Na rathaidean fada, lùbach tro Chuimrigh agus Alba

Today’s trivia is on Tongue:

• It houses 3,000–10,000 taste buds
• The tongue consists of four intrinsic muscles (shaping the tongue) and four extrinsic muscles (anchoring it to the jaw/skull).
• Tongue prints are unique to individuals, potentially usable for biometric security.
• All taste buds can detect all five tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, salty, savory/umami); there is no specific “tongue map” area for only one taste, though the back is more sensitive to bitter.
• A healthy tongue is pink; white patches may indicate infection, while a red tongue might signal a vitamin deficiency or fever.

and the Scottish Tongue . . .

• The name comes from the Old Norse tunga, meaning “a tongue of land” projecting into the loch, highlighting the area’s Viking history.
• In 1746, a Jacobite ship (Hazard) carrying over £13,000 in gold for Bonnie Prince Charlie was chased into the Kyle of Tongue by the Royal Navy.
• Tongue became the seat of the Clan Mackay in 1554, with the House of Tongue being their primary residence.
• The Kyle of Tongue Bridge, a 184-meter (603-foot) structure spanning the sea loch, was built in 1971.

We took the 500 mile route. Along the way, needed a 🚽. Stopping at The Bothy in Strathcarron as I needed to . . .

It was reasonable hot chocolate but £1 more than needed and 2IC went too, so that’s £2 more. And I thought a bothy was a small shelter, free of charge!

Some signs . . .

After a chat with the barman about number of people coming in to use the 🚽 and how it costs him £400 per month to empty the septic, we were off. That conversation started as a result of me saying I understand these small villages can cope with tourist influx for water and electricity but where does all the 💩 go?

A stop at Ullapool was in order as Lonely Planet recommends it and to spend two days there. We found a fast charger. 50kW and only one. Luckily not used but notice said 45min max and not to come back within 30min. So went for a ☕️🚽🥛💧 Got to charge to 93% in that time and another guy was patiently waiting. So off we went. Yep, you’re correct, 45min was ample time as nothing took our fancy in Ullapool.

We passed Ardvreck Castle at a timely time with the rain stopped. It is now a ruin, standing on a rocky promontory in Loch Assynt. The structure dates from about 1490 and is associated with the then landowners, the Macleods of Assynt.

Kylesku Bridge, aka its Gaelic name Drochaid a’ Chaolais Chumhaing was built in 1982 and opened by QEII. In 2019 it was classified by the Historic Environment Scotland as a Category A structure, recognising it as visually striking and technically innovative🤔.

Nearby is were they launched trained and launched six midget subs on a 1,000 mile raid to Fjord in Norway where the German battle ship Tirpitz was located.

The Durness Millennium Cairn is egg shaped and located on a small mound by the road.

Opposite is the John Lennon memorial gardens. We didn’t go in as time was marching on. John’s maternal aunt lived in area and John would come to visit.

But we had time for Smoo Cave, down the road. It was formed about 400 million years ago. It is unique to UK as the first chamber was formed by sea action and the inner chambers by rainwater dissolving the carbonate dolomites. 

We finally arrived at Tongue after 350km. As with Ullapool, the one and only charger has a time limit on it, also 45min. It was occupied by a local in a tesla. I plugged into the granny port, 11kW. Asking at hotel, no one could tell me how strict council is on time limits. So leaving it overnight🤞.

Today’s travels . . .