Bentley Does It!

It’s one of the greatest driving routes on Earth and it’s on our doorstep. Jack McKeown gets behind the wheel for the North Coast 500.

AS a Fife-born Lowlander I’ve always maintained that Inverness is very far north. It isn’t really. I’m coming to this realisation three hours after leaving the Highland capital on the North Coast 500 when I still haven’t reached the top of Scotland.

I’m in no rush to reach Britain’s northern edge anytime soon, though. The roads, helped by copious EU grants, are in wonderful nick. I don’t see a pothole for three days – traffic is light, and the scenery is… well, breathtaking is too overused an adjective but it feels appropriate here.

It’s my first day of a four-day tour and I can’t stop smiling. Some of Scotland’s most outstanding coastline is laid out before me and a new discovery is waiting round every corner.

I’ve used my job as a motoring journalist to secure a luxury Bentley for the weekend. While having a car that matches the magnificence of the route is a bonus, what’s through the windscreen is so special it hardly matters if you’re in a Bentley or a banger.