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JOHN O'GROATS
and Highland Wildlife
ORKNEY
Puffin Express
Puffin and Seal images above courtesy of Michael Macgregor Photography
Short summary:
  • Highland wildlife, including seals; deer; and puffin (in season) - see above - and dramatic domestic animals;
  • Dramatic coastal scenery;
  • Prehistoric sites;
  • Live commentary, small group;
  • Viking history, World War history, and much more;
  • Guaranteed departures - runs with even 1 passenger when we've accepted your on-line booking! - £ 39;
  • Continue to the Orkney Islands.
    Remaining dates for 2011:
    John o'Groats scheduled tour programme is now finished for 2011

    Available as a private tour any day of the year - please click here for further information.
    To check availability and price or book, click here; for detailed tour description click here.

    		• Tours in Scotland and the Highlands
    Click on thumbnail, above, for a more detailed map of this and other itineraries. The light blue line - JOG - is the John o'Groats itinerary
    Departs at 0930 from Inverness Bus Station; returns c. 2000hrs (8 pm)

    Lunch is normally at a beautiful harbour on the south coast of Caithness where you may picnic or have a pub lunch.
  • PUFFIN seen from late April till late July/early August.
  • SEALS seen on all trips
  • DEER seen on nearly all trips
  • Our telescopes pull the wildlife close to you
  • Two 1-hour periods walking or sitting by coast and cliffs and many shorter outings
  • STONE AGE antiquities - no admission fees
  • Wild moorland, mountain and coastal scenery
  • Learn about the Highland Clearances, Viking history, and much more
  • Do as a day trip OR continue to Orkney
  • Route follows many roads not used by, or inaccessible to, the large coaches

    Picture above shows cliff scenery near John o'Groats; near the horizon you can see Muckle Skerry, one of Orkney's uninhabited islands.
    Picture above shows cliff scenery near John o'Groats; near the horizon you can see Muckle Skerry, one of Orkney's uninhabited islands.
    This is     not an aerial shot - you can get the same photo!
    on this John o'Groats tour that we can virtually guarantee you photo opportunities of these shaggy beasts. Visitors to the Highlands often remark that there are fewer Highland cattle than they expected. On this John o'Groats tour we can virtually guarantee you photo opportunities of these shaggy beasts.
    There's also a New Zealand site with pictures of the different types of Highlanders, black and pale examples as well as the better-known reddish-blonde ones.
    Time spent outside the vehicle can be broken down approximately as follows:
    - 10-30 minutes at seals;
    - 10-20 minutes with deer;
    - up to an hour at our harbour lunch stop, divided as you please between picnicking and exploring the rock scenery;
    - 10-45 minutes at prehistoric sites (more time October-April, a shorter stop May-July);
    - an hour at our main cliff visit with some of the finest rock scenery in Europe - during May, June and July when we're looking for puffin we may increase this time to 75 minutes;
    plus many shorter stops to look and, if so desired, to photograph - sometimes, for example, we run into our old friends Ellie and Jack, who enjoy a little variation in their diet - "An apple a day is better than hay" is an old equine proverb:

    Photo courtesy of 2009 client Beowulf "Wulfie" Mayfield
    The tour....
    We leave Inverness northwards by the A9. In the Cromarty Firth, depending on tide conditions, we may see our first seals. Beyond the Dornoch Firth we pass by the estate of Andrew Carnegie into Sutherland.
    In one of the Sutherland coastal villages we stop for a drink, toilets.
    Another half-hour brings us to the wilds of southern Caithness. Here we'll be watching out for red deer, the "Monarch of the Glen". In the evenings these are sometimes close to the roadside, even in the morning we can usually find a few though they may be some hundreds of yards away.

    Caithness grew rich with the development of the herring fishing in the 19th century. This resulted in the creation of many exceptionally beautiful harbours in the county and we stop at one of these for lunch. If the weather isn't suitable for a picnic, we stop at a harbour café or pub . Either way you have up to an hour to eat and explore some of the rocky coastline.

    In May, June and July we spend more time at the cliffs. On all trips we visit at least one prehistoric site (and point out many more): either a broch; the Hill o' Many Stanes; Camster (below); or the stone 'circle' - actually more a horseshoe - of Achavanich. In April and August-October we usually have more time to spend at prehistoric sites. Another picture here of the broch.
    The guide usually picks whichever feature fits in best with the day's timing and other variables - eg weather! - but if there is a particular prehistoric feature you want to see, let us know when booking. March/April and August-October we usually spend time at a prehistoric site such as the GREY CAIRNS of CAMSTER

    Built by stone-age man 5,000 years ago to honour his dead, the Grey Cairns of Camster are the most important passage graves on the mainland of Britain - only Newgrange in Ireland and Maeshowe in Orkney are more important, and Camster has the advantage of being a wild site with no habitations visible; also it's FREE! Three tunnels give access to three different burial chambers.
    Photo by kind courtesy of client KAREN PATTON

    Beyond Camster we pass the birthplace and memorial of Alexander Bain, inventor (in 1843) of the facsimile machine.
    Between John o'Groats and Wick we stop at one of a number of cliffs. Here, from late April to late July, we nearly always find PUFFIN. This visit usually includes views of spectacular cliff and rock scenery, especially the STACKS OF DUNCANSBY.

    If you prefer to forego the cliff visit you may visit the Castle of Mey instead
    - click here for details of this optional outing (must be booked in advance).

    Most days part of the return route is different from the north trip. During this return journey, we tell you about a battle near Dornoch between Viking and Pict and the dead Pict's terrible revenge.

    In this itinerary, we mention only a few of the more obvious creatures observed. For a full list of birds & mammals observed, click here: CHECKLIST

    This tour has strong links with 3 Commonwealth Prime Ministers: Sir John A Macdonald and John G Diefenbaker of Canada and Peter Fraser of New Zealand. Other more or less well-known people who have associations with this itinerary include the writers Neil Gunn, Robert Louis Stevenson and Harriet Beecher Stowe and the actress Aline Mowat - yes, you've probably seen her in something, even if you don't recognise the name!

    Fares; Availability; How to Book
    Fare: £ 39; child 6-16 £ 36; (no children 5 years or under). No entrance fees.
    To check availability click on appropriate month below; the left side of the page indicates which trips still have space available; a red strip indicates trips which are fully booked. To book, continue through the booking form.

    John o'Groats scheduled tour programme is now finished for 2011
    How far in advance should I book?
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