Torridon or Inverewe Gardens and Corrieshalloch Gorge

The drive through the Torridon area is spectacular. We enjoyed the gorge but have no desire to revisit it. Torridon has made the list for a re-visit three times.

Wow! That sounds amazing Cynthia. I must admit, I was leaning towards Torridon, as the pictures I saw looked stunning. But, thought I would ask about a bit, as you never know! Thanks again for your input - a three-peat for one site is pretty convincing.

Where else do you plan to visit in Scotland? If this is your first trip, I could probably help you with laying out the most efficient route.

Hi Cynthia,
Thanks for the offer, but it is all planned, booked, and now we are just counting down. There are a few things that I haven't been able to book until they open up again in April for the summer season, but we have pretty much figured out what to see. I'm originally from Scotland so have been to many of the sites we'll be visiting, albeit it was a long, long time ago. I look forward to returning to show the sites to my darling hubby, a first timer. But I have never been as far North and West before (I hail from the Clydebank region), so wasn't quite sure where we would get the most bang for buck. We'll be in country from August 31 to September 27, so lots of time to see and do, and yet there is so much more I would like to have done too, and didn't get to. Scotland is small but filled with a wealth of sights and activities. Hoping to see the games at Pitlochry this year, cancelled the last 2 years, as was my trip. Third time lucky!! Thanks again, and where ever you are planning for, happy travels!
Cheers
Heather

Where are you traveling from? I'm interested the routes that you are looking at. I've been to the gardens and hiked in the Torridon area and both are interesting and beautiful. And to the south of Torridon is Applecross which is another wonderful drive. The gardens are more tame, but lovely. Personally, I've always had more luck with wildlife on beaches and in a boat.

Hi Pamela, we are actually making a monumental day trip that one day out to Torridon from the Inverness area. I realize it will be a long drive, but we are from Canada, where distances are vast, and a road trip of up to 10 hours in one day is not unusual for us (okay, we don't do it often, and its never fun, but...). Google maps has me travelling northwest out the A9, A835, A832, and the A896, and says it is going to take 1.5 hours. I realize some of those roads may be quite slow, so a couple of hours is fine.
Thanks
Heather

I've been looking at your route - Inverness, Torridon, Inverewe Gardens Corrishalloch Gorge, Inverness and planning out on Google maps it is 180 miles.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Inverness/Torridon,+Achnasheen/Inverewe+Garden,+Poolewe,+Achnasheen+IV22+2LG/Corrieshalloch+Gorge+National+Nature+Reserve,+Braemore,+Garve+IV23+2PJ/Inverness/@57.6818218,-5.4782101,10z/data=!4m32!4m31!1m5!1m1!1s0x488f715b2d17de2b:0x624309d12e3ec43d!2m2!1d-4.224721!2d57.477773!1m5!1m1!1s0x488e618b4e88b1f1:0x61bb8e8840f4772e!2m2!1d-5.5133569!2d57.5468767!1m5!1m1!1s0x488e6ebee3fffdf5:0x69e011c0a1bf82fc!2m2!1d-5.5966021!2d57.775371!1m5!1m1!1s0x488e4dc7302f89d3:0xe0a421e868567ce9!2m2!1d-5.023309!2d57.7552975!1m5!1m1!1s0x488f715b2d17de2b:0x624309d12e3ec43d!2m2!1d-4.224721!2d57.477773!3e0

They give an estimated driving time of 4 hrs 15 minutes, although I would adjust this to 5+ hours PLUS stops. You need to remember that driving in Scotland is very different to driving in Canada. You may be quite used to ten houyr triops at home but ten hour trips in Scotland are a very different matter. Roads are very different - narrow, winding plus hills, bends. A erage speeds are low and you need to factor in animals on the road, caravans who can't reverse etc. places may look quite close to each other, but in Scotland that doesn't always work...

What are your plans for Torridon and how long would you expect to spend there?

The drive to Poolewe for the gardens is lovely and I've enjoyed the gardens. Allow a good hour for them.

Corrishalloch gorge is impressive and there is a new viewing platform now as well as a bridge. The Walk Highalnd Website with details of the walk recommends 30-60 minutes.

https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/ullapool/corrieshalloch.shtml

Check out sunset times for when you visit. Sunset will be a few minutes later on the west coast. You won't want to be travelling back after dark (can't see the scenery for a start and those aren't the sort of roads you want to be driving on after dark.

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/uk/inverness?month=9&year=2022

Hi Wasleys
Thanks for your reply (btw, I was born in Lincolnshire!). Yes, we had originally contemplated covering all 3 in the one day, but I soon realized it was mad to try. This is an either or trip, just out to Torridon OR just out to the Gardens. I think we will head out to Torridon, very early, spend 3 or 4 hours in the area, weather dependent of course, and return before dark. The Gardens and Gorge will have to wait for another trip. Would love to do it all, but it is a holiday, so killing ourselves with ambitious driving programs really isn't a good plan. Again, thanks for your input.
Cheers
Heather

That sounds great. We did a trip from Fortress on the Black Isle and back in one day. Even in the pouring rain it was beautiful. So here's not quite the route we did, as we had been to Torridon, We at lunch at the Applecross Walled Garden Cafe. The drive along the coast is amazing and then when you go back over the mountain it is even more amazing. And you can go back past Loch Carron which is quite nice too.

You actually can't go wrong driving in any direction out of Inverness in my opinion. The drive to Ullopool NEVER gets old. Even the drive down the A9 to the Cairngorms is beautiful.

That sounds a much more sensible idea. So many people rtry and cram too much into the day and holiday. Scotland is definitley a place to slow down and enjoy. Have you discovered this driving tour from the Undiscovered Scotland site, which would make a wonderful day out.

https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/ustours/applecross-torridon/index.html

If you haven't found this site, it is a fantastic resource and I use it to plan all my trips to Scotland.

https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk

They also have a lot of ideas for other driving tours - ideal for another visit! I'm sure you will want to be back!

https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/ustours/index.html

Thanks Pamela and Wasleys. I will check into these driving routes further. The cafe looks lovely.