I was very thankful to be sleeping in the car. High winds and heavy rain battered the car overnight but I was warm and comfy inside. I had the window a short way down in the early evening but had to close it when rain was being blown in over my sleeping bag. At first light I had a quick breakfast and set off for home. I had a long way to drive so wouldn’t have time for a walk. As you’d expect for 6am the road was still completely deserted. It is a single track road heading for Lochinver. I didn’t have it to myself all the way. There were quite a few deer about. Lochinver was wet and windy and nobody about.

Deer near Lochinver

Ardvreck Castle ruins on Lock Assynt

The road improved dramatically and I continued along it to Loch Assynt and the A837. The cloud was still incredibly low and only just above the level of the Loch. It’s hard to believe this is July. At Ledmore I had to make a decision. Continue on the A837 to Bonar Bridge, or turn right on to the A835 and back to Ullapool. I turned right as this is probably the quickest way. I was amazed that it was over an hour since setting off before I saw another person or driver on the road. I followed the A835 through Dingwall and on to the A9 and the impressive crossing of the Kessock Bridge into Inverness.

I kept on the main road so didn’t go through town. I continued on to Aviemore and through Kingussie to turn right on to the A86. The road was now much narrower and I couldn’t keep a good speed because I got caught up behind a tanker. I reached Spean Bridge and soon found that following a tanker wasn’t too bad as I was now stuck behind a wide load travelling at 20mph. At Fort William I stopped to fill up with diesel before continuing to Glen Coe. When I passed this way on the way up I didn’t see anything because of bad weather. I’d hoped to get a better view today but it still wasn’t clear. At Crianlarich I turned right to head along Loch Lomond. The road was surprisingly quiet and I had a good ride to the A82 where things got busier. I drove over the Erskin Bridge then M8 to the M74 and on to the M6 and home. My satnav had estimated my ETA as 16:08 and I was home within a couple of minutes of the estimate.