Driving SCOTLAND'S WEST COAST | Lochinver, Clashnessie, Achmelvich & More | NC500 E11

NC500 E11: Join me on a spectacular day driving Scotland’s West Coast from Lochinver to Ullapool along the North Coast 500, with stops at Clashnessie Falls & Achmelvich.
➡️ See more from my NC500 Road Trip here → bit.ly/mwt_NC500
The route along the NC500 on Scotland’s West Coast is ever-changing - one minute lush and green then mountainous and rocky, then opening up onto enormous plains and flatlands that stretch for miles.
📖 CHAPTERS:
📖 00:00 Lochinver
📖 02:32 Lochinver to Clashnessie
📖 03:39 Clashnessie Bay & Beach
📖 04:28 Walking to Clashnessie Waterfall
📖 08:24 Clashnessie to Achmelvich
📖 08:49 Achmelvich Beach
📖 10:45 Achmelvich to Ullapool
📖 15:22 Ullapool
📖 17:33 Aultguish Inn Room Tour
I had stayed in a small family owned B&B in Lochinver so started exploring the village and enjoying the views out towards the Loch. The wind was getting up and once I discovered Lochinver Church was closed I decided to press on.
My first stop was slightly north of Lochinver in a tiny village called Clashnessie. For such a small place it has two outstanding points of interest - a beautiful golden sandy beach and the spectacular Clashnessie waterfall.
Actually finding Clashnessie waterfall was a bit more difficult than expected - the way there from the beach isn’t obvious and I couldn’t see a signpost near the car park. There are plenty of houses nearby displaying ‘private property’ signs in an attempt to keep the tourists off their land. If you’re planning to seek out Clashnessie falls then hopefully my video will help you get your bearings and provide details of an authorised route to the waterfall.
Next up was a stop at Achmelvich Bay, a popular camping and caravanning site just a few miles south of Clashnessie. It’s close to a hiking area and another Caribbean style beach favoured by windsurfers and water skiers. Although I didn’t stay long it was good to see the area.
With that I was back on the road and heading along some of the NC500’s narrowest and windy lanes towards Ullapool. The road wound its way across the countryside, past the ocean and through forested sections and cattle grids. I passed many villages and hamlets often stopping off to gaze affectionately at the mountains in the distance - in particular Suilven and Stac Pollaidh, the latter I hiked to the top of in a separate video - so stay tuned!
After a terrific day driving through the Scottish highlands on the incredible North Coast 500 I arrived in Ullapool for some dinner and then drove to my accommodation near Loch Glascarnoch. Another terrific day driving the North Coast 500.
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ℹ️ Hiking Stac Pollaidh → • STAC POLLAIDH | Stormy...
🎵 The End (Instrumental Version) by Sture Zetterberg
🎵 Mountain Spring High by Gabriel Lewis
🎵 Little by Little (Siren Song) (Instrumental Version) by GEMINII
🎵 Nordic Shine by Savvun
🎵 Running Circles by Cody Francis
🎵
🎵 Music by Epidemic Sound. Get a FREE month here → bit.ly/2LB53FZ

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for watching! If you'd like to support my channel please consider subscribing - it's very much appreciated! --> bit.ly/2RyPwto See more from my NC500 Road Trip here → bit.ly/mwt_NC500 | Connect on Instagram here → bit.ly/mwt_instagram

[@mariamm9460]

Thank you Matt for the great video as all your videos are ,,i am very much enjoying to see them, spending my Friday evening watching them ..so beautiful places❤

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks Mariam, glad you're enjoying some of these older videos. This trip is a memorable one for me, I'd not heard all that much about the NC500 but most people who had driven it were impressed - so I decided to give it a go. It was during the end of summer after the first Covid lockdown and there didn't seem to be too many people up there - which is good for me and my camera. Hope all is well with yourself?

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope you are the most Welcome, never heard NC500 before 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿. You are amazing to do all those trips, well done ..hope this my reply comes to you...Have a lovely Saturday, much Love ❤🤗

[@spendlessrecipe2022]

Its a beautiful and wonderful place, thank you for bringing us, and thank you for sharing my friend.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

You're welcome, glad you enjoyed the video!

