[Closed] North Coast 500 - anyone done it?

was there any more progress on the more cycle specific route?

No(t yet)

Of course, there's nothing to stop anyone doing a pseudo NC500 picking better roads in places. There's been a number of threads on here with suggestions.

After starting this thread, I've just booked up today and confirmed everything.
17-21 May next year.
8 riders, 2 support crew...for carrying bags...and to be on bottles / waterproofs / food duty!
Torridon, Lochinver, Tongue, Helmsdale as the overnight stops.
Day 1 - 114m and 8100ft
Day 2 - 121m and 8600ft
Day 3 - 89m and 6000ft
Day 4 - 113m and 7000ft
Day 5 - 80m and 3000ft
Hope to have the energy to have a few pints each night.
Many thanks for all the advice to date. I'll no doubt be researching those variations nearer the time.

I've been cycling touring in Scotland for 20 years and I have to say I don't get this route. I've cycled maybe 75% of the route and I have to say sections particularly in the east aren't a pleasant cycle. No point being bloody minded is there? Following a route just to tick a box? Why not make up your own adaptation that cuts out the crap?

Waderider, fair enough. So any suggestions of yours for making the eastern leg more attractive / better cycling?

There are a few suggestions on the previous page.

I actually think there's quite a bit of value in doing the A99/A9 to Golspie but the A9 gets a lot busier after that and is unpleasant cycling. Head inland to Bonar Bridge and Ardgay to miss some of it and also get some great scenery on the way. Or make use of the Nigg-Cromarty Ferry and the alternative version of NCN1 thereabouts.

Good luck with the route. There's a fair chance I'll be travelling the JoG/Inverness stretch at the time so I'll look out for you.

Why bother going to Wick, Thurso and John o' Groats? They are all a bit crap. And the A99 and A9 can be a bit busy with trucks and boy racers etc.

Instead, I'd just go along to Bettyhill, then there's a lovely road down Strathnaver, to Altnaharra, then Lairg. Then head for the Nigg ferry, and down the Black Isle.

Strathnaver is a fine road.
I would also recommend the A897 through Forsinard as a lovely, quiet alternative to the main roads down the east coast. Nice description of it on this blog:
https://arnoldlejog.wordpress.com/2012/07/27/day-21-helmsdale-to-john-o-groats/
[img] [/img]

I have [url= http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=zsquevlazkrejipg ]this route[/url] planned for late spring next year. Using suggestions from scotroutes and others, miss the East coast out and include minor detours from the 'official' route on the West to do the best bits (such as wee mad road of Inverpolly). Ends up at 405 miles

Looks nice that, though I'd be tempted to extend the easterly side to do Nigg-Cromarty and the Black Isle

I don't think the Nigg-Cromarty ferry has been confirmed for next year yet.

Great info here - thanks

Doing it in may / June. Will definitely do the wee mad road and cut back through the middle rather than east coast. Unsupported but not camping I don't think

Given a choice, would you use a road bike or cx / gravelly thing? Have 5 days which may allow a bit of exploring

Thanks

Road bike. There are very few "gravel road" options that make any sense for that route.

I've shamelessly stolen @fatmax's itinerary for the charity group (7 riders, 2 support) i'm doing it with this summer.

Currently trying to decide which bike to do it on.

how the hell do you get accommodation on this????? everything seems full / minimum 2/3 nights bookings / £350 a night

it is half term / bank holiday I suppose

(a) In a lot of places there's little available.
(b) The NC500 has been well (over)publicised this past year or so.
(c) You've picked peak NC500 time.

camping? 100 miles a day carrying gear though.....

oh and the fekking midges!

Planning to drive this in mid-May in our 74 VW camper after a week around the Isles, will probably take 4-5 days at about 30mph! Still trying to see if I can squeeze a bike in the back...

July here. Sacked off LeJog and then NC500 official route for 10 days touring islands and NW mainland, Glasgow-Inverness, Inc Bealach na Ba, Wee Mad Ed, Eilean Donan, Cape Wrath.

Bikepacking taking tents with the odd B+B/hostel.

This wasn't on the NC500 route but similar accidents have occurred in the area.

Cyclist injured in collision with sheep near Kilchoan

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-39404796

Please take care when there are sheep around!!!

Interesting thread! Something I've wanted to do for a few years then saw Emily Chappell and Lee Craigie talk about it at the Adventure Syndicate as they did it in 36 hours !! I'd do it over 8 days or so. Lots of food for thought on this thread thanks.

We go up Tuesday night, stay in Inverness, and start Wednesday. Typically after weeks of calm and sunny weather on the west it's looking 'mixed'!
Can't wait. Any last minute tips?
Will post an update when I'm back.
Cheers
Fraser

I bike packed the full route last month. Challenging it was with some quite atrocious weather at times! Rain, heavy rain, driving rain, cold, wind, more wind, head wind and pretty poor visibility during those times. There were some good bits as well though. It took me seven days and I wild camped every night, with the exception of two nights at camp sites (in an attempt to dry out my gear!). If I was to do it again I would head south after Durness, I found it pretty bleak along the North Coast to John o Groats and down the East Coast to about Helmsdale. West coast was beautiful, just a shame about the weather I experienced. I guess that's Scotland though, and I missed the snow the following week.
Trevor.

w

It's been amazing. Currently on Day 4. The first three days we had pretty amazing weather and the scenery and cycling has been breathtaking. Heavy rain today. Four of us took the shortcut through Forsinard to Helmsdale while while the A Team / hardy folk have pushed on round John O'Groats. Will write something up properly when I'm back.

