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And not just people either. We watched these cute dogs playfully chase their ball into the waters https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0897-L.jpg People and pooches enjoying the best of the Yorkshire coast https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0441-L.jpg There are lots of seafood restaurants in Robin Hood's Bay, but we're saving our appetites for something more special... Very neat old English town. So glad we ran into those farmers in the park and got this recommendation. We jump back on the bikes for a quick 5 mile jaunt to nearby Whitby. |
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Whitby is another seaside town in North Yorkshire https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0917-L.jpg Still not sure about the legality of parking our bikes on the sidewalks. So we hide them behind this metal box and hope nobody notices. You can barely even see them. We should be okay... Man, if this were North America, our bikes would have been ticketed and towed over a hundred times by now! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0920-L.jpg What can you do in Whitby? Eat, drink, shop... also take some boat trips up and down the River Esk |
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Neda looks cold https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0448-L.jpg So we go find a place to eat and drink and warm up Our quest for the best fish and chips in the country continues. We did a quick Google search for "Best fish and chips in the UK" and the Magpie Cafe came up consistently. Since we were in the area, we decide to drop in and give it a try. We arrived right during dinner hour so it was a bit of a long lineup to get a table. But when the food came: https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0454-L.jpg Nice! That noise you hear is the sound of my arteries hardening I'll admit our Google search turned up many places that claimed the best fish and chips in the country. After trying Magpie's f&c, I don't know if this is *THE BEST* we ever had, but it was very good. The batter was very light and crispy and equal attention was paid to the chips so that they weren't overly fried or soggy. Delicious! But our fish and chips quest has only begun and there are many more notches I can still undo on my belt before I have to buy new pants, so... |
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Red roofed houses crowd all the way down to the shores of the River Esk https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0457-L.jpg Ed Sheeran Jr doing some fishing in the River Esk https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0462-L.jpg The streets overlooking the river are lined with shops, bars and restaurants |
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What else is there to do in Whitby? What's that up there on the hill? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0951-L.jpg Whitby Abbey. It's already pretty late in the day, so we'll have to visit tomorrow There is a beautiful campsite right next to the abbey. We pull in and a person from reception walks over to us. "Sorry, no motorcycles allowed. There's another campsite a couple of miles down the road" Discrimination! I get that some motorcycles are loud. I get that there is a perception that motorcyclists are unruly. But our bikes are whisper quiet and so are we. So if a guy in a loud muscle car pulls up with the tunes cranked and a two-four of bitter (do they have two-fours in the UK?) on the front seat, they'll let him in over us?!? Sucky policy. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0952-L.jpg Our new campsite is not as nice and doesn't have a view of the Whitby Abbey |
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Neda's bike is a bit low on oil. It's only been a thousand kms or so after the last service? Is she burning oil or is there a slow leak somewhere? We'll have to keep an eye on that. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0959-L.jpg When you have tools, you become a very popular person at a campsite The guys beside us were having problems with their cooking gear and needed some pliers to get the line reconnected to the gas tank. Nice guys. We may not have a primo view or a swanky camp ground, but our peeps here aren't snobs! :) I crank up the tunes and I pull out a two-four of bitter out of my topcase and we party with our new friends! Neda revs her engine in rhythm to the music! PAR-TEEEE!!!! |
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Next morning, we head out to check Whitby Abbey just down the road https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0929-L.jpg Whitby Abbey is a Benedictine abbey dating back to the 6th century https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0479-L.jpg Beautiful gothic ruins! It's been said that Whitby Abbey was the inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula. After visiting Transylvania, we're now adding this to the list after Castle Poenari and Bran Castle. Any other buildings want to claim inspiration for Dracula? Might as well also claim that these castles/abbeys also make the best fish and chips as well! If you read it on the Internet, it's basically true. |
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Wow, can you imagine the stained glass window that must have originally been here? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0943-L.jpg From the grounds of Whitby Abbey, you can see the town of Whitby below, across the river https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0944-L.jpg Sunlight streaming in through the holes where stained glass used to be The original monastery was built in the 7th century, but the current abbey on the same location was constructed in the 1300s. |
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Very cool ruins, glad we stopped by! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0512-L.jpg Much has been stripped away from Whitby Abbey. Time and the elements have not been kind. You could say it was roofless. |
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Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/349.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map349-L.jpg https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0965-L.jpg We are going to hang around the North York Moors National Park for a couple more days. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0519-L.jpg Riding into Guisborough on the north-western edge of the park We really enjoyed walking around Whitby Abbey the other day, so we are going on an Abbey Ruins tour. Abbey Ruins was supposed to be the name of the follow-up album to one of the Beatles most popular records, but it was never completed. You can blame Yoko Ono for that. We heard there were some Abbey Ruins here in Guisborough. Unforunately, when we got to the entrance, it was closed for the day! We picked the one day of the week that it was closed! Damn you, Yoko! |
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The Guisborough Priory peeking out from behind the walls We had a bit of a debate about whether to hop the wall or not, but in the end we decided not to, since the Brexit vote, the authorities have been itching for any excuse to kick EU nationals out of the country. That's Neda, by the way... Okay, there's another abbey in the western part of North York Moors National Park called Rievaulx Abbey further inside the park. It's another nice ride through the Moors, but when we got to Rievaulx, we discovered that they wanted $15 each for entrance! That's steep for a minor-league abbey... We had to have yet another mini-huddle and discuss whether or not we wanted to pay for this. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0523-L.jpg In the end, we decided not to. But I dashed into the gift shop and took a picture of the abbey from their window... So cheap... Deeply disappointed that we didn't see any abbeys today. If they're all going to be priced like this, I think we'll have to follow in the Beatles' footsteps and cancel the Abbey Ruins Tour. At least it made for a nice excuse to criss-cross the National Park. It's getting kind of late, so we find a grocery store along our way. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0524-L.jpg The town of Thirsk. Neda finds a grocery store while I stay with the motorcycles https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0984-XL.jpg Across the street a busker is playing in the town square, but everyone is paying more attention to this old couple dancing to the music instead. Awww.... I like the cap someone knitted for this pole in the foreground. :) |
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We find a campsite at the western edge of the park just outside a small village called Osmotherley https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0543-L.jpg More Brit vehicles! A Landrover Defender outside Osmotherley Village Store. I always wanted a Defender, just like Lara Croft! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0530-L.jpg Stopping to smell the flowers https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0542-L.jpg Dropped into the Queen Catherine Hotel in Osmotherley to have a pint of the local brewer Timothy Taylor's ruby ale. So British! We're really enjoying our relaxed pace through England along with all the comfort food and dark English ales. Although the days are still warm when the sun is out, the temperatures dip down to single digits at night and we flee into the campsite's cafeteria in the evening and for breakfast the next morning, buying our admission with an expensive cup of tea. Brrr!!! |
It's not until almost noon that it gets warm enough to ride comfortably, and that's when we continue our trek northwards along the east coast of England.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0982-L.jpg My GPS is still losing power intermittently. It's bugging me a lot, so I had to stop to work out the problem I have to keep reseating the fuse under the seat to get the power flowing back to the GPS mount. I checked the fuse and it seems okay, but I bit the bullet and bought a new fuse anyway. The new one seems to work perfectly. I stared at the old fuse in the sunlight. Perhaps it had just enough material left for current to intermittently get through? If this fuse was partially blown, I know exactly when it happened: when we tried to jump-start Neda's bike in Hungary. :( I hate wrenching. I like to ride and take pictures. I can wrench, but there are a million other things I'd want to do with my time other than fixing my motorcycle. I know a lot of riders live to fiddle around and work on their bike. That's why those guys ride KTMs... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0986-L.jpg Hitting the east coast: Riding into Tynemouth looking for a place to eat https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0546-L.jpg Someone left two steak and kidney pies lying on the table of this pub, so we just sat down and ate it. But then we had to pay for them... |
