First time to Scotland

[Xavy_Mazu]

Hi

I´ll go to Scotland from the 4 to the 14 of august.

I'll start the trip on the 2 of august, travel by France and in two days ai¡ll take the ferry Calais-Dover. Then I'll go to Edimburg. Let's see! The first time driving in the wrong side angel , speed in miles and unknowing radars.

At the moment, I have booking where to sleep, and after talking with some friends who visited Scotland or live in Britain, and some other british motards I'm think the routes:

Edimburgo 4-7 AUGUST

Nairn 7-8 AUGUST

Castletown 8-9 AUGUST

Strathcarron 9-10 AUGUST

Broadford 10-11 AUGUST

Fort Augustus 11-12 AUGUST

Glasgow 12-13 AUGUST

York 13-14 AUGUST

Dover 14-15 AUGUST

I'm grateful to any help, advice, etc, that you can give me

[NeilM]

Looks like a good route to me

You probably need to stop off in leeds on the way up as it's the capital of the north.

[RantMachine]

Why would anyone want to stop in the north...?

[Lateralus]

Why would anyone want to stop in the north...?

 

Says the man from Cambridge, who's moving to the States...

[RantMachine]

Exactly - I'm escaping Cambridge and Trumplandia seemed like a better prospect than the north. Sad.

[Arwen]

The A90 (east coast) is completely and utterly boring and full of horribly bad driving. The A9 (up the middle) is half dual carriageway, half single lane. And it alternates this. As such, it can also be a very boring road, and full of dangerous drivers.

So I'd aim to stay off them as much as possible.

This route is one I done on Monday it it was fantastic.

 

You can also use this route to end up taking the Tomintoul road which is also fantastic on a bike. This will bring you out just north of Aviemore.

Your west coast and north coast routes look pretty good though!

[NeilM]

The route from Glasgow up towards oban n through the national park is stunning

[bonio]

If you can make the time, you could consider this route through the north of England -

http://i.imgur.com/w4ra0Xs.png

http://tinyurl.com/y9opyvx5

You'd need to allow an extra couple of hours but will break up the monotony of the motorway and reward you with some amazing riding.

Also, are you going for the Edinburgh festival? If so, you should have a great time

[Guest]

You are staying in Scotland from 4th to 13th of August?

If so you have time to loads more great roads than the ones you have posted there, and time to see loads more tourist attractions.

Most of what you have posted are busy main roads, though you have already included one of the best roads in Scotland from Gleneagles to Aviemore via Tomintoul. You have time to explore much better roads.

Let me know if I've understood your timescale right and I'll post all the roads you don't want to miss.

As for what to see.... wherever you stop look for the local tourist information centre and decide from there. There is too many to recommend.

[Copycat73]

I'm grateful to any help, advice, etc, that you can give me

Rutas Escocia.jpg

yeah... take waterproofs and don`t rely on fuel bein open after 5pm in highland Scotland .. though some do take cards..

[bonio]

You probably know this already but there aren't many places to fill up on petrol in the highlands. North and west of Inverness, it's worth knowing where the petrol stations are in advance so you don't miss a chance to fill up.

[Throttled]

A couple of suggestions. Unless your aim is to keep to the coast, the A90 to Frazerburgh is a main artery full of lorries and buses. I would suggest diverting off it at North Water Bridge and heading to Fettercairn and then the Cairn O'Mount B974 and wind your way north via Alford to Fraserburgh.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/Stracathro/Cairn+o'+Mount,+Old+Military+Rd,+Laurencekirk+AB30+1HB/Alford/Fraserburgh/@57.2301695,-3.4888809,8z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m26!4m25!1m5!1m1!1s0x48868451aa206ccd:0x583cc3f90fda534e!2m2!1d-2.617207!2d56.777071!1m5!1m1!1s0x4884280ad96d4d53:0x6614ef880f5c751d!2m2!1d-2.5776565!2d56.9161596!1m5!1m1!1s0x4884336218836669:0xa20781a234ac3d8b!2m2!1d-2.704753!2d57.233323!1m5!1m1!1s0x48837fd867aed7d5:0x726d7387002dae11!2m2!1d-2.007631!2d57.693352!3e0

For the ride south from Glasgow, take the M77 and then the A76 to Dumfries and the A709 to join the motorway at Lockerbie.

[Xavy_Mazu]

Thanks for your suggestions

yes I would stay from de 4 to de 13 of august.

