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Ralph Cox•Follow
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September 4, 2022

Corner to Corner, Day 35: Thurso to Tongue

https://www.cycling4charity.org.uk Tried A836 rather than the unclassified road via Westfield and Shebster: good surface with smooth gradients and only 27 vehicles passed us in a little over 9 miles. Dry and overcast with strong tail wind became light then heavier rain and strong wind. Had a laugh during several minutes to put £1 transparent poncho on - 4 part video at the end of photos. Good route, one change near end.
Distance
42.2 mi
Elev Gain
3,835 ft
Time
4h 44m
Dounreay nuclear power plant, which I remember being in the news from my childhood. It was a research establishment from 1955, producing power up to 1994. Its decommissioning should be complete by 2336, having taken 342 years ! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dounreay
RAF Dounreay was an inactive WW2 airfield on the land between the road and the buildings.
New sign for me. It refers to the practice firing range established in 2014 for police protecting the nuclear facilities. It may be that mound on the right of the road. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-29630679
Vulcan Nuclear Reactor Testing Establishment https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dounreay#Vulcan_NRTE
1739 unusually T-shaped Reay church we had seen from another perspective on the way east on Day 33. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reay
Halladale cafe, Melvich. Needed for morning dose, unavailable before. I'd listed the cafe for breaks in the RWGPS route info. I took my shoes off, and when I saw Lorraine cycle past, ran out to catch her, unsuccessfully. A Dutch couple talked to me after seeing the jersey back and made a kind donation. The coffee was an epiphany, and has been my main choice since. I have given bags as presents! https://thehalladaleinn.co.uk
Supreme coffee, so asked who the roasters are. https://invernesscoffeeroasting.co.uk/
And the blend
Halladale River meandering into Melvich Bay and the Atlantic, with the Bighouse estate within the horseshoe. Watch the YouTube video on the website to understand its place within the landscape: https://www.bighouseestate.co.uk About Strath Halladale and the river: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strath_Halladale
On our way to JOG, I wondered what the field of "spikes" in Strathy was.
Strathy Graveyard, used from mid-1850s onwards. https://www.venture-north.co.uk/heritage/sites/strathy-graveyard/
Wahoo graded the hill out of Strathy as red (very steep) and yellow (steep) rather than gentle green. Lorraine and I feel that we would have walked that in Devon and Cornwall and now cycle them, as we did this one.
Strathy peatland pools, part of the Flow Country, Europe's largest bog @1500sq miles/4000sq km, and natural carbon store. This RSPB 57s video describes it succinctly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTtEseJZFP0 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_Country https://www.theflowcountry.org.uk/
Putting a £1 transparent poncho on in a gale
See the 4 part video at the end.
As simple as that!
0:29
Strathnaver Museum, built as Farr's St Columba church to accommodate 750 in 1774, 45 years before the clearances and Bettyhill's creation, opened in 1976. https://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst6984.html https://www.strathnavermuseum.org.uk/karen-renews-vows-in-strathnaver-museum/ https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/bettyhill/bettyhill/index.html
Going back down from Bettyhill to River Naver Bridge. Gazetteer for Scotland describes that heavily populated Farr existed before the clearances and part of its area was developed as Bettyhill fishing port to provide work for tenants evicted from their farms.The ice-house and pier on this side of Torrisdale Bay, the latter still on the OS Explorer map and visible on Google Maps' Streetview, are now neglected. https://www.scottish-places.info/towns/townfirst2409.html
Cycling from River Naver Bridge, I looked up at the vast hill on the right we would cycle beside, comforted that roads follow valleys... Alas, not the A836 here, feet below the hill top! Location: just before the highest part of the road, lunch and Lochan Leacach. https://www.landscapebritain.co.uk/lakes/highland/lochan-leacach/
0:30
I think this was looking back to the road we'd come down.
Loch Crocach, a name shared with 4 others. Looking at the seven dark peaks on the horizon, I prayed our route avoided them - somehow. L>R (possibly): 538ft/164m Creag an Breac, 492ft/150m Cnoc Airigh na Meinne, 1017ft/310m Meall Leathad na Craoibhe, Beinn Bhreac, 1102ft/336m Meall nan Clach Ruadha, then with antenna 991ft/302m Ben Tongue and to its right, the ominous 1007ft/307m peak named Cnoc an Freiceadain, then the lower green hill is 614ft/187m Ben Blandy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cnoc_an_Fhreiceadain
Lochan Dubh and a way thorough the valley becoming clear. Hooray!
0:18
Road to the hostel was along the shore, away from the A836, then at the last moment, onto the A838.
0:19
The surface of the causeway road was better than it appeared on Google Maps' Streetview.
0:30
5 kudos
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