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Hey, more castle ruins! This one was free to walk around the grounds. Cool! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0575-L.jpg Tynemouth Priory and Castle https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0555-L.jpg British beach weather. The locals are trying to squeeze in the last few weeks of warm(ish) weather |
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Tynemouth lighthouse out on the pier https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0619-L.jpg Tynemouth pier. Fish'n chips tonight, mate! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN0989-L.jpg When we got back to the parking lot, there were a whole bunch of bikers standing around our motorcycles They saw our out-of-continent license plates and were very curious about our trip. They asked where we were heading next, and I replied, "Alnwick". They all had a puzzled expression on their faces. And then one of them figures out what I am saying: "Oh you mean Annik!" Whut? How do you get "Annik" from Alnwick? Just when I thought I was in a country where I understood the language perfectly, they had to cock it up by changing the pronunciation. UK English is bizarre. Syllables get added or dropped with no rhyme or reason. Edinburgh gets an extra syllable and is pronounced: Edinborough. Leicester drops a syllable to become Lester. Worcestershire? Well, just for fun let's cut *two whole syllables* from that word and call it: Wooster. Whut!?! And it's not just the names of places. Aluminum? Add another syllable: Alumin-EE-um. That's just ridiculesterous. Still, it was great fun talking bikes with these English lads. Despite the language barrier... After Annik we were headed up to Edin-BOROUGH, but instead of heading straight there along the coast, one of the guys showed me another more interesting route on my GPS. Cool! I love just wandering around with no plan and getting suggestions from the locals while on the go! |
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Pulling into Alnwick, er Annik, late in the day Although we've sworn off the Abbey Tour, there is just one more castle we needed to see. Unfortunately we got to Annik too late and the castle was just closing up for the day. We'd have to come back tomorrow when it reopens. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1005-L.jpg We found a campsite on the outskirts of Annik. It was right next to a rugby field! How much more British can you get? :) That evening the cold wind howled and ripped at our tent while we lay shivering inside. Little drops of rain pitter-pattered on the thin layer of fabric over our heads and I thought, "Uh oh, the dreaded English weather has finally figured out that we're here!" But in the morning, it's dry and the sky is clearing up for our visit to Annik Castle. Luck is on our side! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0635-L.jpg The castle is just 5 minutes away from our campsite. We find a parking spot just across the street! But we have to slip between some orange cones to get in, not sure if this is legal or not... *shrug* |
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Annik (Alnwick) Castle! Alnwick Castle is the home of the Duke of Northumberland and is the second-largest occupied castle next to Windsor Castle. We didn't pay to get into Windsor Castle and although the Duke of Northumberland is not considered a royal, we are dishing out the entrance fee to get into Alnwick because: https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0032-XL.jpg The castle was used to film many of the Harry Potter movies!!! Again, I'm not the most knowledgeable Harry Potter fan, so I'll just relay to you what I think I heard or remembered about the books or movies. Alnwick Castle was Hogwarts School for Gifted Youngsters. It's run by an old man named Professor X who takes in young people with special powers who are misunderstood and persecuted by the general public. These youngsters are then trained to use their powers to fight evil and save the world. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0080-L.jpg The primary weapon these gifted youngsters use is the broom. And also a dustpan if the villain is extra-heinous. During our visit to Alnwick Castle, there are different types of tours that are run all day catering to different interests. There is the "history channel" tour with a guide that explains the origins of the castle, who the current occupants are, blah blah. We started off on that tour but soon fell asleep. So we quickly hopped onto the "popular culture channel", where they talked about how Alnwick is used as a filming location for shows like Harry Potter, Downtown Abbey and several Robin Hood movies. That's more our speed! As part of the Harry Potter tour, guides are dressed up as wizards and show the children how to use their broom weapons. |
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Neda takes possession of a Nimbus 2000, which is the transportation model of the broom. That's why they called it a nim-BUS. In the Harry Potter books and movies, there's a game you can play with these brooms. It's called Curling. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0088-L.jpg A young wizard surveys the English countryside. She is plotting the enslavement of all the muggles who have teased her her whole life https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0649-L.jpg The interior of Alnwick Castle - beautiful! |
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It's not all Harry Potter though. Another popular tour is the "Weapons of War channel" https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0026-L.jpg An indigenous English person demonstrates how her family used to use bows and arrows to hunt for their food https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0023-XL.jpg Instead of shooting wild boar, the kids practice on targets. Real arrows, BTW! :O |
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As part of the weaponry course, you can even learn how to fire a musket. Real bullets, BTW! :O https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0106-XL.jpg This is what they're aiming at. Never bring a sword to a gunfight. Even if you're wearing plate armor... They have to hire a new indigenous person/target every day. Like most cultures, they don't treat their indigenous people very well... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0068-L.jpg Is this Landscape Mode? Or Portrait mode...? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0688-L.jpg Part of the tour is a medieval dungeon with a house of horrors walk! Spooky! I heard that they are planning a "Star Wars channel" here as well. In all the brochures, they keep referring to Darth Vader as Alnwick-an Skywalker... |
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That could rate up there in the dad joke category :tt2:doh Enjoying the 'fish & chip run' report too :clap: |
Where abouts are you now? I've been following your thread from the very beginning however have been so busy recently I enjoy had a chance to daydream about riding around the world!
I have now left the U.K. But can recommend some awesome places if you're still there. |
Gene/Neda, I'm not sure how far ahead of your report you are but if you're heading down to Devon, drop me a PM, I'll gladly put you up for a few nights.
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Thanks for the help guys, the blog is very far behind and we are no longer in the UK.
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around anyone who called themselves 'mr_magicfingers' :rofl::innocent: |
Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/350.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map350-L.jpg After meeting the group of English riders at Tynemouth, we are following their suggestions and doubling back at Alnwick, heading towards the interior to ride up into Scotland that way. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1024-L.jpg But first we stop at a pub in Rothbury for some fuel for the road... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SCN1021-XL.jpg Bangers and mash! OMG, so good! And yet so bad for you... Can't remember the last time we have eaten so badly and felt so guiltily doing so... After we leave the UK, we're going to have to go on a diet. Nothing but fruits and vegetables and water. |
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Our route takes us through a beautiful scenic road towards the Northumberland National Park https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1029-L.jpg Thick foliage in the Northumberland National Park https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1030-L.jpg Dire warnings as we near the Scottish border. Do they not serve crumpets and tea in Scotland? |
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Just as we are about to cross the border, we spy an interesting sight along the side of the road. We have to investigate! So I knew Scotland was separate from England, but I was unclear whether or not it was actually a separate country. Pretty shameful not knowing that, isn't it? A quick Google search confirms that it is. Yet, it is still considered part of the United Kingdom and Scotland is now threatening to leave the UK because of the Brexit vote. If that happens, they're going to have to police this entire border across the middle of the island. The road that we're on crosses the border at a spot called Carter Bar, which was the site of a huge battle between Scotland and England. Right at the border there's a huge stone with Scotland carved on one side and England on the other. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl.../twitter-L.jpg Naturally, I'm on the English side and Neda is ahead of me on the Scottish side https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1043-L.jpg Riding through some Scottish towns |
We've checked the forecast for the next few days and there's going to be quite a heavy rainfall coming up. So when we arrive in Edinburgh we find a cheap(ish) AirBnB to bunker up. But we don't stay inside very long because we have a dinner invitation!
