Featured Touring Highlands Revisited

View of Eilean Donan Castle




Met up with Andy near the Campsie fells and we headed up through the Trossachs and onto Tyndrum where we took the Oban road (A85) for a while and then cut of onto the (A819) to Inveraray where we took the long way round to Oban. we then crossed the Connel Bridge and took the (A828) to the Ballachulish Bridge

we stayed in Fort William the first night then took the (A82) to Spean Bridge where we went on to the laggan Rd (A86) one of my favourite roads to Aviemore. We stopped off at this waterfall which you can just see from the road


View down to Loch Maree on the (A832)


We then took the coastal Rd to Ullapool where we stayed for 4 nights

Parked up at the Guest House

Main Rd to Lochinver

Stopped off in Lochinver before doing the Drumbeg Loop


thought this house wouldn't look out of place in Norway

 

Plockton lovely wee village




Rd up to Kinlochbervie

Kinlochbervie Harbour


Saw this interesting looking boat house last month when i was with James & Lou but didn't stop, this time i made a point of stopping (It's on the Tongue to Lairg rd)

At the Top Of Loch Ness we went down the East side as the main Rd is usually very busy




Andy has taken some great photos..it might be a while before he sorts through them though!

 

Looks like a great trip Dougie! Did you spot the palm trees in Plockton?

 

Yes Vim, if you zoom in on the pic you will see them

 

We were anchored there once when Sir Paul McCartney parked his giant yacht next to us. They pulled a fender out the flank of the boat and he was ferried off to the pub...

 

Was a brilliant trip and so good to be on tour again! Covered over 1700 miles in total. Great fun as always, even in the wet there's grip on the roads! Been most of the day cleaning the bike and still not finished

 

Excellent! I'm yearning to be off on tour again... we were a bit naughty today and went to a nearby industrial estate so the wife could have some practice... she did very well, so we had our first rideout together...

 

Good stuff Dougie. I was working in Aberdeen this week, took the scenic route back via Braemar and Lomond. Not too long before l'm up there on the bike now either. Hope our trip can match yours, looks pretty decent

 

You would have passed through my home town then fingers crossed you get decent weather for your trip

 

Finally got my bike lovely and clean again and got a look through some photos. I had a good quality compact camera with me. Not my big camera but a very good fixed lens/focal length one.

This is on the way from Ullapool up to Kylesku


Then Kylesku itself, from the old ferry ramp which was used before the bridge was built


And of course Kylesku bridge


I literally jumped off the bike when I saw this scene at the top of Skye, the conditions change so quickly! The light and the atmosphere was stunning!

 

Gorgeous pics Andy!

 

Some more photos
for those are are interested about rocks and continents colliding etc,then this place is for you! just north of Ullapool Knockan Crag National Nature Reserve, Ullapool – Nature Centres & Reserves | VisitScotland




a few pics of Loch Lochy just north of Fort William




Loch Assynt on the A837 towards Lochinver




Parked up in Plockton


The usual view of Eilean Donan (we took the photo from the first post on this thread from the other side)


Kinlochleven Loop

Kyle Of Tongue

 

I'm also hoping to get a few days camping up there with the the Z. Can't wait!

 

You'll love it! Have you been up with the bike before?

 

Absolutely brilliant photos and write-up, @Dougie D! And I love your photos, too, @andyc1. Please get to editing and bring on more. Looks like the two of you had a terrific trip. Thanks for sharing it with us through this thread. So nice for this desert rat to see green and water.

 

Been up a few times and camped at Loch Lomond. The run out to Oban via Inverary and Loch Awe is a favourite run of mine and back to the Green Wellie for refreshments. Then north over Rannoch Moor and the route up to Invergarry and out to the Kyle of Lochalsh is also a great run when traffic is light. Had numerous day trips from home too, usually taking the M74 up to Abington, then the A702, Elvanfoot and down through the Dalveen Pass (to die for!) and on to Newton Stewart. There's so much to choose from up there!

 

Your'e right there is a lot of great roads to chose from,the Oban loop is one of my favourites,the A819 from Dalmally is a brilliant road to Inveraray,makes a change from going over the rest & Be thankful road although thats great too!

 

I almost got wiped out by a Deer on the 819 a few years back, leapt out of the tree line just up ahead on one of the fast bits and luckily for me, bounded straight across to the other side! I usually have a couple of days fishing in Loch Awe when I'm up there with the caravan. Whenever we get a detour of a couple of miles or so down here and people moan I always chuckle to myself remembering the detour required when the Rest and Be Thankful is shut!

 

Yeah you don't want to bump into one of them! i've had a couple of near ones myself,early mornings and just as it's getting dark is when you have to watch out for them

 

A few more pictures...
This is a wider view of the pass we went up at the top of Skye


And this from the same place but further down the road looking up


We came down the south side of Loch Ness for a change and found some nice sections of road like this


And I'm not 100% sure but I think this was between Durness and Tongue right at the top of Scotland


I love Scotland