Having left Heilam behind us, less than a couple of minutes further down the road, there was another treat in store, this time it was stunning scenery rather than horsepower. As we turned the corner, Loch Eriboll quickly came in to view. What greeted us would not have looked out of place in a Hollywood blockbuster. The inky black water, the road running right next to the loch, the storm clouds that had amassed where the water met the mountains with just a hint of the sun’s rays poking through were unbelievably photogenic. I am not sure that my pictures really do it justice, but you get the idea.

Loch Eriboll, Scotland

Having driven all the way around the loch, managing to avoid the downpour, the clouds lifted and we came a cross a reasonably quiet beach with a car park a few meters from the main road. There were a bunch of motorcyclists there when we arrived, but they soon headed off. I guess they were on the clock to reach their overnight stop in a B&B further down the road.

Ceannabeinne Beach was an amazing find. It was my favourite beach that we had found so far on this trip. It was a deep expanse of sand surrounded by amazing rock formations. We both felt an instant attraction to this place. We passed a couple of hours here, exploring the cave entrances that looked like mythical creatures would live in, wandering across the sands and culminating with us marking our journey in the pristine sand near the top of the beach.

Our NC500 moment on Ceannabeinne Beach, Scotland

Ceannabeinne Beach, Scotland

Our initial view over Ceannabeinne Beach, Scotland

I think we missed a trick here, I feel that we should have stayed. Apart from the blustery winds, we would have been pretty much secluded from the world for the night. But, as we still had daylight at our disposal, we carried on to the next highlight on the route, Smoo Cave.

Smoo Cave, Scotland

As we arrived in the car park, where a few other vehicles were strewn across the small area, we felt that it may not live up to the billing. But we were there, and we always prefer to regret doing something, than missing out. I am so pleased we did. It is a reasonably small attraction, but a little slice of history and the rocks are fascinating. Wespenty a while exploring the cave, admiring the waterfall coming through the rocks and enjoyed the pathway climbing steeply away the other side of the inlet.

As we came out of Smoo Cave, we were greeted with the friendly face of Günter. We passed a few minutes with him and then bid him a safe journey home as we felt that we were likely to be heading different ways the following morning.

As the light was now starting to fade, Sarah was tasked to find us a place to freedom camp overnight. She found somewhere with good reviews that was far enough away from the main road to likely be quiet, but not far enough that it would be tricky navigation to get there. We were in for yet another treat!

As we turned off the main road near Rhiconich towards Achriesgill the directions said that it was only a few minutes away. It was spot on and we easily found the lay-by overlooking Loch Inchard. With just one other mini-camper, we felt happy and safe.

As the sun set on yet another epic day, we were treated to a fabulous sunset. Once the sun had dropped beneath the horizon, it was completely dark. There was hardly any light pollution coming from the small group of houses in the distance. As a result, the view of the stars rivalled that we had seen in New Zealand and Finland.

View from our freedom camping spot, Archriesgill, Scotland.