We met Gino and Fiona last year while we were riding through the Lago de Como region in Italy. We've kept in touch since then and now we're going to catch up with them at their place in Edinburgh. Such a small world! I love it when people we meet on our travels show up again later on our blog! It gives our trip a feeling of continuity - that our journey isn't just made up of stand-alone episodes but a tapestry of threads that weave itself in and out of our lives over time. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0696-L.jpg Gino welcomes us with good food and great Scottish whiskey! Gino gave us an exhaustive rundown on the history of Scotland, which seemed to consist mainly of their millennia-long conflict with the English. Seems the English aren't very well-liked in Scotland! Our hosts are fellow motorcycle world travelers and we talked at length about our trips and what it meant to finish up a long tour and settle down again. This has been on my mind constantly - what will our lives look like when all of this is over? From talking to Gino and Fiona, life after a long trip is basically planning for the next long trip. I thought as much. We've met so many long-term travelers that we identify with closely and almost all of them yearn to be back out on the road again once their trip is over. So the lesson I'm taking from this is, why stop in the first place if you don't have to...? Hm.... Since this is Gino and Fiona's neck of the woods, we pick their brains about the best route to take through Scotland. There's absolutely no shortage of ideas. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0694-L.jpg Fiona gives us a very polished presentation on the best motorcycle roads through Scotland. We had handouts with speaker notes and everything! :) We left their places with our stomachs filled with good food and our heads filled with visions of twisty roads through Scottish highlands. Can't wait! But first, we need to do some regular maintenance on our bikes. |
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Next morning, we drop our motorcycles off at the dealership just outside of Edinburgh I met an Irish rider at the dealership and I asked him about good roads in Ireland. He said, "Stay on the west coast!" Okay, in the last 24 hours I think we've basically got our route planned for the next month or so! The Irish guy had exactly the same motorcycle I have, same year and everything. <ul> "How do you like the R1200GS?", he asked me. "I like it, it's a great bike!" "Yeah me too." "Except for the final drive. I've had to fix mine three times already", I moaned. "Yes! I've heard about that!" I nodded my head sadly. "Also, the servo brakes on our model are terrible. No brakes without the key in in the on position!" "Yep." "Have you heard about the known EWS problem? The antenna in the key ring sensor fails and your bike can't start", I ask him. "My bike is in the shop for exactly that reason." "Hm", more head-nodding, "Also the fuel pump is known to be bad" "Wow, our bikes really suck!" "Haha, right?" </ul> Bonding over bike problems! The R1200GS is a funny beast. Despite all these issues, every single owner I know still loves their bike, it's just so well-balanced, easy to ride, and does quite well on variable terrain. And these issues crop up over very high mileages. I suspect the incidences per km are no better or worse than any other brand, it's just that BMW riders tend to put on more mileage than other bikers. We take public transit back to Edinburgh. We'll be without our bikes for the next couple of days, which is okay since we're going to explore the city a bit by foot. Rain starts to pelt the windows of the bus on our ride back. Just in time. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0269-L.jpg Catching up on some laundry now that we have a roof over our heads We're finding it impossible to hang-dry clothing in Scotland! The air is so humid here! |
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We don our rainjackets and jump back onto the bus to explore Edinburgh's old town My first reaction was: Wow, there are a lot of brown-bricked buildings here... These are medieval tenements that crowd the low skyline of the old town. Also, there are a ton of tourists here, all braving the cold Scottish rains. And everywhere, there are reminders that we are in Scotland, as if the whole town is capitalizing on every single stereotype there is about this country. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0124-XL.jpg On every street corner, there's a Scottish guy in a kilt playing the bagpipes https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0118-L.jpg A little street-diorama reminding tourists that golf was a Scottish invention |
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New College University of Edinburgh https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0132-L.jpg Edinburgh is known as the City of Festivals. Several of them are overlapping this week. We take in the Fringe Festival https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0146-L.jpg The Fringe Festival is a huge international arts festival with official and unofficial performers lining the streets of Edinburgh https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0155-L.jpg Some of them have a stage and official playing slots, others just find a corner to jam We had such a good time hopping from performer to performer and listening to some great music. All of the street performers played for tips, but the ones on stage were there mainly to advertise their paying gigs in bars and theaters later on in the evening. |
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I was surprised how many people were out despite the rains https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0188-L.jpg It was a truly international event, with performers coming from all over the world https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0171-L.jpg This mime troupe was from Japan |
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Avant-garde performance art right in the middle of the crowd https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0214-L.jpg Street entertainers interacting with the audience https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0721-L.jpg And in between acts, we'd walk the cobblestone streets of the old town, taking in all the gothic architecture around us |
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Rainy and wet https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0244-XL.jpg Refugees from the Fringe Festival, also doing some touristing https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0246-L.jpg The colours of the previous picture remind me of this!: ) |
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More kilts and bagpipes https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0249-XL.jpg Even the dogs were proud of their Scottish heritage! |
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It's an old nickname as, every time I'm around friends I get tapped to give people shoulder rubs and was once introduced to someone as 'this is J, he's got magic fingers'. |
Hi Gene, Neda,
I can't believe you guys rode right past my door & up into the North York Moors ! At least the weather has been dry for the last few days (saying that - you say the blog is way behind?). Shame you didn't call in at Squires Caf in Sherburn for a coffee. Safe riding & all the best, Andy |
Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/351.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map351-L.jpg We pick up our bikes from the service at the dealership. "When are you leaving Edinburgh?" The service advisor asked. "We're heading out tomorrow morning", I reply. "There's a lot of theft of motorcycles in the UK, and in Edinburgh specifically. Did you want to keep your bikes here overnight and pick them up tomorrow before you leave?" "Uh... no, I think we should be okay. We're not actually staying downtown, we're in a small suburb called Gorgie." "Oh.. that's actually the worst neighbourhood." Okay, now I'm scared. But it's a 45 minute bus ride to and from the dealership and we want to head out first thing in the morning. So I thank him for his offer and decide to take our chances with all the bike thieves that live in our neighbourhood. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1054-L.jpg In the morning, it's sunny! And our bikes are still in the parking lot. What a bonus! |
We're embarking on the route that Gino and Fiona laid out for us. It won't get that exciting until we're a couple of hours outside of Edinburgh, but we manage to find a couple of interesting things along the way.
