Scotland wild camping - motorhome trip

WillsW

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Hi there, I’m taking my first motorhome family with my 3 kids (11,9,7) and hitting the west coast of Scotland in October. I want it to be as remote and “wild” as possible avoiding campsites ideally to give as much as a feeling of going off grid.

Has anyone done a similar trip and could recommend routes/places to stay etc? There is so much info on the internet it just gets very confusing!!

Huge thanks in advance,

Will
 
Your best advise would be to get access to the location app above.

You‘ll need to become a member for this I believe but it will be worth it as you’ll get all the info you need there.

I‘ve done the West Coast of Scotland and being wild will not be an issue, but with the kids on board I’d be wanting to plan stop overs etc in advance.

Prior knowledge of grey/black waste disposal and fresh water points with kids on board will be essential in my opinion.
 
Buy yourself a large scale atlas from a garage (about £5 )

Then,search out small roads ending at the sea etc with no or little housing around ...

Then Google earth to check them out in more detail ..

Perfect way to find quiet little coves/harbours etc that are much less likely to be plastered all over the Internet that makes places busy .

The planning and searching out spots is all part of the fun for us
Mixed in with the odd smaller site for services etc .

Most of the sheeple will head for the NC500 and miss so many beautiful quiet spots .
 
The first issue you will have is the children, as I sure you are aware they can get bored rather quickly, therefore you have to keep them interested. So I would advise you to ensure that you try to remain online as much as possible. This may be something you would like to get away from, but I don’t reckon your kids wI’ll think likewise. If you don’t have a mobile router I would suggest getting one, and the 3 network is almost useless on the west coast, EE have the best coverage in rural Scotland.

Scotland in October is gorgeous, and thankfully you should miss the midges, and it gets a lot quieter. If you wish to do an organised route like the NC500 it should have quietened down considerably by October, but it can still be problematic when seeking a place to park up. Quite frankly the west coast of Scotland has so many places were you can stop you hardly have to do any planning. We were up as far as Ullapool in April and had no problems finding places to park. But there’s a great carpark in Morvich near to the campsite, Torridon is awash with places to stop over. Gairloch has a great elevated carpark uphill from the local shops. Honestly just keep driving and you will se spots just off road. There are plenty of forestry carparks also.

I would think joining this forum would be beneficial to you. As well as the thousands of pois on the location app, there are are a lot of very knowledgeable people on here who are only to willing to help.

Make sure you know were you will empty your toilet, get fresh water, and get rid of your grey water. Try not to park outside houses, don’t stay any longer than one or two nights, just be careful, considerate, and use your common sense, and you will have a great trip. Enjoy.
 
WillsW said:
Thank you. Which app are you referring to?
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If you join as a full member here you get access to all the wildcamping spots, water and toilets etc via the site or an app. There are thousands
 
Fisherman said:
The first issue you will have is the children, as I sure you are aware they can get bored rather quickly, therefore you have to keep them interested. So I would advise you to ensure that you try to remain online as much as possible. This may be something you would like to get away from, but I don’t reckon your kids wI’ll think likewise. If you don’t have a mobile router I would suggest getting one, and the 3 network is almost useless on the west coast, EE have the best coverage in rural Scotland.

Scotland in October is gorgeous, and thankfully you should miss the midges, and it gets a lot quieter. If you wish to do an organised route like the NC500 it should have quietened down considerably by October, but it can still be problematic when seeking a place to park up. Quite frankly the west coast of Scotland has so many places were you can stop you hardly have to do any planning. We were up as far as Ullapool in April and had no problems finding places to park. But there’s a great carpark in Morvich near to the campsite, Torridon is awash with places to stop over. Gairloch has a great elevated carpark uphill from the local shops. Honestly just keep driving and you will se spots just off road. There are plenty of forestry carparks also.

I would think joining this forum would be beneficial to you. As well as the thousands of pois on the location app, there are are a lot of very knowledgeable people on here who are only to willing to help.