Parents have just done it in a motor home over 2 weeks, said it was ace. Might give it a whirl in the next couple of years

A few thoughts but happy to answer any questions...
Day 1 - Inverness SYHA to Torridon Inn, 114m and 8100ft. Inverness wasn't too busy at 8.45am when we left and the roads once out of Inverness were ok too. We rode as a wee peloton for the first 70 or so miles, to share the headwind duties. No significant climbing and we went along ok. My first time up the Bealach Na Ba and it's a tough slog but beautiful. Windy descent down to Applecross. Then wind then blew us along the coast (so many ups and downs!!) to Shieldaig, which I found tougher than the Bealach. But the views were stunning the whole way. Cars and motorhomes (lots of them about) all very and supportive on the narrow roads, and were generally great the whole trip. Torridon Inn was superb for food and digs. The owner saying the business is 10% up due to the NC500.
Day 2 - Torridon to Lochinver, 121m and 8600ft. A mammoth day with lots of climbing but longer and steadier. First 30 miles to coffee in Gairloch (Mountain Coffee Company) were easier then the climbing started from there. Lunchstop at Maggie's Tea Room was superb with a big climb after that, followed by a lovely descent towards Ullapool. We decided to not take the Stac Polliah road (someone had read to not take it!) and the cycle along Loch Assynt was atmospheric and lovely in late evening drizzle and then sunshine. The Culag Inn on the Harbour at Lochinver was terrible - avoid, both the hotel and service.
Day 3 - Lochinver to Tongue, 89m and 7650ft. We joked that this was our rest day and were wrong. The coast from Lochinver to Kylesku was seriously lumpy and we were all knackered by coffee at the Kylesku Hotel. Then there's a lot more climbing until just shy of Durness...and then a great descent down to the sea loch. Smoo Cave Hotel for late lunch was cracking. Round a lovely sea loch and then a tiring climb up and over to Tongue really took it out of us - a strong headwind for the last 30 miles. Tongue Hotel and Ben Loyal Hotel both recommended. Great meal in the Ben Loyal - really top notch.

So first three days done in windy and generally sunny conditions with just the odd squal to deal with. I'd ride all the route unchanged again.

Day 4, Tongue to Helmsdale, 113m and 7000ft. The weather forecast was horrific and although it started off not too bad, that's the way it proved to be post lunch. Halladale Inn in Melvich looked horrendous from the outside but we got a warm welcome, fantastic soup and hot chocolate. Given the feedback earlier in the thread and feeling pretty fatigued, I (and three others) took the shortcut from Melvich to Forsinard and over to Helmsdale in fairly heavy rain and high winds. It would be a lovely cycle in the dry, so that was a good shout. The others were mad keen to complete the entire round and get the John O'Groats photo and pushed on. It was a rainy Saturday and they said the roads/traffic weren't too bad. Two had to cut it short 10 miles short of Helmsdale due to being too cold to function / constant shivering. The others made it chilled to the bone, cold but in high spirits. Troopers. Some of us stayed in the Customs House B&B as it's run by the aunt of a pal - very old fashioned but the warmest welcome and the best breakfast of the trip. The others stayed in the Bannockburn Inn and got a warm welcome and we generally had a great meal - and they were very accommodating by staying serving after 10pm.

Day 5 - Helmsdale to Inverness, 80m and 3000ft. Warm and sunny again. Up early on a Sunday morning (and with some of us with one eye on the clock) we pushed on down the A9 until Tain, but the traffic did get worse after Dornoch. Some of the team pushed on down the A9 but I took a slightly more inland route to Alness and it was really pleasant, so I'd recommend that and the alternatives (Bonar Bridge etc) that others have suggested. But the roads from Dingwall, through Muir of Ord and back to Inverness were fine - pleasant cycling and not too busy at all.

Recommended? Absolutely, we are all buzzing today and all without exception loved it. It was a quite a stretch at times but the cycling is superb. We had two support cars and I wouldn't have liked to do it bikepacking or panniers - some of the hills are seriously tough, or you'd need to add a couple of days. I think we did it at a good time of year - pre-midge, pre-May Bank Holidays, good weather etc, but it was still busy with camper vans in parts and is definitely getting more popular from what folk are saying - but in no way was this an issue - I think we only had one dickhead driver in 5 days. 28mm tyres would probably be optimal for grip and cushioning. Any questions just give me a shout.

