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Published: September 13th 2011
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The forecast today is awful. They are advising caution on the roads. The Forth and Tay Bridges are only allowing cars across. Trains are likely to be delayed, as are planes and ferries. Our journey today will take us from Inverness to Thurso, the top of mainland Scotland, where the weather can be pretty rough. The remnant of Hurricane Katia is on her way.
Just as we left Inverness it was raining but the wind had not arrived so we had time to find out if Nessie really does exist. We left Inverness with inconclusive results. One thing we did find out was that pedestrians had to press the button and wait for the green man. Not sure where or when he would appear but being close to Loch Ness anything was going to be possible.
Heading north the rain was continuous but still no wind. Our boot lunch had to be taken inside the car at one of the many parking bays. The sight of large oil rigs anchored in the Moray Firth demonstrated the importance of the rich North Sea oil and gas fields to the UK economy. Small villages dotted the highway and agriculture was an important part
of the local economy.
Everyone was advised to have their radios on to get the latest weather information and so we did as we were told. The reports coming out of Northern England and as far north as Central Scotland we not encouraging. We heard later that a large roof collapsed onto a car yard squashing many cars in County Durham. As we headed north the sea was calm and there was no wind, just drizzle.
Having watched Billy Connolly’s Tour of Scotland we had to stop in Wick. Why Wick? We are still wondering. We couldn’t find a coffee shop. As we were leaving Wick we discovered a new environmentally friendly Tesco with a cafe.
What a surprise we got when we arrived at John O’Groats. The rain had stopped, the sun was trying to shine and no wind. This little centre of the universe is a place where many people come to celebrate. Three young people were there celebrating the end of a cycle journey from Lands End, as were many others. We were celebrating the fact that we were as far away from home as we had been on this adventure. The sign was even pointing to
Bluff in NZ. As we left this famous landmark we turned on the radio and tuned into BBC Orkney. What a fascinating radio station. Soon we were hearing about the forthcoming events on the islands and one event had us really interested. The WRI were having a meeting and this week’s competition was “Fluid in a Jam Jar”. We were sorry we were not crossing to the islands.
Our accommodation was in the northern town of Thurso. Perhaps tonight we might hear the roof rattle from the predicted gale force winds. Heavy rain is also predicted for tonight and tomorrow so our drive to Ullapool should be adventurous.
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