Day 96: Dunbeath to Mid Clyth

A scorcher of a day, with outstanding views. Together with the heat, there was a poor path for the second half of the day, which made progress slow. 

• Date: 24 June 2024
• Start: Dunbeath
• End: Mid Clyde
• Miles: 14.7
• Total miles: 1,244.5
• Accommodation: Halberry Croft Caravan Park

The day started with a steep climb out of Dunbeath, and back onto the cliff tops. I started early this morning to try and beat the heat, but to be honest it was already pretty warm at 8am. 

After a few miles, the path reached the village of Latheronwheel, where I had a little rest. Here I met one of the volunteers who maintains the John O’Groats Trail, who was trimming back the paths. The path was in good condition here, with proper gates into fields. 

The path continued over the cliffs until it reached the town of Lybster. There was a shop here, so I popped in to get a cold drink and also to enjoy the air conditioning for a bit. 

While the scenery beyond Lybster was indeed stunning, the path wasn’t so much. It was very overgrown, so much that you couldn’t see where you were putting your feet down. I therefore tripped up a few times and fell over as well. 

I arrived at a viewpoint so decided to take a rest. Somehow, a car had been abandoned here. I have no idea how you’d get that up here. 

The overgrown path continued until I met a lighthouse. My guide book suggested that the path was not way marked for the next few miles as they didn’t get owners consent to do so. While you are still free to roam in these fields, I was too tired by this point so walked the last couple of miles down the road. 

The campsite was basic, with only really a water tap as the only facility. The owner was very kind to us however, and let us use an old toilet and shower in one of the out buildings, on the condition that we knew that they were in a bad state. He also gave us some sun loungers which were most welcome on a day like this. 

We head to Wick tomorrow, hopefully on better paths.