Park Hotel Thurso

It rains on and off all night and I awake to a sodden tent and a damp sleeping bag where I must have rolled into the side. Great! Luckily the rain clears and the skies brighten, enabling me to dry my tent off on the outside of my pack.<br><br>Today's trek down the A99 is painfully slow. The landscape is quite bleak out here and the flow of traffic, much of it large lorries and motor homes, means jumping on and off the ...

... John O'Groats - honest!<br><br>Duncansby Head, two miles to the east of J O'G, is actually the most extreme tip of the UK (and Dunnet Head is actually the most northerly point) and I head along the coastal path to the lighthouse there so that I can say I've "done" the whole journey! It's a wild spot with steep cliffs, screaming birds and swirling winds. For some reason I ignore my book ...

... in itself. There is no direct bus from Inverness and the quickest route seems to involve a slow bus to Wick and then another even slower bus (from the other side of Wick, of course!) to J O'G itself. Gazing out of the window I try to take in some of the landscapes I'll be walking over the next week and ponder why on earth I thought this was a good idea! The narrowness of the A99 and the twists and turns north ...

... getting some brekky, even if none were Puffins. We got picked up for our coach tour from the ferry terminal, we seemed to be the youngest on our tour by quite a way, and you know you're in the UK when someone on the trip brings a dog and no one bats an eyelid. The Orcadians don't really see themselves as Scottish- they used to belong to Norway (and indeed St Magnus Cathedral in Krikwall was started under Catholic Norwegian rule and added to ...

... bit like the skies here- I guess we can blend in with those rather than the road now. It handles quite well and with the exception of the windscreen wipers and indicators being on the ewrong side, it's quite easy to drive. Navigating Edinburgh (and indeed the rest of the country- with the exception of a minor detour though the smaller streets of Perth) was actually not too bad with the help of our big colins Atlas. <br><br>Once you get out of ...

... wave killing time along the coast, waiting for a tow in the snow.<br><br> Writing this I am wrapped in several hoodies sipping coffee as blizzard conditions ensue outside. My neck is sore from the lip, which landed on me square as I attempted a kookish turn. I have honestly passionately despised the cold but its hard to shake the feeling of stoke, the cocktail of seratonin and endorphins that forms a kind of internal buzz. You just don&#8217;t get that from sitting through ...

... but I still had 4 hours on the train past Inverness. I did spend a lot of those 4 hours thinking, 'It's an awful long way back down....'<br>Passed the time by reading and staring out the window, intrigued by all the people who like to wave at trains. Is it the train or the people they're waving at?<br><br>On the cycle from Wick to John O' Groats (about 17 miles) I spent a bit more time wondering what on earth I'd let myself in for. Passed a few B&amp;B ...

The last day. Left Slochd at 6.00am and cycled over Slochd summit and down into Inverness. Followed the A9 to Tain and stopped for some hot soup. Headed on North and met up with Sue and the children just beyond Dornoch. Passed Dunrobin castle and cycled on, stopping for a cooked lunch at Brora. Met up with Sue and the children later in the afternnon where they were waiting to cheer me on with ...

... a result of losing the weight from one side of the bike and everyone in earshot though he had wiped out...its nothing a few tie wraps won't sort out anyway. We arrived in Waverley station in plenty of time so nipped out and got a load of irn bru, scotch pies and rolls to make pie butties for the ride north. The train to Inverness was pretty normal but after that things started to get a bit strange. First we ...

Early morning wake up call to find torrential rain attacking my tent. Bus ride up to John O'Groats giving me a depressing glimpse of the journey ahead of me. Arriving at John O'Groats I sign in at the Last House Museum ready to start my walk, I just need to wait for the photographer to take my photo, he arrives covered in waterproof clothing with only his eyes and ...