By Exploring the North Coast 500 by motorcycle has become a quintessential touring right of passage for many uk motorcyclists. Once a lesser known route, for the hardiest of uk motorcycle tourers, this route has now become a staple for UK Motorcycle touring, and a right of passage for many.
The great thing about travelling the North Coast 500 by motorycle is that you can’t really go wrong. It’s all awesome. The route is well signposted, and the whole thing is well supported. Picking the right time of year will help you avoid the traffic, but even at peak time there is so much expanse of road that you’ll still have plenty of opportunities to feel like you’re miles away from anyone.
- The best way to get to the North coast 500
- Midges
- Preparing for the weather
- Clockwise or Anticlockwise for the North cost 500?
- Do you need to book in advance for the NC 500?
- Choosing a bike for the NC 500
- Packing and petrol?
- A North coast 500 motorcycle route
Top tips for riding the North Coast 500 from the midlands
1. Don’t miss all the cool stuff on the way
Being in the Midlands, it is a bit of a trek up to Scotland, but the upside to that is that there’s loads of cool stuff along the way.
If you plan your route well you can have an excellent trip up through the peaks, Yorkshire dales, and the Lake District, and hit the north Pennines on your way home. If you have the time to break it up with a stopover on your way I highly recommend it.
2. Check the midge forecast
If you’re on your bike most of the time, you’ll be mostly covered by your gear anyway, but even so, it’s worth planning your trip around seasons where midges are less prevalent. A forecast for midges does exist.
A light breeze will mostly keep them away, as will the rain so there’s some trade-off to be had. Mostly it’ll probably be luck
Try https://www.smidgeup.com/midge-forecast/ to see what it’s like when you’re travelling.
3. It’s gon’ rain.
Assume it will rain at some point. Probably more than once, regardless of the season. If you’re lucky you’ll get the odd day. If you’re unlucky, you’ll be in the rain the whole week. Go prepared with a plan for wet weather riding. You’ll be on the bike for a long time each day and soggy Kevlar jeans get real boring real fast. Get a laminated textile suit for ease to avoid having to keep stopping and changing, failing that your usual all-in-one body condom solution is an option too.
Just taking a rain jacket, and nothing for your lower half would be a mistake.
4. Go anticlockwise
There’s great debate as to whether clockwise or anti-clockwise is better.
The people who think clockwise is better, are incorrect.
Here’s why.
The east coast is fairly dull compared to the rest of the route and basically stays that way all the way up to John o’ Groats.
John o’ Groats is also pretty bleak. There’s very little there, and it’s a grind to get to, not difficult, just boring.
If you go clockwise you go through all the cool stuff first, gradually decreasing in coolness until you get to john o groats. At which point, the main fun is pretty much over and you know have the boring ride all the way home from the most northerly part of the UK.
If you go anti-clockwise however, you get yourself up to John o’ Groats, take your selfie, go ‘that was a bit shit’ and then continue on your ride with all of the cool stuff yet to come.
Also, when you do the apple-cross pass, it means you are looking downhill into the valley, and the view is truly staggering in that direction. Anti-clockwise is definitely your best bet for exploring the North Coast 500 by motorcycle.
5. Book in advance
6. B&B > Camping
I had some excellent B&Bs on my trip and some really weird cheap hotels. There seems to be a ream of old hotels from the ’60s or ’70s that are trying to now make a comeback, but with very limited investment to make them better.
My experience from the couple of places I stayed in that called themselves hotels, was really a bit weird. The B&Bs were far superior, in comfort, food and staff friendliness.
