route but not many official ones, mainly because it isn’t just one road, unlike the aforementioned Route 66 or the Pacific Highway along the Californian coast. The A-roads, B-roads and single tracks that make up the NC500 have always been there, but it wasn’t until 2014 that the 516-mile route was rebranded as the ultimate Scottish roadtrip. Created by the North Highland Initiative, a non-profit organisation established by Prince Charles in 2005 to develop economic growth in the area, it has grown in popularity year on year, but such success has brought other challenges. Because so many choose to travel in the summer months, the narrow roads can become congested, their passing places full of parked vehicles. If you can avoid the peak summer months, then do. The Scottish Highlands are even more majestic when you don’t have to share them.
And in January there is hardly any traffic. Yes, many of the tourist attractions are closed for the season and accommodation is limited to whichever guest house or hotel is open in a 70mile radius, but that doesn’t matter to us. The breathtaking beauty of the Scottish coastline is the only attraction we need. Following the east coast, just north of some of the famous whisky distilleries of Tain, the baronial Skibo Castle lies on the edge of the stunning, deserted golden sands of Dornoch Firth. Further north, Dunrobin is a ‘fairytale château’ that would not
‘The NC500 roads have always been there, but it wasn’t until 2014 that the 516-mile route was rebranded as the ultimate Scottish road-trip’
look out of place in the Loire Valley. As it is the largest castle in the Northern Highlands, you don’t even have to stop if you don’t want to, because you get a good glimpse of its conical spires even from the road.
The further north you travel, the wider the ocean vistas, as the road hugs the coast all the way up to Wick. There are hairpin bends but the road is open, the tarmac is smooth and the other cars are few and far between. Arriving into a deserted John O’Groats just after nightfall, the Defender’s beams illuminating the famous sign, it truly feels as if we are alone at the end of the world.
Of course, John O’Groats isn’t the end of the world, nor even the northernmost point of the UK: that accolade belongs to windswept Dunnet Head. On a clear day it is possible to stand on the clifftop and see all along the coast as far as Cape Wrath, the Duncansby sea stacks or out to the Orkney Islands, but today they are all just faint outlines in the mist.
Heading further along the Sutherland coast, the beaches are straight from a Caribbean travel brochure – minus the drizzle and grey clouds. In Durness, our night stop, we make the only footprints in the powder-white sand. Probably because it’s minus five outside, but still…
Across the Kyle of Durness is Cape Wrath, where the north and west coasts of Scotland meet in furious fashion. The only way to reach this rugged and isolated viewpoint is by ferry and pre-booked minibus, neither of which are running in January. We press on further down the west coast, crossing the beautifully curved Kylesku Bridge. Opened in 1984 by the Queen, it may be short – 276m to be exact – but was designed to perfectly complement the stunning Sutherland landscape. A short climb up from the roadside gives the perfect view not only of the bridge, but also the patchwork of brown, purple and green grasses growing across the hills, and the numerous fjord-like inlets.
Just past Kylesku, there is the option to divert from the main NC500 route, onto what the locals call the ‘wee mad road’. And for good reason. If you thought you had encountered single-track roads before, this one, in parts, is barely wide enough for the Defender, let alone another oncoming vehicle. And why mad? Quite possibly because the many loops, hairpins and dips of this narrow stretch of road are enough to turn even the sanest driver crazy.
Our best advice? Sit back, hold tight, and by all means enjoy the never-ending vistas of lochs and mountain, but keep one eye fixed
firmly on the road. The coastline is wild, the hairpins are thrilling, and it most certainly should never be attempted by anyone not confident with reverse gear. You will meet others. And you will need to back up. It is one of my favourite parts of the journey.
The ‘wee mad road’ ends at Achiltibuie, overlooking the Summer Isles. Do not be fooled: these are not named after their favourable weather conditions, but because they were used by local crofters for summer grazing. As proven when we pull up to admire the view and watch it disappear under an ominous grey storm cloud that covers the Isles, and eventually us, with a downpour.
Damp but still inspired, we head on to the gateway to the Outer Hebrides, Ullapool, a chance to rest before tackling what is one of the many highlights of the NC500, the Torridon Mountains and the Applecross peninsula.
The Torridons are old. Very old. The sandstone that forms their rugged exterior is dated at over 750 million years. Driving through them, brooding peaks shrouded in winter mist and with not another soul around, there is a definite sense of ‘other-worldliness’.
At the end of Loch Torridon is the start of the drive around the Applecross Peninsula and we are glad to have left this to later in the day, as the sun starts to dip, silhouetting the Cuillins across the water on Skye. This is a drive to be savoured, not driven hard, not least because around any bend you might encounter one of the free-roaming Highland cattle that will not move from the centre of the road until they are ready. Who’s going to argue with those horns?
This perfect coastal drive ends with the most challenging part of the NC500, the Bealach na Bà, translated from Gaelic as the Pass of the Cattle. It was used in the past to drive cattle from Applecross and the surrounding peninsula to the rest of the Highlands, and on the east side has some very alpine-like hairpin bends. According to signage, it should not be attempted by learner drivers, caravans or heavy vehicles and is closed when wintry conditions render it impassable. We are lucky. It is cold, but clear. The perfect winter’s day for climbing 2053ft of twisting, narrow track to the summit, before watching the sun set behind Raasay, Rona and the Isle of Skye.
There is so much more to discover on the NC500, including an abundance of wildlife from giant red stags grazing at the roadside, via eagles soaring overhead, to seals barking in the lochs. Then there are the eerily beautiful ruins of Ardvreck Castle on the shores of Loch Assynt, numerous waterfalls, and fresh langoustines caught straight from the creels.
But my absolute favourite part has to be driving our faithful Defender. They say you should never name a car because it becomes so much harder to let it go. All I can say is thank you for the adventure. Sven.
‘It’s the perfect winter’s day for climbing 2053ft of twisting, narrow track to the summit before watching the sun set behind the Isle of Skye’