Currently just outside JO'G in our camper having driven around from Kyle after a week on the Isles. Fatmax, may have passed you on the from Ullapool to Clachtoll? We're in a blue/white 1976 VW camper wheezing our way up the climbs. The route certainly seems to attract much traffic, from campervans, lots of foreign motorbikes and full-on knobs in performance cars who have difficulty selecting reverse! Not sure I'd want to cycle the full route though

Can't believe you didn't do the Wee Mad Road of Inverpolly. In Dave Barters "Great British Bike Rides" he singles that out as his favourite route 🙂

doverbiker - yes, seem to remember seeing you (or someone in a similar van) near Clachtoll. There were ten of us at that point, a blue VW Passat and a knackered P-reg campervan.
scotroutes - it was one of those things. I'd organised 99% of everything and one lad piped up that he'd read on a blog not to go that way, and I didn't want to shout him down. One thing the trip has done is really spark my interest in taking the kids up there, so I'll be back to bike it another time. And will try and check out that book! And Colin - thanks to you and others for the constructive input, much appreciated, as always.

Nice write up. thanks

We are off to do this on the 1st of June.

The route i have on gpx seems to be the 'car' route. I would really like a gpx of a route that includes the wee mad road and the detour for the A9 last section into Inverness.

I dont seem to bright enough to make my own route for the gps, so can anyone link me to one please?

Thanks

Like scotroutes, the 'wee mad road' is absolutely brilliant. I suppose that there is always another time!

Great write up 😀

Looking forward to my trip in August - same stopping points as fatmax - and now he's posted some potential cafe/lunch stops i'll shamelessly steal those for our itinerary 🙂

Bad news is Culag Inn is already booked, so will have to hope fatmax caught them on a bad day and we have a better experience.

As mentioned a few times on various threads, this trip will be for charity, and over half the group were novice cyclists as of August last year (one didn't even own a bike!).
We've had a couple of injuries, one dropped out, and another taken his place.
This week marks 3 months to go, to our trip, so time to start fundraising.
Our chosen charity is the Lifeboat Fund, so if you like the RNLI having lifeboats, please donate!
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/DPC-NC500

breninbeener- what sort of device are you using and do you need a "track" or a "route". PM me with details of your itinerary and I'll see if I can sort something out for you.

It's fairly simple when you're there though - Inverpolly is just pulling off the main road and following the wee road to Lochinver, the A9 nearing Inverness be mostly avoided by using NCN1 from Tain (though there are also other options).

fifeandy - we all agreed that the Gulag (as we called it) should be turned into a fly on the wall documentary...real life Fawlty Towers. Untouched decor in 16 years, some carpets missing, some seriously grumpy staff, they refused to serve us (a group of 12) desserts five minutes after cut off, service was horrifically slow, food was edible (just) etc. On the plus side the barmaid and breakfast staff were cheery and chatty.
I'd recommend you all get big consecutive hilly miles in...its a hard shift in five days.
breninbeener - I agree with Scotroutes with directions, they really couldn't be easier. The Stac Polliadh road is easy to spot, as is the shortcut at Melvich (to Helmsdale) if you choose it, and picking up the NCN1 at Tain is the simple option on Day 5. If we hadn't had one eye on the clock I'd have gone inland at Dornoch or Loch Fleet and explored the routes around Bonar Bridge etc.
Oh and we stopped at the Applecross Inn on Day 1 but the Potting Shed might have been better for snacks or coffee/cake.

I'd recommend you all get big consecutive hilly miles in...its a hard shift in five days.

There's so few roads in that part of Scotland that navigation is pretty easy really. The Stac Pollaidh road is obvious, it will be signposted to Achiltibuie, then take the first right which is after Stac Pollaidh itself.

There's only four roads leading south from the north coast road so again not exactly hard to figure out.

There's a map you can purchase: called "Hit the Road, North Coast 500" at a scale of 1:250,000. We bought one somewhere after Inverness. It folds up pretty small so would fit in a cycle jersey pocket quite easily.

fatmax - Member
It's been amazing. Currently on Day 4. The first three days we had pretty amazing weather and the scenery and cycling has been breathtaking. Heavy rain today. Four of us took the shortcut through Forsinard to Helmsdale while while the A Team / hardy folk have pushed on round John O'Groats. Will write something up properly when I'm back.

Was that you lot heading south into the headwind?

I was returning north to Melvich with a mate. (Just checking out a potential off road link) The headwind was nice when we turned round south of Forsinard and got it as a tailwind.

Yes, that would have been us four epicyclo. It was only 800ft of climbing in the 40 miles to Helmsdale and the headwind to Forsinard wasn't too bad. And you're right from Forsinard the wind was with us. The hotel at Forsinard is now derelict and the RSPB visitor centre was closed for refurbishment to we stopped at the 'Station Tea Rooms' just after the station - basically a shed in someones back garden. Forsinard was weird - middle of nowhere, lots of anti-RSPB signs up, and a real feel of dualling banjos. But that road was reasonably flat and pretty smooth, which was a relief after the first three days.

Yeah, the locals are objecting to the new RSPB building (on your left as you enter Forsinard from the north) on the basis that they should have restored and re-opened the old hotel. The RSPB viewing tower on the moor is a lovely thing though.

scotroutes - Member
...The RSPB viewing tower on the moor is a lovely thing though.

I immediately thought bivvy when I went and had a look. 🙂

Aye. Had the same thought 🙂