[@JJ.Christina_ES]

Hello.. This is wonderful video sharing.. I enjoyed watching this from Indonesia.. 👍👍👍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, hope all is well out there in Indonesia.

[@soozikins]

The blocked up door at the back of the church in Lochinver was the old boiler room and furnace, my dad used to light it early on a Sunday morning :)

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's incredible, thanks for sharing your memory with me - sounds like a cool time! Amazing how things change, I take it you can still access the room but internally?

[@duneideann9241]

Ullapool and Oban are my two favourite towns on the West coast 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I've yet to visit Oban but it's on my list. I've no plans at the moment but I'm sure I'll incorporate it into another west coast trip at some point.

[@VeeVex]

Keep making these awesome videos, Matt! ❤ from Nepal!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, I'm going to keep trying! Love Nepal by the way, never been there but it's definitely on my list.

[@VeeVex]

@@MattWhitingsEurope I definitely recommend to check it out!

[@jasonwaters8276]

Awesome waterfall

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes that one was a real find! Not too far to walk either!

[@grantbassett2048]

Hi Matt, another great episode indeed, I have been Waiting for it . Such lovely Scenery and yourself a great host. That Burger and Chips and the hostel looked a good deal at the end of a tireing day👌. Looking forward to whats next. Making me more hungry for a tour my self! Cheers Grant 😊

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much Grant, I can't tell you how good that burger and chips were - especially after such a tiring day. Still, it was good to cover so much ground and see so much of the scenery, I bet you're busy planning away for your trip - that say every circuit of the North Coast 500 is different! Thanks for watching!

[@grantbassett2048]

@@MattWhitingsEurope haha, I bet that Burger was a treat( Simple pleasures) . I'm just watching videos,Google Maps, price of Digs...! I have Family in 'Grantown on Spey', so will work that into my Route. There's so much to see. We might just go West Coast area first. Have nights in different places....🤪...Yeah planning!!! We,d be happy most places I think 😊. I hope you are well & staying safe. Keep up the good work. Cheers Grant.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you Grant, I find the planning of a trip to be nearly as exciting as actually getting out there and doing it, especially when you have so many options - although sometimes that can make it harder! Should be good to stop by and see your family, they might also have some local knowledge of places you can visit off of the tourist trail. I decided to do the west coast last as it was the most mountainous and scenic part of the trip - kinda left it all for the main event so to speak. Happy planning, make it a good one!

[@WhenAdventureKnox]

Loved this for memories of last summer! A bit sad that I didn't know about the waterfall as it was beautiful! Shame about the cloud at the top of Stac Pollaidh but hopefully next time!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes the waterfall was wonderful, it's amazing how many little stops there are on the NC500, I'll bet I missed a few as well. I was really hoping for some clear weather on the Stac Pollaidh hike but it wasn't to be, such a shame as the views on a clear day are magnificent (as I saw in your video!). Next time indeed!!

[@jasonwaters8276]

I love be this place would love to go back there

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Me too! I really enjoyed the whole trip around the North Coast 500 - so much stunning scenery. So remote too - felt like I was in the middle of nowhere.

[@SharingtheRoad]

That falls is totally worth braving the wind for! Such a cool hike! Really cool effect making it flow up in reverse too, well done!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, I really enjoyed the drive!

[@heidil4008]

So beautiful !! 😍 Loved the waterfall and the phone booth especially.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks Heidi, the trip just keeps getting better!

[@jasonwaters8276]

Was there too ullapool views are awesome

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hi Jason, yes it's a lovely place. Enjoyed my visit!

[@WITYTRAVELS]

Matt, this video is stunning! Love the editing of the waterfall and you fading off into the sun. The beaches were Majestic, but you should have asked the kayaker if they were mad to be out there with the waves. Amazing drone footage; especially with how windy it was!!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, I'm glad I got to visit the waterfall and was able to enjoy the sights at Clashnessie Bay, long day but totally worth it! I was a bit worried about flying the drone but the wind wasn't as strong there as some other places I'd visited so decided to give it a go, I'm glad I did! Thanks for watching, you must consider Scotland if the UK opens up again - it's an adventurer's playground!

