[This walk was completed on Monday, 12th May 2025]
Ormond Castle turns out to be a disappointment. I climb a grassy hill, and find a few stones and a flag pole. That’s all. Even the views are disappointing, as the sea mist has thickened and is drifting in a chilly cloud around the place.
[This walk was completed on Monday 12th May 2025]
Nobody else gets off the bus at Munlochy. It’s a small place with houses among trees and a handful of shops. I set off along the road, heading back towards the main A832.
[This walk was completed on Sunday 11th May 2025]
Such a treat to have lunch in a cafe! There have been so few places open on the north coast of Scotland – closed pubs, and cafes that have erratic opening hours. I feel I must be approaching civilisation again.
Leaving the cafe behind, I head along the shore. Rosemarkie is a pretty place, and popular with visitors.
[This walk was completed on Sunday 11th May 2025]
I’m staying in a beautiful campsite in Fortrose, right on the coast of the Black Isle. (Strange name for the area, as it is neither black nor an island!) And this morning I can enjoy a leisurely morning – no bed to put away, and no van to pack up – because this morning I’m going to catch a bus.
In fact, I’m so relaxed, that I nearly miss the bus and have to jog, with my backpack flapping on my shoulders, to the bus stop. This is the number 26 service to Cromarty and – yes – it even runs on a Sunday.
I’ve met very few people all morning but now, as I’m eating my lunch, the traffic begins to hot up. This father and child toil past me, going up hill.
[This walk was completed on Saturday, 10th May, 2025]
I leave my bike in the same spot as yesterday. But today I’m heading south, along the minor road that leads down towards Rosemarkie. It’s another beautiful day, and the fields are bright with gorse and rape seed crops.
[This walk was completed on Friday, 9th May 2025]
A fit person would walk from the Cromarty ferry straight down to Rosemarkie, in one day. But, I am no longer a fit person, so I decided to divide the walk up into a number of stages. Each stage is determined by car-parking possibilities, and the first stage will need to be walked backwards!
So, this is how I end up cycling along a minor road to a junction with a track, where I leave my Scooty bike chained up. What a great view over the Cromarty peninsula.
[This walk was completed on the 8th May 2025]
The Nigg ferry is not supposed to start running until the 1st June, but the lady at the campsite told me it had started running early this year. Wonderful!
So, I drive to Cromarty, park the van, and wait for the little ferry to arrive. I LOVE ferries.
[This walk was completed on Wednesday, 7th May, 2025]
I cycle to Hilton of Cadboll, and chain my bike up to a sign that reads, “Balintore, 1 km”. Look back at the shore where I walked yesterday and…
[This walk was completed on Tuesday, 6th May, 2025]
Not wanting to risk the steep road down to Rockfield on my Scooty bike, I leave him chained up in a field at the top of the hill. Start the descent down the road…
… much easier coming down today than going up yesterday! And a lovely view over the village.
Continue reading
Click for further information
Report: 1243 Date: 14/5/26 Location: The incident happened on the Dales Way. In the field between the railway line on Lambrook Beck and the Beck houses. This field is in the Dales Way between Sedbergh and Burneside. Rajiv’s post: We were walking on a public footpath on the Dales Way when our path was blocked […]
We published a post recently about being careful while planning new walking routes for fear of meeting cattle Ensuring Safety on a Walking Holiday: Cattle Management – Cattle Safety . This fear is not unusual, and is well founded, we have hundreds of reports where walkers have been frightened or hurt. Below are three recent […]
Report number: 1244 Date: 15/5/26Location: Greywell Hill Estate. Nr Odiham Hampshire. ///reverses.motel.ambitions 1 person no dog Graham’s report: “I was following the bridleway on a bicycle. The cows were 50 yards away from me, I was moving away from them when they came running towards me. Aggressively charging me, pawing the ground with their hooves. […]
Ruth's Coastal Walk (UK) 