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Northern Scotland

The northern half of Scotland offers more scenery, some might even say the best in the country and they are probably right, but it’s not just the scenery. There is more culture, a totally different culture in fact that means, for some, the northern half of the country is the real Scotland. This may be a romantic view, but it is the romance of Scotland that brings so many people here each and every year and leaves many more with a longing – and a sense that they belong. Of course, the history is another aspect that cannot be forgotten. A history that was at times brutal, with clan wars being a common occurrence and the later clearances still the subject of much discussion even today.

While a tour of southern Scotland started in the capital city, where would a tour of the northern half start other than the Heart of Scotland? The Fair City of Perth sits on the River Tay and, like Stirling, is seen as a Gateway to the Highlands. The town also sits on a major road junction with major routes heading north from Edinburgh and the Lothians, through Fife and Kinross, as well as north-west from Stirling. Heading east from Perth, following the northern side of the River Tay, leads through Dundee and Angus, on the northern side of the Firth of Tay, and then north-east along the coast to Aberdeen.

Heading roughly north-west from Perth, crossing the Grampian Mountains, leads into the southern Highlands. An alternative would be to head west from Perth, staying to the south of the Grampians before turning north to cross the western edge of Rannoch Moor into Glen Coe. Either route offers some stunning scenery. The Highlands could also be approached from Aberdeen, having passed to the east of the Grampians, with Inverness being the Gateway from this direction. Ultimately both routes from Perth lead to Inverness, with the former passing through the Great Glen and the latter to the between the Monadhliath Mountains and the Cairngorms.

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