Keep the motor running

Lots of driving today.

We started at Keodale when after a night of very heavy rain we were already sure the cave tours would not be running. Scarlett and I had a long discussion about brushing her hair which was starting to look very tangled even to my rather tolerant eyes, which ended with it being brushed 😉

We drove back to the caves and went into the waterfall chamber with proper coats and shoes on and then walked along the beach there. I noticed some of the larger stones on the beach looked like the ones we’d been splitting on a fossil hunting event back at home last year with a local expert so we split some open to see if we could find anything interesting. We didn’t, but it is always fun hitting rocks with other rocks 🙂
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We got petrol from the very expensive attendant served single pump and stocked up a bit in the Spar shop so we have enough food for about a week now if money runs very low / we can’t find shops. Stuff like tinned steak which I can make a pastry lid to do a pie with, some tinned fruit and veg, some instant mash we can use to make fish cakes with etc. We drove along to Balnakeil Bay which is easily the most beautiful beach I’ve ever been on and Davies flew his kite while Scarlett and I took pictures of each other inside a rainbow – the sand was so white it reflected everything so the rainbow above looked like an eye with it’s own reflection beneath. Davies is getting really good with his kite too 🙂
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We stopped there for lunch and then drove back to Keodale to see if the ferry or bus was running to Cape Wrath. Neither was today (although they may have been earlier in the day, it was nearly 3pm by then) so rather than wait around til tomorrow and spend nearly £30 on getting to that north west most tip we decided to carry on.

The road starting due south is an A road but still a single track with passing places. It continues through loads more landscapes in a twisty, turny fashion with a new breathtaking sight round each new corner. I know we have used loads of petrol this week but I really would be happy just driving up and down these roads on a constant loop. Autumn is really rolling in this week with bursts of sunshine inbetween showers, rainbows everywhere, the leaves on the trees and the heather turning all shades of gold, red and burnt oranges and there is the constant promise of exciting wildlife to be looking out for – eagles in the sky, deer or wildcats on the land and otters, seals or even whales and dolphins in the water.

We drove quite a way without really seeing anything other than views and then crossed the Laxford Bridge and headed down to Unapool. We saw signs for Lochinver so decided to head for there for the night and chose the sign promising the ‘scenic route’ at only 7 miles longer. It took us on a little B road all the way around the coast, up and down huge hills but the views were totally worth the extra fuel cost. Plus we saw a red deer! I’d been singing my song – I have this song that I sang last week to call the dolphins and it worked so well I have adapted it for other Scottish wildlife. It brought me eagles yesterday and the red deer today 😉 even if no one else believes me I know Kirsty does!
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Photo is rubbish because it was so well camouflaged by the heather but there it stood, staring at us all ogling it from the van :). Davies and I also think we saw another eagle landed on a fence post but by the time Ady had reversed back to where it was it had gone.

We started to look for somewhere to stop for the night and nearly stopped at Stoer lighthouse but I had no signal on my phone or mifi and there was a burger van parked there which we were worried might be upset about us so close to his pitch in the morning so we carried on.
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We almost stopped again near Clachtoll but came all the way down to Lochinver in the end and suddenly hit proper civilisation again with people walking about in the streets, shops, banks, restuarants and even flashing neon lights! We struggled to find somewhere to park, it was getting dark and everyone was hungry and had been sitting in the van driving too long really. We finally found a carpark at the end of a windy path which is for a woodland walk and were encouraged to stay by another campervan parked up for the night with all it’s curtains already drawn – safety in numbers!

We’ve had a nice evening playing music, eating dinner and reading stories and I’m already a bit sad to have left the north coast behind. I’m going to research some of the many touristy things on my map and hopefully find a good few days worth of stuff to do very nearby to make up for all the driving and petrol spending so far this week.