Falling in love with Durness, Scotland one footstep at a time

While the reason I visited Durness in the far north of Scotland was to visit the place where my ancestors were from I enjoyed my short time there so much.  It is another place that wound its way into my heart.  Due to the bus schedule I was forced to stay in  Durness for four nights which meant I had three days of exploring. 

After visiting Balnakeil Cemetery, walking along Balnakeil Beach then bidding adieu to Deb the weaver in the campervan and her dog Elvis I headed back down the road to the village.  

Along the way, I stopped at the Balnakeil Craft Village and browsed the shops.  I took a fancy to a wall hanging of wooden white cottages with black roofs and white sheep with black faces and legs.  I decided to think about it and stepped into a chocolate shop called Cocoa Mountain that billed itself as having "the best hot chocolate in the world".  And you know what?  It was.  No pictures, sorry.  I mean how exciting can a picture of hot chocolate be? Rest assured though, it was delicious and believe you me I am someone who knows their chocolate!!!  Having made the decision to buy the wall hanging while sipping that wonderful chocolate I made my way back to the shop to buy it only to find it closed!  Rats!! 

Next stop - Sango Bay!  This beautiful bay kept drawing me back every day of my stay.  

Did I mention it was very windy?  

I thought I might be able to get down to the beach via this route but the rocks were pretty bad near the bottom.  

I contented myself with sitting on a bench enjoying the view and watching screaming terrified parents chasing their children who ran right to the edge of the cliffs on this windy day.  It was frightening to watch so I decided enough was enough (and my feet agreed with me)  and headed to the Spar shop right in the village.  That shop was a lifesaver.  There was another shop further down but it didn't have the vast variety the Spar did.  I bought myself a package of hummus and crackers, a sprite and a peach which I enjoyed while watching "Coronation Street" and the latest episode of "Shetland" on the TV in the lounge.  My friend Claudia in London had given me a gift - a small box containing three tiny bottles of different kinds of gin so I got to work on the first bottle. (hence the sprite)  Life doesn't get much better than being cozied up on a warm sofa with a drink after enjoying a gorgeous day in nature. 

The next morning after a breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast I set off. Once past the entrance to Sango Bay the walking paths ended and I had to walk on the road in places.  It was windy again that day and a caravan (what we call a motor home in North America) drove by quickly I felt like I was going to get pulled over into its path.  Very scary. The scenery was lovely though with the first bits of heather coming out. 

The sun had disappeared and the rain was coming in.  Yesterday had been a glorious gift. 

This was the former visitor centre and featured a display of rocks native to the area. Boring for me but probably very interesting for people who love rocks. (those people exist, trust me I know this) 

Nobody does broody as well as Scotland does. 

I stopped into a tiny craft shop called Cairn House Arts and Crafts and started chatting with the English couple who own it.  They had found the on house online during the early days of the pandemic and bought it sight unseen.  Neither one of them had ever been to Durness before. They then constructed the small wooden shop next to their house.  They have absolutely no regrets and love it.  They were retirement age so kudos to them for making such a big change in their life. 

It took forever to get here it seemed but I was so happy to visit this place.  I am a huge Beatles fan and have been since 1964.  Visiting here was lovely but it made me very sad as well.  Johns was a life cut much too short and it still hurts me when I think of what might have been. 

On my way back I stopped to view the area around the Smoo Cave.  I opted not to walk down to see the cave as the stairs were formidable and I am really not that into caves.  Just before the caves I ran into Mary Lou who if you remember I had met on the bus to Durness.  She was staying in the youth hostel and sadly due to her mobility issues she hadn't been able to get to the Spar,  Balnakeil or the Craft Village.  However, she still seemed to be enjoying herself so that was a good thing. This was going to be her last long trip she told me.  

I wasn't sure what to do when I saw these sheep trotting along a side road but in the end I decided not to try calling anybody which is just as well.  I think they were just moving from one feeding place to another on their own.   

One member of the herd decided to climb a hill and have a good view so we had a staring contest. That's a regular thing I do with sheep.  I usually win. 

I won!! 

