[This walk was completed on Thursday, 25th May, 2023]
I celebrate my arrival at John o’Groats by having a late lunch in one of the cafes: a very tasty (but quite expensive) fish chowder. Followed by a large piece of cake.
Time to set off along the final section of of today’s walk to Duncansby Head. I’m surprised to see signs indicating the John o’Groats Trail – JOG Trail for short – and a clear tarmac path.
Fellow coastal-walkers had told me about the JOG Trail, but also warned me that it was very much work-in-progress. So, this is a nice surprise.
It’s a beautiful afternoon. Out to sea, a little fishing boat navigates the choppy waves of the Pentland Firth. Blue shapes of the Orkney Islands form a misty backdrop.
I’m walking towards a low headland. Check my map: the Ness of Duncansby. The shore here is mix of white sand, pink rocks, and grassy patches.
The white “sand” turns out to be made up of broken shells. I stop to pick up a few of the more intact ones. Hard to imagine on this beautiful afternoon, but the breakages must reflect the power of the waves on stormy days.
I round Duncansby Ness, and look ahead to the raised land of Duncansby Head. The sand here is proper sand now – not the clay-like substance of previous beaches. But walking the shore becomes more difficult as I approach an area of scattered red-sandstone rocks.
So, I head back to the proper path, which takes a more inland route and soon ends up climbing high above the sea. This is the Bay of Sannick with more lovely white sand. And I spot two walkers coming up the slope towards me.
The man is striding out ahead with a look of grim determination, while the woman is struggling up behind him. We exchange greetings which are less than enthusiastic on their part. They have European accents – maybe Dutch or German? I suspect they have hiked the entire JOG Trail and, if so, they are nearly at the end of their trek.
Another ship out to sea. This one is larger than the fishing boat I saw earlier and is heading further out into deeper waters. Must be the ferry to the Orkneys.
There is movement in the water below me. A seal! I take a photograph but the seal is to far away to see clearly.
After walking above the sands of Sannick Bay, I climb up onto the headland, expecting my walk to be nearly over. Given the choice of a short cut across the top of Duncansby Head, or sticking to the coast, of course I choose to stick to the coast…
…which makes my afternoon walk somewhat longer than I anticipated.
I am now walking outside the fence along a narrow stip of grass, but I get great views across the dramatic cliffs. The pavement-like rocks give the sea gulls excellent ledges on which to rest and nest.
The cliffs are interrupted by deep and narrow clefts. [Later, I learn these are called “geos” in Scotland.] Walking around them adds further distance to the walk, but is worth it for the dramatic views.
This is not a peaceful walk! The seabirds on the cliffs make a constant noise.
Ah, there is the Duncansby lighthouse ahead. I’m nearly there.
When I turn to look back, the buildings of John o’Groats are vague in the afternoon haze. The far finger of land is St John’s Point, with the wonderful Haven hidden from view. I can just make out the blue knuckle beyond – that must be Dunnet Head.
One last geo to walk round. Noisy seabirds, dramatic cliffs, bright blue sea, and beautiful pink thift dancing in the wind.
Finally, I reach the lighthouse. My van is parked in the car park nearby.
I pause to read the information sign. Duncansby Head lighthouse is relatively modern, having been built in 1924 by David Stevenson, one of the family of engineers who built many of the lighthouses dotted around Scotland’s coast. He was the grandson of Robert Stevenson who built the Dunnet Head lighthouse.
I wonder how many lives have been saved by the Stevenson family’s lighthouses?
What a fantastic day of walking! I’ve reached John o’Groats and am about to turn the north-east corner of Britain. From now on, I will be heading southwards. Downhill all the way!
Seals spotted = 1, seabirds seen = hundreds, lighthouses reached = 1
Miles walked today = 6.5 miles
Total distance around coast = 5,064 miles
Route taken: (morning in black, afternoon in red)
Ruth's Coastal Walk (UK) 
Well done Ruth. I expect you now feel you’re on your way home (well Hull and the Humber anyway). As you say all downhill and bar the JOT all easy peasy by comparison with what you have done so far. C
I’m hoping to sail “downhill”!
I love that you managed to bag a seal even if it was from a distance. I was thinking when I read your last post that it would be downhill all the way from now on 😊
Yes, such a milestone to turn that corner.
Sandstone cliffs are my favourite. There’s always so much to explore.
Welcome to the land of geos.
I think those are actually not seagulls but fulmars. They look similar but they’re actually more closely related to albatrosses. The most obvious difference if you get a close view is the tube on top of the beak, but also they fly with wings held very stiffly, which is easy to spot once you know what to look for.
I’m sure you are right, Tom. Sadly, despite miles of coastal walking, I’m remarkably ignorant about sea birds!
I have wondered why John o’Groats is the famous name and not Duncansby Head. Presumably it’s because JOG is an actual village.
But congratulations on reaching such an important landmark and downhill walking.
Yes, I guess so. Both Dunnet Head and Duncansby Head are far more significant landmarks geographically speaking.
Another marvellous milestone Ruth!!
Thank you.
Good feeling to have turned the corner and be heading for home.
I’m looking forward to the east coast. It will be a big contrast to the north coast of Scotland, but nonetheless interesting for that.
So far, so good. Different scenery, but the coastal walking is much better.
Hi Ruth, very many congratulations on reaching the top right hand corner. We didn’t walk the Scottish coast but look forward to hearing about your Northumbrian and Yorkshire coast walks which we remember well.
Well done again
Vivien & Clive Harvey
Thank you. The England border still seems a long way away!
Wow – so excited for you, to be on the ‘last lap’, albeit a long one! Looks like wonderful walking. Hopefully the logistics will become much easier for you, from now on.
I’m looking forward to a decent bus service, to be honest 😀
Hi Ruth. I agree with the many congratulations on reaching JOG. You mention that your morning walk is in black and afternoon red. Has that always been the case? Would it be possible to choose another pair of colours? Like c 10% of the male population I have colour vision deficiency and find them very difficult to distinguish. Maybe a vivid blue with a black or a yellow? I wonder where you have reached now. Have a friend just past Inverness (in Findhorn) who would probably be a helpful contact if you need recommendations.
Hi John, and a great suggestion. I only use different colours when I split the walk over two blog posts, and it never occurred to me that they would be hard to distinguish. I will try to remember to use black and blue in future.
What a fantastic part of the coast, very dramatic. A huge achievement to get to Dunnet Head.
Sorry, I obviously meant Duncansby Head!
ha ha, I get the two names muddled up too!