Scotland Road Tours - A836 Tain to John o' Groats

Today's road tour takes us through the Highland snow on the wild remote A836, beginning at the A9 near Tain, and then through the spine of Sutherland to Altnaharra and Tongue before forming part of the NC500 to Thurso and John o' Groats. We begin at the A9 roundabout near the Dornoch Firth Bridge, and follow the old route along the coast through Edderton, Ardgay, and then to Bonar Bridge. Taking a left, we cruise inland with more forest areas in the snow, and pass through Lairg. The next phase of the road reaches very remote parts of the Highlands, with mostly single track roads and light traffic through the Shin Forest and rugged hills before dropping down into Altnaharra, one of the coldest places in the UK. After passing the hamlet and Loch Naver, we continue on to Loch Loyal and then come upon the northern coast of Scotland at the Kyle of Tongue and joining the North Coast 500 route eastwards. The road quality improves a little, and we head on to Bettyhill, Armadale, Strathy, Portskerra, Melvich, Reay, and finally reach Thurso. A straight section takes us on to Castletown, past Dunnet and Mey, and then we finally reach John o' Groats - the symbolic most northerly point of Great Britain, although the A836 becomes the most northerly A-road a few miles west. The A836 is one of the original designated roads from the 1922 classifications, and began at Bonar Bridge at the A88, which itself was renumbered to serve as an extension of the A9 in 1936. Some time in the 1920s the B864 was also upgraded to form part of the A836 from Alness to Wester Fearn, before being relegated to B-road status again (B9176) in 1991 when the A9 Dornoch Firth Bridge was complete, and the A836 then started there, just west of Tain. The A836 took the same route as today, although finishing at Tongue until 1932 when the next leg to Thurso was upgraded to A-road standard. The final stretch to John O' Groats was numbered the A882 at this time, until being reassigned the A836 in 1936 when several roads in the area switched numbers, including the A9 extension.