In Newport-on-Tay, a policeman stops our bikes and we have to give way to a motorcade. Except it's not a motorcade, it looks like a scooter rally! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1068-L.jpg Neda gives a thumbs up to the scooter from Quadrophenia as it zooms by. It's been upgraded somewhat since the 70s... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1074-L.jpg Riding with the scooter brigade over the Tay Road Bridge to Dundee This was a huge rally of two scooter clubs, the A92s and the Kingdom Scooter Club. They were crossing the Tay Road bridge on its 50th anniversary. I know this because there's a YouTube video of them. Sadly, we were only allowed to cross when the main scooter rally passed us, so these were the stragglers that we were riding behind, so we didn't make the video. :( You can see the Quadrophenia scooter go by though! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1084-L.jpg Neda got photobombed by a bumblebee. It probably thought her yellow and black bike was a cousin |
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As we rode through the town of Perth, there seemed to be some kind of medieval fair going on. So we stop to investigate. It's the 750th anniversary of the Treaty of Perth, so the town is hosting a family fun festival. The Treaty of Perth put an end to the fighting between the Vikings in Norway and the immortal Highlanders, so that Connor MacLeod from the Clan MacLeod could go on beheading people into the 21st century. Because there can be only one... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0277-L.jpg The kids fascinated by pottery - actually doing something with your hands other than swiping, tapping or clicking a screen! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0295-L.jpg We thought we heard bagpipes, it's this instrument - a hurdy-gurdy! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0301-L.jpg When you turn the crank, it makes a droning noise like bagpipes, but then you play a melody over it with your left hand and it sounds like a fiddle |
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This is the grunge version of Scottish medieval music After they played, they threw their bagpipes to the ground and stomped on them. I wanted to say that that sounded exactly like when they were playing their instruments, but that's not true. These guys were quite good! I found out later, this band is Clanadonia. They did the music for the TV series Outlander. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0317-L.jpg Tried haggis for the first time! I love it! OMG, where have you been all my life, haggis? I'm glad I looked up what haggis was *after* I tried it. The "meat" is sheep's heart, lung and liver minced with oatmeal, onions, spices, salt, fat. So savoury and tasty! It was traditionally cooked and served encased in sheep's stomach lining, but thankfully not many places do it this way anymore. Because eating the heart of a sheep is okay, but if it's inside its stomach? Then that's just gross! Haggis is illegal in the US. Because of the ban of sheep lung for human consumption. I don't care what the USDA says. I have a new quest in Scotland: Find the best haggis in the country! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0310-L.jpg This is where they make the haggis |
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A graffiti wall where passersby can scrawl and doodle whatever they like. I drew two motorcycles riding on top of a globe. But it turned out looking like a pile of haggis. I blame the brown marker. From Perth, we turned north and hit our first geographical highlight of Scotland. Cairngorms National Park! This actually marks the start of the Scottish Highlands. The line that separates the Lowlands from the Highlands is both a geographic boundary - the Highland Boundary Fault is the meeting of two tectonic plates in Scotland - as well as cultural: there is a marked difference between the industrialized and heavily populated lowlands and the sparsely populated agricultural lands north of the border that still recall remnants of feudalism and tribal cultural systems. Gino told me that once we hit the highlands there would be very little to no traffic. Especially at this time of year. Looking forward to it!!! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0344-L.jpg We thought North York Moors had nice heathers. They're way more bountiful up here! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0350-L.jpg So purple and cool! |
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Patches of purple alternate with green like quilt-work on the countryside. Or like a super-villain's costume! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0352-XL.jpg This patchwork is actually intentional! In the off-season, when the birds are in the moors breeding, the parks management people burn off the longer purple heather to create patches of shorter green heather. The purple heather provides suitable shelter for the birds when they return, and they are able to feed in the shorter green patches. They're trying to increase the red grouse population in the park. Why? Um... for hunters to shoot them in the fall... :( |
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So pretty here! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0358-L.jpg This is one of our very few rest stops inside Cairngorms National Park... Why? Midges. Millions of tiny little flies. Argh!!! I hate midges! Every time we stop, dark clouds of midges descend on us and fly up beneath our helmets and buzz around our mouths and into our nostrils. And they bite! After awhile it gets unbearable and we have to ride off to get away from them. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1131-L.jpg Sun's getting low in the sky, gotta find a campsite |
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We stop in Braemar, a small town right in the centre of Cairngorms Park This area is very popular with bikers. After our tent is set up, we sit around and chat with our fellow motorcyclists. Most of them are up from England. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1132-L.jpg They introduce us to a most excellent insect repellent, called Smidge It's made in Scotland and specially brewed to combat the Scottish midge. It smells a bit lemony and I basically douse every inch of exposed skin with this lotion. What a difference! It's like I have a force-field about 6-inches away from my skin that the midges just bounce off of. Sweet! This might get a bit confusing, but I've taken to calling the Scottish midge, Smidges. Just like the product. So, for the sake of clarity on the blog, I'll call the insect S-midges. I'm so glad it's not raining anymore, so we can camp instead of staying in expensive AirBnBs. As the sun set, we crawl into our tent. Many s-midges follow us inside and I spend the next 20 minutes with a flashlight, pinching every single one of them to death as they land on the white walls of the tent so we're able to fall asleep in peace without any of them buzzing around our faces at night. I hate s-midges! Ah, finally I've murdered every last single one of them so we can sleep in peace. Until a couple of hours later, Neda exclaims, "I have to pee!" "Noooo! Can't you hold it in till the morning?!?!" I'm so mad at her. Actually, I'm pissed off. At her bladder... I shine my flashlight out the mesh window of the tent. An angry swarm of s-midges is waiting for us outside, attracted by all the carbon-dioxide emanating from our tent the entire night... She unzips the door and invites all of them inside. *sigh* I just zip up my sleeping bag over my head and suffocate on my own exhaled gases for the rest of the night. I hate s-midges! |
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Next morning, we release all the s-midges from the inside of our tent and set off again through Cairngorm It's an overcast morning and we ride some great roads east and then back up north. It clears up beautifully once we reach the coast of the Moray Firth, the triangular bay right underneath the top shelf of Scotland. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SCN1139-XL.jpg Over the communicator I hear a *THOK*. "What was that?!?!" At the next stop, Neda shows me her new helmet decoration... Juicy! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1146-L.jpg We stop in Elgin for a late lunch We are really enjoying Scotland. Much better than England actually. Edinburgh was such a vibrant city full of young people and everyone up here in the small towns and villages are so friendly! And everyone speaks English. I love that. I thought we'd settled on living in Chiang Mai for a while after our trip is over, but after having spent the last few weeks in an English-speaking country, I don't know if I can go back to being illiterate again... We spend a good long while outside a real estate office, perusing all the For Sale pictures plastered on their window. Houses here in Scotland are very cheap compared to where we lived. Single family homes are about a third to half the cost of a place in Toronto. I'm just thinking that when Brexit goes through, the pound is going to drop like a brick and it might be a great time to swoop in with our Canadian dollars and just buy up everything in Scotland! |
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Pretty town of Elgin https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1151-L.jpg We are here to further my quest to find the best haggis. This is a hamburger topped with haggis! If we're going to live here, we're going to have to learn the Scottish language. Some of the items on the menu are unrecognizable. Neeps and Taters? I can kinda guess what taters are: potatoes. But what the heck is a neep. Google to the rescue... Neep = Turnip. Tur-Neep. Haha! The haggis burger was delicious. Next I want to try haggis nachos!!! :) Get in muh belly!!! Good to see the other national dish of the UK is on the menu: Chicken Tikka Marsala. Think I'm joking? Just Google "National Dish of the UK"... I wonder what curry and haggis tastes like? I think it might be good! |
We spend longer at the pub than we thought we did, because it's late when we leave Elgin.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1152-L.jpg So we find another campsite, which is actually on a farm in Kinloss, just 15 minutes outside of Elgin. The farmer that owns this land told us that we are cutting it very close to the end of camping season this far up north. He warned us that the next couple of weeks could see more closures of campsites the further north we ride. We're just trying to squeeze in as much riding as we can! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0368-L.jpg These are our neighbours at our campsite! At first, I thought that it was so cute that our neighbours were a flock of sheep. And then the wind changed direction, and blew all the smell of the sheep manure towards our tent... Not so cute anymore... *sigh* I just zip up my sleeping bag over my head and suffocate on my own exhaled gases for the rest of the night. |
