Scotland Coast to Coast (north to south)
Scotland Coast to Coast North to South iteration (3) 400 miles +
This proposed route is not designed for those who want a long-distance challenge, it is much more than that. Only those comfortable on the most wild and challenging terrain should attempt it and only then after detailed checking of all aspects of the route and amending sections where they are impractical.
I have taken on board the main comments on the Walkhighlands forum about my original plan starting and ending on MOD properties. I genuinely was unaware that Abbey Head was MOD property. Therefore, I have moved the bearing line from Abbey Head to Abbey Burn a little to the east. A quick glance at street view on Google Earth shows there is a pole (open) at this point, which seems to imply that it is open to the public when military operations are not in progress. The track to the coast appears to end in a car park. Notwithstanding this minor alteration, I have replotted the route at both ends so you could indeed, start/finish at Cape Wrath and walk to/from Abbey Burn if you like the idea of walking a line, but also it could be reasonable and perfectly legitimate to have the route starting at Durness and ending in Kirkcudbright both of which have accommodation and supplies available. Walking south from Durness is a long slog (15 miles) on the A838 and goes against the principle that a walking trail should avoid major roads where at all possible. I have therefore plotted a highly speculative route off-road from Durness which joins the Cape Wrath Trail at Loch Stack. I’m not surprised no route exists on the ground. This looks like some of the most challenging terrain in all of Scotland. The termini of the route could be altered to taste.
The Coast to Coast N to S route is very much a `paper plan` or starter for debate (see GPX route plots). The following method was used. Using the Walkhighlands GPS planner I first plotted a straight line between two points. I then walked my way up the line using existing paths and roads, all the while attempting to keep as close to the line as possible. Having completed that exercise, I then edited and refined the line. I used Garmin Basecamp and a detailed map carried on my GPS: Talkytoaster’s TT50 British Isles+Contours Maps – Talkytoaster Shop (bargain!). The idea of the line is that it gives discipline to the route, but of course, if you try to be too purist about it, it gets you into impossible situations. Nevertheless, always attempting to stay close to the line inevitably takes you off the tried and tested trails. Where this happens and no footpath is marked on the ground, I used Basecamp and the contour information to derive a reasonable path. I then reloaded that information onto Google Earth Pro and did a visual revision, taking into account apparent conditions on the ground and then realigned my route accordingly. These sections briefly outlined below represent a practical challenge which I hope can be taken up by some in the Walkhighlands community. If sections prove impossible, we re-route.
Rules:
Stick as close to the straight line bearing as possible. Where possible avoid roads. Minimise stretches of A and B roads. Rivers to be crossed by bridges. No crossing of lakes, lochs, ponds or pools. No crossing of tidal waters*.
*Polmadie Bridge, nr Glasgow City centre is 70yds over tidal water, but who cares? Note: does the weir at Carmyle mean that upstream of this the Clyde has no more tides?
Section 1b Durness to Loch Stack, crosses a river flowing out of Loch Dionard at a point selected to be shallow as it appears on Google Earth images. This is an exception to the `rivers to be crossed by bridges rule`. There is an alternative to this path which extends that part of the route by 3 miles.
Link to GPX files on Google Drive https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IJvo71viSKeaaVhwmFQ1W4rqyGL86Y0-?usp=share_link