No way! I decided not to challenge her again and carried on. By this time I was starting to feel tired.  It was just past noon but I hadn't really had a "rest day" since the trip began two weeks earlier.  It was also very tiring walking against the wind. So after stopping once again at the Spar for a repeat of yesterday's purchases (but a different flavour of hummus) I carried on back to my B and B.  There weren't any places to eat right in the village and while there was a burger stand near the Village Hall I had passed I didn't feel like anything greasy.  The Smoo Hotel supposedly was good but I never made it there as it was quite a walk.  Besides, with my huge (for me) accommodation costs I just couldn't justify spending a lot on meals and I made sure I ate plenty of the yummy breakfasts at the B and B.  I trudged back to the room and rested for the rest of the day.  As the day before, there was no one in the lounge so I was able to watch TV, drink another mini bottle of gin and sprite and relax on the comfy sofa.  

The next morning after porridge and toast (I like variety so had a different breakfast almost every morning) I headed off again.  Today was rainy on and off but the wind had died down quite a bit.  

This morning despite the weather I was drawn back to Sango Bay where I walked over to the viewpoint that I had missed going to the other day. 

Here is the famous Spar.  I popped into there for some snacks for my journey the next day.  The day before this parking lot was packed but due to the weather people weren't stopping.  

I was feeling rested and quite chipper from my rest the day before so I walked on past the turn back to the B and B towards Balnakeil.  I came to a path on my right that called out to me so I followed it for a while. 

Another day...another staring contest.  

Okay, I beat the one on the right but I had to give up with the one on the left and give her the win.  I won't even tell you how many pictures I have of these two staring at me. 

 

Even though I didn't see any I was more worried about cows as I've heard so many stories about people getting killed by angry cows. Truth! Heaven forbid if there were any horses lurking around either. And let's not talk about bulls.  And people think I am so brave - ha ha!!!  

Nope no cows or horses that I could see anyway...I would have been safe.  The biggest danger for me would be getting lost in the fields because I have a special talent for that. Also, I didn't have hiking boots, just hiking shoes and I was afraid of getting my shoes soaked. (but it was really the cows..) 

I headed back on the path towards the main road and what can I say... my feet turned right and back to Balnakeil I went.  I had a quick look around the cemetery and found the engraving on the gravestones were easier to read without the glare of the sun.  I said my final goodbyes to the family and walked over for one last view of Balnakeil beach.  

One last look back as I made my way back up the road to the village...

The final visit of the day was to the Balnakeil craft village.  The shop was open and the wall hanging was there.  I didn't think twice...I took it to the cash register and bought it. 

In the meantime, the "doors" came off a couple of the houses on my travels and no, I still haven't put it up.  

By this time I was hungry so ordered Cullen Skink (smoked haddock, potato and onions) from a food vendor who worked from a wooden trailer.  The soup was delicious and warmed me up on this damp day. 

I asked if I could take a picture of her set up and she happily agreed. 

The soup came with bannock as well as a sprig of heather which is now in my journal. 

There were a few shops that sold artwork and I chatted with a woman from the Lake District. She absolutely loves living in Durness. It makes me wonder how many out of the 400 or so residents of Durness are "incomers". While I loved the area it is too quiet for me to live in.  I purchased a notecard featuring a broody photo of the area taken by her son and a bar of homemade shampoo. (which turned out to be very nice)  

At the shop above I purchased a wonderful small magazine-style book called "Durness past and present" for five pounds. I treasure it as it is full of information about the area.  You might have gathered I am not someone who comes back from a trip empty-handed. I love having reminders of my wanderings even though my small apartment is full.  A friend of mine said to me "your apartment is pure hygge".  I took that as a huge compliment.  I love cozy!  I don't understand minimalism!!  

The lady from the Lake District had a doggie all curled up on the sofa.  Now that's my kind of shop! 

This is her shop with living quarters beside it.  It was the perfect kind of day to browse and that I did. 

It was tempting to go back to Cocoa Mountain for one of their amazing hot chocolates.   I did go back but purchased a small bar of chocolate instead.  The chocolate croissants looked amazing but I knew I didn't need one.  P.S.  The chocolate bar was wonderful.  

Time to head back to my B and B for my last night.  One more gin and sprite and another night in front of the telly after I had finished packing up my suitcase and backpack.  

The next morning I opted for the full Scottish breakfast again (hold the beans) as I had a big day of travel ahead of me. 

Then time to say goodbye and walk in the drizzle to wait for the number 803 Durness bus (once a week only!) to Thurso to catch my ferry to Orkney. 

Goodbye Durness...you will always be in my heart.  

Next up...the bus trip across northern Scotland and adventures in Orkney!!!