Wick to Tain

The next part of the adventure meant traveling from Wick down the east coast of Scotland towards our next B&B in Tain. I’d read about Whaligoe Steps on various Scottish travel blogs before we embarked on our NC500 trip, and thought it would be a beautiful spot for us both to visit.

Whaligoe Steps is extremely easy to miss from the main road and parking is very limited, but it 100% worth a visit! We must have driven past it around 100 times so make sure you keep your eyes peeled as you do not want to miss this spot.

 This is such a picturesque spot and I really hope the Scottish weather is on your side when you visit. I can imagine it being quite dangerous to try and tackle the steps if the weather is poor. There are no handrails to hold onto so it definitely isn’t suitable for people with reduced mobility or in wheelchairs. Luckily I was able to make it down to the bottom by holding on to my husband Robert and clinging onto the stones in the wall.

I’m really glad I did make it down as it really is one of the most peaceful places I have visited. I could have sat there for hours just reflecting with my own thoughts. There was only one other American couple down there exploring so it was very quiet. Robert decided to climb down into the cove to explore the caves, however, I knew there was no way I’d be able to get down there and if I did then I would have a right nightmare trying to climb back up. I was happy just to sit and watch the others explore,  and watch the jellyfish floating along in the sea.


After climbing back up all 365 steps (I take my hat off to the fisherwoman, who used to haul buckets of the catch up those steps) we decided to head back on the road toward Dunrobin Castle. I had seen photos of the castle before embarking on our road trip and knew that I wanted to see it in person as it looks just like a Disney castle to me. 

Dunrobin resembles a French chateau and is still inhabited to this day by the Dukes of Sutherland. It has the most impressive gardens which overlook the Moray Firth (famous for its sighting of dolphins and whales). The main reason we wanted to come here is that we had heard that there was a fantastic Falconry display, and the reviews were not wrong.

The handler was extremely passionate about his birds and it was a fantastic display. He flew the birds right through the crowds and definitely knew how to keep a crowd captivated. Once the display was finished you are able to view all of the birds in their enclosures at the back of the gardens.

As we had time before we needed to leave for our ongoing journey to Tain we decided to explore the inside of Dunrobin Castle. Inside is preserved extremely well and is like stepping back in time. If you are interested in history and how the Duke and Duchess lived their life day to day then I recommend visiting. 

Once in Tain, we found our B&B for the night - which was nice and comfortable and walking distance into the centre so we were able to walk to the nearest Indian restaurant for dinner and drinks.