Scotland NC500 – day 7 – a rainy day
This article is part of the series “2025-10: Northern Scotland”.
October 19
According to the weather forecast it will be pretty rainy in Northern Scotland the whole day. So, today we may interrupt our road trip less often than the other days. We will drive to AppleCross, where we’ve got a room in the Hartfield House Hostel & The Bunkhouse. If we arrive early, we may get a nap in the afternoon, which sounds tempting given the weather. We have breakfast in the hotel and take it easy. When we leave, it is half past ten. It is raining.
We make a stop at the visitor centre of the Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve. There’s a small museum and a cabin, from where you can spot birds. There are also lovely spots outdoors, but – it is raining.
Next stop: The lake Loch Clair, where I go for a short walk. I put on rubber boots, waterproof trousers and a rain anorak, because – it is raining. Annika prefers to stay inside the car to read. A smart choice, because the trail is just a rather dull gravel road and – did I mention it? – it is raining.
No noteworthy stops after that. We arrive at the bunkhouse at three o’clock. Beside the house there is a fenced in pasture with Scottish highland cattle. They look pretty soaked, but I guess, they are used to this kind of weather.
After an afternoon-nap (we got one!) we take a small car trip southwards. On the photos it looks like the weather has finally brightened up a bit.
But if you see a photo taken from inside the car you realise – it is raining.
One of the last photos I take today is of the seafront of Applecross.
As Google has already told us, the pub is closed. So we head back to the bunkhouse and have our dinner there.