[@jasonwaters8276]

Nice beach

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Beautiful isn't it? Couldn't spent a bit more time walking along it - very relaxing and scenic!

[@jasonwaters8276]

I saw the beach when I went there

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Cool, was it just as quiet? Lovely area!

[@thecornishdronie4537]

Hi Matt, very informative and in depth. We are planning to do the NC500 next year. I found this very helpful. What drone were you flying? You got some great film in spite of the strong winds. At dunrobin Castle where did you launch from? The reason I ask is, I am planning to take my mini2 with me on the trip. I know what some of these private homes are like. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the trip. Keep up the good work. 👍😁

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hello Graham, thanks for watching the videos and I'm glad you found them helpful - hopefully your drive on the NC500 will be just as incredible! There really is so much to see and do that I could happily drive another circuit and only stop off at places that I missed on this trip - perhaps an idea for the future! The drone I used is a Mavic Air, I've had it for about 3 years and it's served me well. It's small enough to fit into my backpack and good enough to produce some really crisp and high quality high definition videos - it's pretty much the perfect drone for me. For such a small drone it really handles the wind well, there were only a few occasions where I didn't fly it because I feared the wind was just too strong. I have two batteries so I can fly it twice a day without recharging it. I share your concerns about flying it near castles etc, I pretty much always try and find a quiet spot a few hundred metres from where I want to film - mainly not to bother people with the take off and landing process but also it's usually good not to be too close to what it is I want to film anyway. Dunrobin Castle was a tough one to be fair as I felt the car park or gardens would be too close and bring me unwanted attention, also drones are not permitted in the grounds and everywhere I found nearby was too close to trees to keep the drone in my line of sight. I settled for a spot on the exit road, here's the link to Google Maps --> www.google.co.uk/maps/@57.982601,-3.9474409,3a,60y,333.44h,89.41t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sAdbitIPSvWd6ux8GCBDoyw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en-GB . I parked in the gravel near the wall and stood over in the field, not ideal but it was good enough. I think the best place would have been up near the main road, perhaps somewhere like this --> www.google.co.uk/maps/@57.9848721,-3.9512482,3a,75y,89.14h,79.41t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1slBVRJKdBGddOCTHxUSZ44A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en-GB . Hope that helps and please feel free to ask questions if you have them!

[@thecornishdronie4537]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Thanks Matt, that is really helpful for me. We are traveling up June /July next year, all the way up from Cornwall. Let's hope the weather holds up. I think the road is going to be pretty hectic then. Once again thanks for all your help.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

You're welcome Graham. That's quite a drive up from Cornwall but have a great trip!

[@barryhouse8585]

great video thank you , good music also, can you tell me the name of the song and artist please,

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you Barry! Glad you like the video and music. The details of all the tracks I used in this video are listed at the bottom of the description but if you want some more details then just let me know. Some very talented artists providing the music so please feel free to check them out.

[@duneideann9241]

I take it you don’t like fish ?. Amazing fish in that chippy and the fish restaurant s are superb

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

You guessed right, I don't eat fish at all. Always go for a hamburger or chicken burger. I remember being so hungry when I got there, that food went down a treat!

[@alasdairfinlayson]

For an authentic commentary, you need to master the Scottish ch sound, as in loch. When you make the sound for the letter k, by touching the tongue to the roof of your mouth, leave a little gap and breath out. A littlle practice, you'll have it like a native. When you see ch together in Scotland, most of them will be pronounced like that. I had a summer job years ago in what was at the time Aultguish hotel, as a petrol pump attendant. Aultguish is pronounced Olt-gyou-ish.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hey Alasdair, thanks for the tips on the pronunciation. It can be tough to start with but I think I get what you mean. I'll try and remember that for my next trip to Scotland. That petrol pump assistant job sounds like fun, thanks for taking a look at my videos.