Achmelvich

Simon managed to snag us a last minute spot on a whale watching tour with Hebridian Whale Cruises this morning so we packed up and grabbed some breakfast on the way to Gairloch Harbour. The tour was on a rib so we were kitted out in thick waterproof dungarees and jackets to keep us warm and dry and then taken out to the rib. Before we got on, Simon and I were given a safety briefing which involved a very quick whistle stop overview of how to drive the boat and signal for help if our tour guide got thrown off the boat (not sure how we ended up with this responsibility).

It was a 2.5 hour tour however for the first 1.5 hours all we saw was a lot of sea birds, ganets, razorbills, guillemots and the occasional puffin (which were pretty cute) but no sign of any actual whales. There had been a minke whale sighting the past few days in a particular spot however with still no luck, we headed off to another spot which due to the structure of the sea floor was apparently a popular feeding spot. Here the rib stopped and we were told to keep our eyes peeled and give the signal if anyone spotted anything. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a small spray of water and gave the signal. Everyone had a look but we couldn't see anything at first however after a couple of minutes a small group of dolphins appeared! They were quite far away at first but then came closer to the boat so we could see them up close which was absolutely amazing! After watching the dolphins for a bit it was time to head back and we even managed to sneak in a cheeky minke whale and porpoises sighting just at the end! The minke whale was quite far away but it was a sighting all the same. We could then head back to the harbour happy and fortunately our driver managed to stay on board for the entire trip so we didn't have to invoke the emergency protocol.

Back on dry land, we grabbed coffee and a juice from a very cute cafe Coast Coffee in the harbour and had a mooch around their very lovely shop. I could have bought lots of bits I definitely don't need, but refrained and then we hit the road again.

There is endless beautiful scenery to look at when driving here, it's hard to believe we are in Scotland. The views keep getting better around every corner you turn so its hard not to keep pulling over to take a photo and soak in the view. There are now lots of beautiful beaches as well so we stopped at Gruinard Bay and dipped our feet in the ice cold sea (a reminder that you are actually in Scotland and not the Mediterranean). Our next stop was Corrieshalloch Gorge where a short walk took us across the gorge via a suspension bridge to see the 160ft Falls of Measach.

It had been quite a long afternoon of driving so when we reached Ullapool we filled up on petrol and parked up in search of a pub. We stumbled across a locals pub just off the main street and after being complimented on my trousers "I like your flares love", we ordered a G&T and a ginger beer for drives. After a quick stock up on snacks in Tesco we headed on to our final destination near Lochinver. Instead of taking the NC500 via Inchnadamph we decided to take a slight detour along the coastal route via Inverkirkaig. It was another single track road but not as windy as Bealach Na Bah and yet again we were rewarded with stunning landscapes. We finally arrived at our campsite just before 8pm where we enjoyed a classic pasta and sauce supper in the van.

Campsite: Shore Caravan Site
Number of nights: 1
Price: £15Lue lisää