The Saga of the A9

The A9 is the major artery of a highway all the way from Falkirk to Thurso, usually a 5 hour drive. We did it on Monday - but it took us 9 hours!

The first part was through the Grampian mountains - the Cairngorms. Pine trees and rushing streams reminded us of the north shore - and Colorado. We pulled over at a rest stop that proclaimed that we were entering the Scottish Highlands - and suddenly, the terrain changed to the sweeping, wind-swept hills. 

Google is amazing, so when we got a road closure sign, we followed Google direction and the rest of the traffic as the roads got smaller, smaller, and finally single track. Then people started telling us to turn around - there was another crash ahead. A lot of time and mud later - we finally made it to the halfway point of the trip - Inverness. We found out later that a big crash first thing that morning killed two people - and closed the road for 8 hours. Two crashes down - and two extra hours. We stopped at a lovely wayside rest for a walk, some stairs, and some ice cream. And the first pictures I'd been able to take in awhile.

We cruised along the coast north of Inverness, with views of the ocean, and bridges over firths (water that nudges into the land). 

Then the signboards said that the A9 was closed north of Dornoch. But we couldn't see any other routes - and Google was sure it was all fine. Finally, everyone slowed down and made a big line. We weren't sure what to do. The inland route would make us miss the ferry. 

But then another driver told us to go back to Dornoch. We turned around and followed the crowd on small roads, smaller roads, and single-track road. Good thing no one was coming in the other direction! And it worked! We had 90 minutes of driving to the ferry - and 90 minutes left. I speeded up, going 50 mph in 60 mph zones that twisted and turned. 

It turned out that this was also a crash - but no one died. The road was closed for 2 hours. 

Finally we made it to the Northlink terminal! We wanted to tell our story, but the guy at check-in just thought we'd made it on time. Then we had a 30 minute wait to board. 

After we settled, we headed to the restaurant for a HUGE meal  - we were hungry! Then the boat ... didn't leave. Apparently we were not the only people delayed! The boat left 45 minutes late. It was an easy 90 minute crossing, but so dark that we couldn't see the Old Man of Hoy. 

Then another 30 minutes in the full dark - and we made it to our Airbnb in Kirkwall!