Gene, Neda, glad we could help, apologies for the midges they drive us crazy also. Hope you guys are still living the dream
Gino & Fiona |
Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/352.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map352-L.jpg We are starting a well-known route around the top of Scotland called the North Coast 500. It starts in Inverness and follows 500 miles of coastal road in a grand loop to end back at the same place. As we round the bend close to Inverness, we take a mini detour to visit a lake. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1177-L.jpg This lake, or loch as it's known in Scottish, is the largest lake by volume in the British Isles. The Loch is called Ness. You can probably guess why we're here. We're going monster hunting! I've probably mentioned this before (once or six times). When I was a kid, I used to watch a show called, "In search of..." and one of the episodes was about the Loch Ness Monster. I've always wanted to go to Loch Ness and try to find the creature in the lake myself. And now we're here! A dream come true!!! Loch Ness is not the largest lake in Scotland. At least by surface area. It is, however, the deepest. Which explains why it's the largest lake *by volume*. This makes it very easy for monsters to hide within its depths. It all makes so much sense. Despite reported sightings of the creature dating back to the 6th century, it wasn't until 1933 when a journalist published a first-handing sighting of a "pre-historic dragon with an animal in its mouth" that the popular media coined the term Loch Ness Monster. Loch Ness is about 36 kms long. We slowly trundled down the road beside the loch, our eyes peeled on the surface, looking for any sign of a neck or a head or humps poking out of its blue waters. At its widest point the other side of the loch is only 2.5 kms away, so the chances of spotting "Nessie", the affectionate nickname of the Loch Ness Monster, was quite high. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1179-L.jpg Along the side of the road, there are lots of attractions and tours capitalizing on the popularity of Nessie Still no sign of the Loch Ness monster. I was beginning to lose hope. It would be so disappointing to come all the way here and then leave empty-handed. |
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We popped into the Loch Ness Monster museum to get some tips on sightings. This is probably the closest we're going to get to getting a photo with Nessie *sigh* The museum had the most extensive collection of first-hand reports of sightings, including pictures and video. It also contained replicas of all the equipment used by monster-hunters, from simple diving equipment to high tech sonar and drones and submarines (!) sent deep into the depths of Loch Ness. And after all that time and money, still no conclusive evidence of a pre-historic creature frolicking in the murky depths of this Scottish lake. I believe we can find the Loch Ness Monster. I've perused through all the reputed pictures taken of the Loch Ness Monster and I've noticed that they all have one thing in common. They were all taken in poor conditions on very grainy film. It seemed like Nessie only liked to be photographed with high ISO settings and in black and white. Hmm... We rode a bit further down the road where the museum had reported the most sightings of Nessie. Playing the odds, we stopped and pulled over and I fiddled with the settings on my high-tech DSLR camera... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...itter352-L.jpg It didn't take very long for Nessie to realize that the photography conditions were perfect for her to make an appearance! Mission accomplished! Myth confirmed. The Loch Ness Monster actually exists! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1184-L.jpg Pleased with the success of our Loch Ness hunt, we rode further into the Scottish North |
Even though it was still fairly early in the day, Gino and Fiona told us about a neat accommodation in Rogart which we wanted to check into early. Rogart is a tiny town a bit inland, about an hour and a half north of Loch Ness.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0820-L.jpg Behind Rogart train station are some old railway cars that have been converted into a hostel! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0856-L.jpg We got "First Class" tickets, which netted us our own private car https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0836-L.jpg These are our sleeping quarters for the night. So cool!!! |
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The entrance to the main car for washrooms, showers and kitchen https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0376-L.jpg Lots of neat little railway decorations all over the place https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0816-L.jpg In the main car, there are also many rooms for more guests |
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Neda prepares our dinner in the kitchen car https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0842-L.jpg Lounging around in the common area trying to get the blog up to date It's such a neat place. We had so much fun exploring all the cars and hanging out in each section. We felt like little kids again! Well not really "again". I don't think we ever really grew up... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0854-L.jpg We've been passing so many sheep lately, we got a craving! Also, Neda used the national spice of the UK so we had curried lamb! Delicious!!! |
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Just by fluke, we've rented a roof over our heads and it starts raining! So glad we're not sleeping in a tent tonight! Later in the evening, we heard the rumbling of a motorcycle and peeked outside to see a guy on a Harley and another guy in a car pull up. Dan and his cousin are from Stirling, which is somewhere between Edinburgh and Glasgow. They're exploring the area and are the only other guests at Rogart station this evening. They've brought beer with them and instantly they are our friends! :) We spend the night drinking and talking in one of the lounge cars. Dan is planning to tour the US by motorcycle, so he rented this Harley to see what it would be like, because he said, "Don't they all ride Harleys in the USA?" That is true... they all do ride Harleys over there. LOL! Since they're local guys, we get some more roads to add to our route around Scotland! I love chance encounters like these! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0861-L.jpg In the morning, Dan shows off his sweet rental: King of the Road! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0871-L.jpg Rogart Station is actually operational! The sleeper car is on an abandoned rail, but the main one still runs. |
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Dan and his cousin are on their way back south to Stirling, while we head further north. Another great day for riding! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1207-L.jpg Riding up the north-eastern coast of The 500 https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0383-L.jpg The towns and villages are fairly sparse up here, but we can see some neat buildings from the road |
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There is virtually no traffic this far north. And the weather is holding up for us, which is awesome! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0385-L.jpg More north-eastern coast scenery https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0398-L.jpg And then, we're at John O'Groats! The very northern tip of Scotland!!! These markers are so popular with overlanders, because they're always obsessed with getting to the extreme ends of the land. You can find so many pictures online of people in front of the Prudhoe Bay General Store in Deadhorse, Alaska. Also, the big wooden Bahia Lapataia sign in Ushuaia, Argentina. The globe at Nordkapp, Norway. And then this one, the John O'Groats cross-roads sign. |
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John O'Groats is one end of the End-To-Enders route. The other end is Land's End at the southern tip in Cornwall There's a lot of marketing and merchandising around traveling from one end of the UK to the other end. There are completion certificates you can buy online, provided that you show adequate proof of the 823 mile journey. Hence all the pictures. There are also competitions to see who can travel the fastest end-to-end. So far the record is held by a Harrier jet which made the flight in 49 minutes. This is not a record we are interested in breaking... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0410-L.jpg This guy did the trip entirely on foot. He left Land's End over four months ago! His family greeted him at John O'Groats to congratulate him! He was probably clean-shaven when he first started off... So was I when we left in 2012 and I haven't shaved since then either. Still working on my own epic beard... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0405-L.jpg The Inn, a hotel at John O'Groats. Every one takes pictures of these coloured buildings when they're up here. |
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There's some cool scenery just a couple of kms outside of John O'Groats https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0421-L.jpg A short hiking trail leads to Duncansby Head https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0432-L.jpg Birds make their home on the cliff walls at Duncansby Head |
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The Stacks of Duncanby - unusual because they're so pyramidal in shape https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0461-L.jpg More traditional-looking stacks at Duncanby https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0480-L.jpg Enjoying an unusually clear day at the very northern tip of Scotland! |
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Brave Neda dangling her feet hundreds of feet above the waters of the North Sea We round the top of Scotland and head west along the northern coastline. We're now about 150 miles into The 500. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0508-L.jpg Back to camping just outside the town of Thurso What will the next 350 miles bring? |
Great pictures! I was there in 2015 with my wife and by car. I am remembering of a very friendly tire shop in Thurso, where they fixed our flat tire...