I like the sea so the routes I prepared are near de coast. I saw that the places to sleep were with low vacancies in august, and booked all. Those are the razons which I designed the stages, no more than 6 or 7 hours per day (because adding stops, photos, etc, it take me the day) go from point to point, and near the sea.

I can change the routes, but I have to try to ride that time and arrived to sleep in time to the places I've written in the first post.

I'm seeing to change the route out by de A90, although I thought to take the roads more close to the coast, out of A90 until Stonehaven or so

The route that bonio suggest to go to the north it's possible I'll try, part of it, when I go down

I haven't thought what to see, except some point what you can see https://goo.gl/maps/iEqjfTUUFBz But they are only suggestions from some travelers who I red; so it doesn't necesary to view all, they are castles, whiskey factories and so on

[Guest]

Thanks for your suggestions

yes I would stay from de 4 to de 13 of august.

 

 

OK, so you have 2 weeks in Scotland and you could do your entire route from Edinburgh to Glasgow comfortably in 2 or 3 days, so you are going to have loads of time to really get to know the place and see lots of stuff.

Here's some biking routes, you really don't want to miss, which you will miss if you don't know they are there, because a sat nav would never use them. I'm just going to pick out off the map, it might be that you have some of them on your route already, for instance I can see you are already going to Applecross.

https://goo.gl/maps/vFcNg6RKNGA2

https://goo.gl/maps/SyupzEvfJ4n

https://goo.gl/maps/xBtPxjzfzRm

https://goo.gl/maps/C452zH4aS3P2

https://goo.gl/maps/5utUMH4FcPp

https://goo.gl/maps/TTbLmjx5KjF2

https://goo.gl/maps/ujvA1n38TB62

https://goo.gl/maps/MbjFr3d4tBJ2

[Westbeef]

Leeds is like one big council estate, better off visiting Manchester

[Guest]

There's no end of what to see, but here's some things that are not whisky distilleries or castles, Scotland has a lot of natural wonders

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_Mare%27s_Tail not just the waterfall, but walk to the top and when you get there the glacial corrie loch appears it's like you've just arrived on a harry potter CGI set.

http://www.newlanark.org/

http://www.pitlochry-scotland.co.uk/what-to-do/walks/pitlochry-dam-and-fish-ladder/ amazing watching the salmon climb the fish ladder

http://www.ecoventures.co.uk/ dolphin watching on the moray firth

https://www.seafari.co.uk/oban/our-tours/corryvreckan-wildlife-trip/ seals and whales

https://www.seabird.org/book/boat-trips/16/54 trips out to see the gannets nesting on the Bass Rock

http://www.cairngormmountain.org/funicular-railway/

http://www.nevisrange.co.uk/gondola-info.asp

https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/ If you like walking/hiking up hills, see this website, views are spectacular

[Xavy_Mazu]

Thanks Baloo for your work to show me routes and visits.

In fact it will be one week, I'll arrived on friday afternoon to Edimburg, and I'll stay there the weekend walking and seeing the city. Then from the monday to the next saturday I'll try to know a bit of Scotland, and the sunday 13th I'lll start go down from Glasgow.

I know there are another things to see apart from castles and whisky factories, I like the sea, the rivers, the mountains, and I'm diver, but I think I won't have the time. I`ve seen activities like boats trip, and others when I prepared the routes, and I know they need time (stay before time start, one hour activity, etc), so that is time added

I'll see nature, I'll try to climb or see some tail, but I try that they don`t apart me from ride more than a half or one hour. If I start at 9 am plus 6-7 driving hours, I'd arrive at 15-16, add 2-3 hours of lunch, walking, photos, etc. with luck I'd arrive at 19

Well some of your proposals like me too much and I take, and change any route, another are very similar or equal that I've made, unfortunately for this first time in Scotland I must left some things to do and to see.

[bonio]

Leeds is like one big council estate, better off visiting Manchester

 

I thought you were meant to be self-trolling

[bonio]

https://goo.gl/maps/vFcNg6RKNGA2

https://goo.gl/maps/SyupzEvfJ4n

https://goo.gl/maps/xBtPxjzfzRm

https://goo.gl/maps/C452zH4aS3P2

https://goo.gl/maps/5utUMH4FcPp

https://goo.gl/maps/TTbLmjx5KjF2

https://goo.gl/maps/ujvA1n38TB62

https://goo.gl/maps/MbjFr3d4tBJ2

Cheers Baloo. I'm going to squirrel those away for my next trip.

[bonio]

Hey [mention]Xavy_Mazu[/mention] you might also want to check this out, since you're going to be there: https://www.eif.co.uk/

[Xavy_Mazu]

HI bonio I've got it in mind, a friend tell me about it and I had a look.

