First trip success, thanks for advice here!
We're back from our first proper trip, three weeks round a readjusted edited version of the Scotland 500 route, with the Rapido pop-top we bought in November after years in tents.
And we're converted! We had a great time, and we're also much more confident about so many aspects of caravanning that seemed a little daunting, or simply way outside our experience, before. We've learned a lot too.
The weather was mostly very cold, windy, with lots of rain some of the time, and utterly glorious scenery visible at others, and our little van with its oil-filled heater did a superb job at keeping us well homed all the way round.
Given that up until Autumn we had no plans even to buy a caravan, there was a great deal to learn, and much of the research was done reading and asking questions here and on the CaravanTalk forum. We're truly grateful for all the generous sharing of information and experience which made so much difference to the whole trip, from things like how far to tow in a day to all manner of hints. Thanks to all here.
We're already having thoughts about all the other places we'd like to go now, including re-visiting some of those on our way round Scotland - though on a further trip we'd make less moves, and stop at a few places for longer rather than aiming to go right round.
Thanks again!
Richard
Comments
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I told you there was lots to see!
Glad you had a good time and thanks for the update.
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Hi there Richard,
I am so glad to hear you had a brilliant tour around Scotland and it's breathtaking scenery.
Having worked at the Club for almost 7 years, I have only recently hear of the Scotland 500 route.
I had a query from a Member and I was not able to advise him with regard to the best route.
Would you mind posting the route you took and the sites you used?
I think that would be really beneficial to those that want to do a similar tour.
Thanks in advance and I hope you have many more happy tours.
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Nicky, many of us have put advice on here regarding routes in Scotland. Not many have done the whole 500 but lots of us have toured different areas.
I'm genuinely surprised you need to ask, given what has been posted again and again, and find it hard to believe the club doesn't have such knowledge. I guess you could try the search facility. I'm not being deliberately obstructive but the information is already in your own domain.
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Hi Nicky,
There is indeed plenty of information out there about the roughly two-year old Scotland500 route promotion, but basically, it goes from Inverness, cuts down the Great Glen, works up the W coast via Applecross, Torridon, up to the North coast, across the top, and down the East. Or the other way round, of course.
Our personalised version was to exclude Applecross this time (more about that below), ditto Torridon, and to add 4 gorgeous days in the idyllic Coigach area NW of Ullapool, where it's most advisable to check which roads to tow on and which not to tow on. Then we headed round the North and down the East.Sites were: Blair Drummond CMC at Stirling as a one-night stopover en route; then Bunree CMC, Morvich CMC, Gairloch Camping and Caravan Site, Port a Bhaigh nr Achiltibuie, Sango Sands at Durness, Dunnet CMC nr Thurso, Brora CMC, then Perth Racecourse site, which rather confusingly insists on calling itself Scone Palace, en route S again.
Because our original plan was to concentrate on working up to the NW corner, we saved Applecross, Torridon, and a few other lovely parts for later trips. We've driven Applecross before, years ago, and will go again some time, but I'll not be towing over the Pass of the Cattle.
The trip across the N coast and down the East was a change of plan brought on partly by the feeling that while we were there we may as well go and see what going round the very top was like, partly by increasingly wet and bitterly cold winds in the NW which made 4 days at Scourie, as planned, not so appealing.
We had quite a lot of interesting conversations as we went round with local people in shops and museums about the Scotland500 route. (There are some truly great small museums, well worth visiting!) Of the unscientific survey represented by these people, the locals are split between finding the extra tourism useful, and really getting annoyed by the route. Some are very fed up with the selection of quite unsuitable vehicles and drivers driving/towing over Applecross's famous pass and feel the Tourist Board hasn't thought that through.
Some are completely brassed off by the new trade - we have to agree it seems irresponsible to us too - in hiring out top-end sports cars to Alpha-type people who aim to get round in either 48 or better still 24 hours. Not ideal for manners on the single track roads, and no good for local trade as they're simply passing through, and when they do stop, are reported as being very arrogant.
We thought the locals were exaggerating until we found a succession of them one weekend, Lamborghini, Porsche, Aston Martin, Ferrarri, the lot, all powering up the road. I have to admit my usual good mannered approach of pulling into passing places and letting people go by got a bit diluted at such moments, which was childish but mildly gratifying.Our own feeling was that Scotland500 is a good way of bringing tourism into the area as long as people are prepared to take time, and do their own research to adjust the route for interest, rather than merely treating it as a thing to tick off as having done. And it really doesn't matter if we didn't buy the T-shirt/ baseball cap/ dishcloth/ place-mats etc etc etc !!
There's also a whole set of companies renting out motorhomes specifically for the route, judging from the logos on them, so they're benefitting from the business too.
There's inevitably a range of easily-found websites available about the route.
It might be worth the CMC posting an article about it for those who are in the dark about it, when my own suggestion would be to include advice on doing it responsibly with a caravan or m-home.Hope this is of help.
Richard
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