What a pity that Scotland is behind you. I would have recommended Chippy`s in Ullapool for very very yummy fish & chips. Joerg |
Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/353.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map353-L.jpg If you build it they won't necessarily come. But if you name it... And make stickers and print T-shirts... they'll show up in droves! In 2015, the Tourism Board in Scotland came up with an idea to bring visitors to the very northern reaches of the country. Create a scenic route that shows off the best of the untamed Scottish Highlands! But to properly market it, you have to come up with a cool name, like the Tail of the Dragon, or Route 66 in the US. Perhaps the branding people got a bit too literal: "Um, we said 'like' Route 66 not 'exactly'..." https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl.../S/nc500-S.png Presenting: The North Coast 500! It's cool in the late morning when we leave our campsite in Thurso. High cloud cover obscures some of the blue skies that we have enjoyed during the last couple of days. No matter. As long as it doesn't rain, we're okay with that. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1265-L.jpg The rocky terrain is markedly different from the east coast of the NC500 It's almost as if John O'Groats is some kind of marker that separates the smooth shorelines from this more rugged landscape. |
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The brush is thick and overgrown. Things seem a lot more wild here on this side of Scotland https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0524-L.jpg And the road keeps twisting and turning around this marvelous playground! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0543-XL.jpg Sheep are unfazed by the odd passing motorist. Despite the marketing push, the north coast is so far from civilization, most traffic here is recreational and the UK holiday season is winding down. The route is basically brand new, so probably word hasn't gotten out yet. We don't mind. We hate crowds. |
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Every now and then, we spot little crescents of sand between the rocky bays, not large enough to make a beach https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0553-L.jpg The ruins of a Scottish castle high up on the hills lend to the charm of this Highland experience https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1300-L.jpg But the main attraction here is the brand new ribbon of asphalt winding its way through the scenery The passing clouds overhead colour the land with moving shapes of dark and light as we motor through Northern Scotland. We pick up a really nice rhythm accelerating and then slowing between curves like the pendulum push and pull of a snowboarder carving through turns in fresh powder. |
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Carve, Neda! Carve! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1327-L.jpg Stunning views of blue lake beside the twist of tarmac that we gleefully negotiate In the rockiest section, the road narrows down to a single track. This is not a problem as there are so few vehicles up here. Every now and then the road bulges out, like a snake that's swallowed something large, to accommodate safe passing spots for oncoming traffic. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1328-L.jpg Even the passing bulge is not nearly wide enough when a tour bus goes by in the opposite direction! |
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As we get closer to Durness, we spot a larger outcropping of sand https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0569-L.jpg It's a full-on beach and there are people out enjoying the blue skies when the clouds take their mid-afternoon break. Yay! Sun! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0591-L.jpg From up above the hills overlooking the beach, are those rocks up there? |
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No, more livestock decorating the lambscape. She's so fluffy!!! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0879-L.jpg Life's a beach https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0624-L.jpg Scottish highlands would not be complete without highland cattle! When we were at Gino's place for dinner, he recited a Scottish poem which I can't recall. Actually, I didn't understand most of the Gaelic words, but two stood out: Heilan Coo. That's Highland Cow for those of us who don't speak Scottish. |
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"If you can smell this, you're following too close" The Heilan Coo is a special breed with a long coat to better withstand the cold of the Highland winters. Also, to be designated an official Heilan Coo, the hair has to be styled to cover the eyes in an Emo mop. I believe there is a special cattle-stylist that the farmers go to to get this look. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0633-L.jpg We found a cafe and ducked inside for lunch I took the picture above in the cafe parking lot while sprinting to find cover inside. The smidges were out in full force. I don't understand how they find us so quickly. When we stop, there are no smidges around at all, but within 30 seconds, clouds of them descend on us. Then I read online that smidges are attracted to two things: carbon dioxide and heat. The warmth of our motorcycle engines are basically a beacon to all the smidges in the area. Our own bikes betray us every time we stop! :( While munching on a burger, I stare out the window and watch as a thick mist of smidges swarm around our motorcycles. Even from the safety of inside the cafe, my skin was beginning to crawl in dreaded anticipation. After we eat, we make sure every square inch of our skin is covered before we venture out again. I hate smidges! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1385-L.jpg The only way to avoid smidges - keep moving. And we do. With much gusto! |
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More scenic lambscape https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1404-L.jpg And more Scottish ruins. I believe they build these structures brand new, then wreck them immediately to create the proper ambiance! We are on the "back straight" of the NC500. However, the road is anything but straight! The land is starting to get fringey - rocky fingers extending out into waters of the North Sea. This strait that looks out to the Outer Hebrides is called The Minch. We were debating about whether to catch a ferry to the Outer Hebrides, but the way the ferries run, we'd either have to make a cannonball run through the islands, or wait several days between ferries if we took our time. Things are not clockwork-regular up in the North Coast. Looking at a map, I'm reminded of the west coast of Norway, the west coast of New Zealand, and also the west coast of Ireland. I wonder why do fjords form around the west coasts all over the world? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1412-L.jpg The west coast is also called the wet coast Just like Norway and New Zealand, the weather is typically wetter on the west coast in Scotland. Same as in Vancouver/Seattle. We pull into Ullapool as the clouds release a shower on top of our helmets. And everywhere else. Ugh! |
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I don't want to camp in this. We ride around knocking on doors to find sheltered accommodations Every place we try is either sold out or too expensive. We fall victim to NC500's marketing. It's obviously way too successful, transforming these old fishing villages into tourist hotbeds! We can't afford a place to sleep here. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1420-L.jpg So during a break in the showers, we set up camp. A rainbow overlooks Neda's progress, warning us that although it may be dry now... Do the endpoints of rainbows signal a pot of gold in Scotland? Or just Ireland? If we go to Ireland, will it be just as wet as it is here? And will there be Irish smidges there too? Our campsite is not immune to smidge attacks and I don the requisite armor: https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1415-L.jpg "F U, smidges!" |
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Walking the main strip of Ullapool between rain showers https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1425-L.jpg Fishing boats out by the pier in Ullapool It starts raining again and we duck into a pub to escape the waterworks. The price of admission is a pint of Scottish ale. We buy many admission tickets waiting out the storm that's developing outside. The early evening crowd turns into the late night crowd, and the pub starts rollicking as a local musician hits the stage and starts singing traditional Scottish songs. Every now and then, the power cuts out as scheduled blackouts hit the whole of Ullapool. We all sit in darkness and listen to the act as it becomes an acoustic set. Everyone just takes it in stride. Welcome to the Scottish Highlands! :) https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1438-L.jpg From her setlist, I had no idea Bruce Springsteen and Tracy Chapman were Scottish! We make fast friends with the couple that is seated at our table. Turns out they are Canadians too. The guy is here for a bagpipe convention! Lots of Scots in Canada! The rain comes down hard outside in Ullapool. We are warm, toasty and slightly inebriated and we've got enjoyable company and good music inside this pub on the wet coast in Scotland. I don't want to go outside into our cold and soggy tent. So I buy another admission ticket. |
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Aah, shame on me that I was not brave enough to try haggis doh.