[Xavy_Mazu]

Hi everyone.

I'm be back.

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions

The trip was very good, I did the 90% of routes I prepared and the visits I thought. After all Scotland and England were compassionate with me, and I had only a few rain. England and Scotland gave me a good welcoming, but Edimburg not, 30 miles before started a hard rain. Then when I was in the Skye Island from the afternoon to the next midday it had rain again, and it basically was all the rain during the trip.

Then the visit to Edimburg was good weather, except some short times with a light rain, even under the sun. I didn't read nothing about Edimburgh, so I discovered it, I wanted to visit part of the city the next day, sunday, the 6th of august, but I hadn`t got time because I went to visit Stirling, their castle and the Wallace Monument.

Stirling welcomed me with rain, I thought that the castle was only walls, I discovered that no, I expend all the morning to visit it, so the intermittent rain didn´t wet me a lot, because I went inside and outside of the buildings. Then in the afternoon stopped the rain and I could visit the Wallace Monument and then I went to St Andrews where a short downpour fell over me. After it, the sun appeared and the return was very good, a beauty landscape, and even I saw the rainbow over the Edimburgh bay, too late to visit it, and to visit the Rosslyn Chapel, but finally, I visit the Chapel in the night, overall I slept 3 mile from it.

The monday I went, more o less, quick to Aberdeen and then to Strathisla Distillery the goal of the day.

On tuesday I woke up a bit late, I was in holidays! so I changed the plan, less road and I did making plans, first I decided to visit Cawdoor Castle (it was a recomendation from the person where I slept) and ridding I saw a sign of Culloden Battlefield (i heard about it from the same person) and I visited it too. Then I come back to the plan and go up until Jhon O'Groats and Castletown (the sleeping place) and I enjoyed a lot the road, the views.

Next day was a long day, but it was happy and funny day too, all the north road, visit the Smoo cave and follow the plan Stoer Lighthouse, the first one pass roads (a new experience, that at the first I was affraid, but then I like, because they show me the great education of drivers). And overall, the views. I saw that If I drove all the roads I'd planned, I would be too late in the sleeping place so I went the most straight I could and so fast from Stoer Lighthouse.

On the tuesday I visited the Skye island, walking by the Fairy Pools, visit the Dunvegan Castle with a litle trip on a boat to see seals and then the storm.

Well on friday the storm continued, fast to the harbor to take the ferry until Mallaig, and like there isn´t visibility I decided go straight to take the ship over the Lock Ness, with a stopped, before, to see the Glenfinnan Viaduct; and from that moment the weather start to changed to a sunny day. Finally it was a very good day and I didn´t see a nessy, but I saw her cousin and take it, it was a souvenir to my baby niece.

Saturday was the first come back day, from Fort August to Glasgow, the day started very good, the locks of Caledonian Canal must open to some boats that went from one side to the another, and I saw all the process. Then ride over the roads with an stop in The Green Welly Stop, with a very beauty views, visit some stones an even a hail in Inveraray. In Glasgow and didn´t sleep good, well, no so bad too, because I was a bit worried about the motobike, park on the street.

On Sunday a visit and old ship that was an Officials School of Spanish navy Galatea (whose original and actual name is Glenlee), maked in Glasgow and now is a museum. Then visit of Dumfrie Abbey and aviation museum. I wanted to stay early in York to see the city, but at the end, I was late, and on Monday I didn´t want to start late to Dover, so finally I couldn´t see the city, that when I go out from it I saw a bit, and I think I must to come back to see slowly.

Well, Monday go down to Dover, but I must stopped to stay a moment in the Robin Hood's Forest, in Sherwood, three o four photos and go on, then one visit to a Palace near there, Burghley House and go to Dover. Dinner, sleep, take the ferry to Calais and end of Britain visit, two day more by France and straigh to Mazuela, where I consider I finished the trip. Mazuela is a very little village where my famlily come from, there borned my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, where I stay in holidays, where live some uncles and aunts and cousins; there we made wine, it is no good, but it is ours, and on the cave where the wine is mading and saving, it build a litle houses where we stay in eating, talking and seeing the life.

These are a very little overview of that 14 wonderful days, 11 of them in Britain.

If someone want to see the photos of the trip here is the link https://flic.kr/s/aHsm5QdXdM

[Lateralus]

Sounds like a great trip, even if a little damp! Glad you enjoyed it.

[Guest]

Thanks..be sure to come back again - let us know and we will meet up with you. Grateful for your story.

S23.