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Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/354.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map354-L.jpg One thing about living in a tent is that you don't have to peek outside to know if it's raining or not. There's a calm wind rustling the fabric above our heads but no tell-tale pitter-patter to signal a dismal day of wet riding. Excellent! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1443-L.jpg The cold dash out for my morning pee reveals everyone is still cocooned inside their tents and RVs https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0665-L.jpg Scottish skies are clearing. The fingers of land rising up from the inlets that Ullapool is ensconced in are visible against the backdrop of the town. |
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We notice two more bikes beside us at the campsite. Joni and his cousin Andy are from Germany riding around Scotland Really nice guys. As motorcyclists, you always have something in common to talk about. They were surprised we knew so much about Stuttgart, where they're from. Andy had a bit of an accident the day before and he limped the bike into camp late last evening. His Bandit was patched up a bit, but neither he nor it were up for the long ride all the way back to Stuttgart. They had called a tow truck and Joni would accompany him back on his KTM. German insurance is very comprehensive - the entire tow including ferry was covered. Very different if we were to wreck. We're basically on the hook for the entire cost. And where would we even tow to? Local shop and then back on the road... The tow truck driver texted and told them that it would be a while for him to reach the hinterlands where we were, so we invite the German guys out for breakfast -- at the exact same pub we were drinking at last night. Thankfully there were different staff working this morning, or there'd be a few raised eyebrows: "Say, weren't you mates just in here a few hours ago...?" :) https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0666-L.jpg After Joni and Andy pack their bikes up for the long ride and tow back to Germany, we were all alone in the campsite. Taking some time to dry our tent. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1447-L.jpg Back on the road! Leaving Ullapool We are continuing down the North Coast 500. Our route for the day consists of following the fringe of land as it reaches in and out along the west coast. A sign on the side of the road indicates that we are on the Wester Ross Coastal Trail. Wait... what? Wester Ross? Like from Game of Thrones...?!? OMG, George Martin totally stole the name of Westeros from the Scottish Highlands! And from riding around the area, I could totally see the series being based up here! |
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We pull up beside this bunch of Scottish bikers When Neda takes off her helmet, one of the guys looks very surprised and exclaims to the rest of the group in the thickest Scottish accent I've ever heard: "It's a woo-min!" It was hilarious! Again, like with most motorcyclists, we have a great time joking around with these Scottish lads. One thing I've noticed when there's a bunch of Scottish guys all hanging out together, *EVERYTHING* is a laugh. They were constantly making jokes and poking fun at each other. So funny! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0684-L.jpg The Scots take off on their bikes and we watch from above the mountain as they continue their ride https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0682-L.jpg Looking out over Wester Ross. See any dragons, Neda? Does the Loch Ness monster count...? |
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And then it's our turn to leave The entire rest of the day, I joke with Neda over the communicator, "It's a woo-min!" HAHA! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1469-L.jpg The clouds get thicker as we ride up and down the fringes of land extending out into The Minch We leave the main road to explore all these tiny roads that stretch out into the sea and then back inland again. There's no traffic and the tarmac shrinks to a single lane as if in response to the lack of attention it receives. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1496-L.jpg Tons of lochs in the area, and the road keeps winding and turning! |
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There is life out here! More emo coos wandering the Scottish wilderness, competing with the sheep to hoover up the long grass at the side of the road https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1498-L.jpg But apart from the wildlife, it's just us and the lonely road cutting through this vast, unpopulated landscape The weather's not too bad considering the bad reputation Scotland has for rain. And we're really enjoying having twisty roads and amazing scenery all to ourselves. It starts to get a bit more livelier when we reach the next big town of Applecross. This is another place that's done very well since the North Coast 500 opened. There is a flurry of vacationers and recreational vehicles milling around the stores and campsites in the area. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1515-L.jpg Long lineup of motos at the only gas station in Applecross |
In town, there are lots of pubs and specialty stores, but we've had our fill of pub and restaurant food, so we go looking for a grocery store. The closest thing is a little shop a few kms outside of town and we stock up on some soups and sandwich stuff.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1521-L.jpg Neda couldn't resist picking up some locally made jam. I suspect she only bought it because it's a Game of Thrones jam. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1520-L.jpg Eating in for the day at our campsite in Applecross https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1522-L.jpg The next morning, we hit the highlight of the area: The Applecross Pass The Applecross Pass is also called Bealach na Bà, which is Gaelic for "Pass of the Cattle". It's one of the highest mountain roads in the UK and boasts stunning views of the mountainside sloping down into Loch Kishorn, its distant waters reflecting the colours of the sky above. |
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Applecross Pass is only single-lane! Not nearly wide enough for all the tourist traffic! Here, downhill traffic has to give way and back up to the last passing zone. The steep and tight hairpin bends were engineered to mimic the Alpine passes in mainland Europe. However, you won't see any huge tourbuses on this road! Not like the superhighway-wide passes at Stelvio. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1526-L.jpg Traffic in front of us is very polite and pulls over at the next passing zone to let us through. Wheee!!!! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0721-L.jpg Little islands at Loch Kishorn at the bottom of Applecross Pass - looks like a painting! |
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At the bottom of Bealach na Bà, looking back up at the mountains we went through. At its highest point, Applepass Pass is over 2000 feet. We continue to follow the road as it runs beside and passes by all the lochs along the western coast, smiling at each twist and turn in the road. The day is turning out quite marvelous, the clouds clearing and letting the sun warm our southbound ride. The plan for today is to cross over into the Isle of Skye, tour around a bit and then find a place there to sleep overnight. We heard the scenery there is spectacular! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0733-L.jpg Along the way, we see: Eilean Donan Castle. Wow! Standing at confluence of three lochs, Eilean Donan Castle is a magnificently restored Scottish castle and is one of the country's most iconic images. George Martin said that the Iron Islands in the Game of Thrones is modeled after the western isles of Scotland. I can totally see this rocky, rain-washed scenery to be the home of Greyjoy Castle. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1541-L.jpg Crossing the bridge into the Isle of Skye |
The minute we cross into the Isle of Skye, we are inundated with traffic. This is probably the busiest area that we've ridden in the Scottish Highlands. Hard to enjoy the scenery when you're staring at the back bumper of an RV the entire way.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1548-L.jpg Heavy traffic in the Isle of Skye. The scenery is pretty though... We stop for lunch at the very touristy town of Portree for an expensive hamburger. Tourbuses dump tourists of all nationalities out into the street in search of souvenirs before they re-embark on their guided tour of the Isle of Skye. Being the moto-snobs that we are, we flee this scene and try to get out into the countryside before the tourbusers finish their lunch to join us on the road. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1559-L.jpg North of Portree is a very scenic mountain called The Storr https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0744-L.jpg Road narrows to single-track again and Neda fishes something out of her sidecase |
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In the distance, we see a distinctive set of stones rising up from the mountain. The locals call this "the Old Man of Storr" This peninsula is called the Trotternish and the ridge along Mount Storr is very popular with hikers. I can feel the pull of that long hike trying to yank Neda off her bike, but I manage to keep us on track and we motor on to the very northern coast of the peninsula. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0754-L.jpg It is hard to stay on the bikes, when every so often there are scenic overlooks that peek over the cliffs of the Isle of Skye https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0760-L.jpg And of course, bagpipers everywhere we go, providing a very Scottish soundtrack to our meanderings |
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Back on the bike to complete the loop around the top of the Trotternish Peninsula Most of the tourists seem to stay in the southern part of the Isle of Skye, where the larger towns are. Perfect. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0765-L.jpg Our ride down the western coast of the Trotternish is filled with nice countryside overlooking the sea https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0772-L.jpg More scenic breaks to check out the dramatic cliffs over the waters |
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Back down the west coast towards Uig At Uig, the traffic becomes unbearable again. This prompts a quick change in our plans. We're not going to stay any longer on the Isle of Skye - there's just too many people here. We originally wanted to head to the western part of the island, but instead we abandon our tour and head towards Armadale to catch the ferry to Maillaig, back on the mainland. And when we get there, we find out we had just missed the latest crossing and it'll be a two and a half hour wait. Ugh. Turn around and head back to the bridge... Boring ride. We end up at Fort William at the end of a very long day. We manage to find a campsite just outside of town in Glen Nevis, at the foot of the mighty Ben Nevis mountain. Our tent site is right beside a very friendly group of travelers from all over Europe. Our campmates for the evening are Jan from Germany, another German girl traveling with her dog, Erik, the Texan who married a German girl and moved to Munich to be with her, and David a doctor from Exeter. We had a great time hanging out with all of them in the park, chatting animatedly until the sun was well below the horizon. We both really miss being in a large group and having that very social interaction. It's been so long since we had a large posse to joke and hang out with! A perfect way to end a long riding day! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...1237012-32.jpg Our first 360 pic! Use your mouse and drag the photo to see all around us and our bikes at Ben Nevis Park outside of Fort William! It's like you're right there! Cool! Thanks to Jan for the 360 pic. |
Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/355.html
https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...L/map355-L.jpg People often ask us, "What do you guys do with all your time?" You mean, when we're not busy riding around the world on motorcycles? Actually, in between all the scrounging for food and shelter, and figuring out the next place we're going to, we do have *some* downtime. Neda reads and cross-stitches. I pretend to update the blog. And we both watch lots and lots of TV and movies on our laptops. Not just any TV shows. British TV shows. We both love the Brit sense of absurd humour. Over the years, we've binge-watched Doctor Who, Misfits, Being Human, Humans, Black Books, Black Mirror. We like Monty Python and of course, Neda loves Harry Potter. We talked to our neighbour Eric, the Texan, before leaving the campsite this morning and he told us that him and his wife visited the Glenfinnan Viaduct the other day. If this doesn't ring a bell then you are no Harry Potter fan. I had no idea what the the Glenfinnan Viaduct was. Neda had to fill me in that this was the railway viaduct that Harry Potter and his wizard buddies take to get to Hogwarts. Okay. I guess we are going, then. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SCN1620-XL.jpg But first, we grab some lunch at Fort William, just outside the campsite https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSCN1616-L.jpg We duck into a pub to get free wifi. The haggis unfortunately was not free. Wifi needed to find a place to sleep tonight. Haggis needed because... well, haggis. With our bellies full and a place booked for the evening, we head out to go find this Harry Potter viaduct. |
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Less than 30 minutes ride, we're at Glenfinnan train station There's a stationary dining car here, similar to the one we slept in at Rogarts train station in the north. But this being such a tourist attraction, the prices are very expensive. Glad we got slightly less expensive nosh in town. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0780-L.jpg Do we have to pay to see the viaduct? No. But we get a free timetable and map so we don't get lost! Map? Why do we need a map? How far is this viaduct anyway? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0799-L.jpg Answer: Far. The entire walk through The Glen is about 6.5 kms. Whut? :( Apparently, hiking is quite popular all over the Scottish Highlands. I don't quite understand why. Not why it's popular in the Scottish Highlands. I don't understand why hiking is popular. |
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About a km in, you can see the Glenfinnan Monument (on the left) overlooking Loch Shiel https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0788-L.jpg It costs £3.50 to visit the monument. With a zoom lens, you can see it for free! :) A lot of hiking can be circumvented with a good zoom lens. "We don't have to go all the way there, Neda." *click* "Because this is what it looks like. We can go home now, right?" https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0806-L.jpg Thankfully you can catch sight of the Viaduct once you're only a couple of kms into The Glen There are lots of people waiting around for the train to show up. They're all sitting on rocks or standing around on the steep hillside, selfie-sticks and cameras in hand, waiting to get their Harry Potter memorabilia snapshot. |
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One guy operates a drone, it hovers in the air between the spectators and the viaduct Many of the people on the ground seem annoyed at the drone, it's tiny propellers buzzing in the air like hyperactive bees. I don't know what my opinion is on drone-cameras. On the one hand, I take lots of pictures and I can see why people get annoyed if they have to maneuver around to avoid getting a drone in their photo or video. But on the other hand, they are very neat tools to obtain those hard-to-get aerial shots, and we have used one in the past, so I can't be too hypocritical... The tracks are part of the West Coast Railway and the trains that make the 65 km run between Fort William and Maillaig are special steam locomotives called The Jacobite. I'm discovering that the people here are not only Harry Potter geeks, but also train nerds too. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0845-L.jpg After a long wait (according to the timetable the train was late), The Jacobite makes its appearance All around us, a flurry of camera shutters are clicking open and close. Manual ones and the digital ones that mimic that shutter noise. Thankfully, the drone operator has sent his bumblebee swarm far out of sight so we're all able to enjoy the view without the incessant buzzing about our heads. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0850-L.jpg Apart from Harry Potter fame, the Glenfinnan Viaduct is famous for its 21-arches. It's also on the back of the Bank of Scotland £10 note I think I remember this train from the Harry Potter movie now. Harry and his wizard buddies were inside the train and it was being attacked by the Dementoids. They were a bunch of escaped prisoners from the mental institute, Azkaban, led by Harry's evil uncle Sirius Black, who was missing a nose. Or something like that. |
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The afternoon viewing of the Hogwart's Express is extra special, because if you wait just a few more minutes... another steam train goes by in the other direction! Two trains! For the price of... well, a hike. After the second train passes by, the entire hillside audience gets up and heads towards the exit aisle all at once, like theatre-goers at the end of the show. Unfortunately, there is only one aisle heading either 2 kms back to Glenfinnan or 4 kms the other way to the next station, Lochailort. Everyone traipses single file back to Glenfinnan... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0888-L.jpg Back at Glenfinnan Station The sky has been threatening rain the entire day, and it opens up just as we reach our bikes in the parking lot. This is a shame, because although we are officially departing the North Coast 500 Loop - it returns to Inverness on the east coast, there is more amazing scenery as we turn south towards Glasgow. On the way, there is a valley just past Glencoe, where Skyfall (another British movie) was filmed, and it's just breathtaking. But since it was raining, no pictures. And then another scenic run in the rain through Trossachs National Park. Again, no pictures. :( https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0891-L.jpg Hi. We are in Glasgow and it's stopped raining. This is our hotel. Yes, we are splurging on a hotel. Cheaper here than up in the Highlands. |
Although Gino and Fiona live in Edinburgh, they work here in Glasgow. While it took us over a week and half to ride the long way around the North Coast 500, it only takes them less than 90 minutes to drive directly between Scotland's largest cities. Or 50 minutes by train. It's much more fun going the long way. On their lunch break, they take us out for sandwiches in the park and quizzed us on our time up in the Scottish Highlands. They were actually in Applecross themselves for the weekend, but we were somewhere near John O'Groats at the time. Must be nice to have such an awesome playground in your backyard!
After lunch, we hop on the bikes and head downtown for a tour of Glasgow. https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0896-L.jpg Sewing machines? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0900-L.jpg Roman arches in Glasgow? Gallery of Modern Art Strange, what's an Ancient Roman building doing in downtown Glasgow? Like it's been displaced out of time and space...? https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0892-L.jpg Ah-ha! A TARDIS! We're continuing our scavenger hunt for TARDISes and Glasgow is the TARDIS capital of the world. There are so many of them scattered around the downtown area. TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It's Doctor Who's Time Machine, and another prop from a British TV show that we both watch avidly. Yes, forget about the hundreds of years of Glaswegian history and architecture. We're more interested in blue boxes from a TV show! |
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Another ancient Roman building. We must be getting close... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0906-L.jpg This TARDIS has been turned into a tiny sandwich shop Don't worry, it's bigger on the inside than it looks. This is a prime example of why we love British TV. A visiting alien's time machine turns out to be a blue police box. Totally absurd! The way they explain it is that the TARDIS is able to change it's shape and form to blend in with whatever surroundings it materializes into. One of the first places Doctor Who visits is the UK (of course, it's a BBC production!) However, shortly after, the TARDIS's shape-shifting circuitry breaks down and ever since, it's been a blue police box - for the last 54 years. Or thousands of years, if you go by the show's timeline! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0917-L.jpg More walking. But no more TARDISes in the area. |
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We must continue by bike. The woman in the car next to us is contemplating photobombing Neda... https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...DSC_0923-L.jpg An English church in Scotland? Surely that must be out of time and place! https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SCN1634-XL.jpg "Excuse me, my husband would like a picture in front of your TARDIS, is that okay?" "Of course, why do you have to ask?" https://photos.smugmug.com/Motorcycl...SC_0921-XL.jpg *BRROOM* *ba-rump* Not sure this is what she was expecting Oh Em Gee. We are such kids. |
Are you guys planning on doing the Isle Of Man TT beginning of June? Bikers heaven! If you are , be good to catch up as I've enjoyed reading your blog,
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Will you visit Ireland ?
See The Wild Atlantic Way Good Luck Maurice |
I hope you and Neda managed to make it to the Harry Potter studio tour before you left the UK, it's a must see for any Potter fan.
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Unfortunately, we will not be making the TT this year. Quote:
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Next time! |
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