Make sure you know were you will empty your toilet, get fresh water, and get rid of your grey water. Try not to park outside houses, don’t stay any longer than one or two nights, just be careful, considerate, and use your common sense, and you will have a great trip. Enjoy.
Click to expand...
Great stuff, thanks so much!
 
James Oliver said:
Exciting trip ahead! For that remote feel, check out Isle of Skye, Kintyre Peninsula, or Applecross. Consider North Coast 500 for a mix of beauty and seclusion. Remember warm clothes, waterproofs, and respect for nature. Have an awesome time exploring Scotland's wild side with your family!
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Thank you 🙏
 
WillsW said:
Thank you. Which app are you referring to?
Click to expand...
Hi and welcome, look at the green bar near the top of the page.

1691418002169.png
 
Pudsey Bear said:
Hi and welcome, look at the green bar near the top of the page.

View attachment 122217
Click to expand...
What he said ;)

I'm not just saying join to fill Phils pockets, it really will help you, the screen shot will give you some idea (its not where you looking to go obviously but it will give you an idea.

Just after lockdown we did the whole UK coast and this app allowed me to get water, empty waste and park without hassle completely free

Screen Shot 2023-08-07 at 20.36.08.png
 
mistericeman said:
Buy yourself a large scale atlas from a garage (about £5 )

Then,search out small roads ending at the sea etc with no or little housing around ...

Then Google earth to check them out in more detail ..

Perfect way to find quiet little coves/harbours etc that are much less likely to be plastered all over the Internet that makes places busy .

The planning and searching out spots is all part of the fun for us
Mixed in with the odd smaller site for services etc .

Most of the sheeple will head for the NC500 and miss so many beautiful quiet spots .
Click to expand...
👆👆wot he said👆👆
Getting out there and finding your own spots is how you explore and find wonderful places. It’s ok having a rough plan but it’s better fun straying off the beaten path🥃🙏
 
runnach said:
I hate the use of the term "NC500" :mad:
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They’ve all got names now, it’s all about tourism, and highlighting what’s available. In 1977 three of us walked from Glasgow to Fort William, it’s called the west highland way now. Everywhere you go there are organised walks using paths and tracks that have been there for in some cases centuries. The NC500 is just typical of this but instead of a walking path it’s a driving path.

Let’s take the most rural part of Scotland with a road infrastructure suited to minimal use and create a route with no regard for this limited infrastructure or the people who live there and what you do get, the total shambles that is the NC500. A section of roads that were once a pleasure to drive, were people were welcoming of the few who ventured there, has been turned into hell for those who venture, the people who live there, and for an infrastructure unable to cope with such large amounts of traffic, and cars with drivers with no experience of driving such roads. And yet some say it’s the victim of its own success, I would hardly call the NC 500 a success, more like an ill thought out idea that has led to problems for all who venture and live there. But the rabbit is out of the hat and won’t go back in again. So now it’s a damage limitation exercise, a mad rush to try to improve the facilities available.

But therein lies the enigma, was the attraction of the NC500 not that it was rural, that it was full of friendly welcoming people, and that the rural infrastructure blended into this part of Scotland. Because to day in my eyes all of the reasons that would have attracted me to this NC 500 are history.

Scotland for me is about spontaneity, who needs planning in a country were to much planning can actually limit you. Yes you do need to think about where you will get water, empty your toilet, etc, but other than that do your own thing, and avoid the over populated and over rated spoilt areas. Yes plan were you want to go but be open minded about where you stop over at night. We have found some of the most wonderful stop overs, and few of them are pois on here, and we never planned to stop there in the first place.
 
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The Scottish tourist department needs to get its act together and stop encouraging motorhomers to come to Scotland with no real infrastructure to support them, there are not enough camping sites for them so they have to stay somewhere so they wild camp, there are so may new owners and rentals they can't cope, and many are clueless as to what they need to do with waste etc.

My feeling is they need to set up something short term similar to the toilets you get on building sites but without the cubicle, and have a standpipe for fresh water nearby, purpose built laybys could be installed to provide a place for them, these eventually could become with investment permanent aires.
 
Fisherman said:
The first issue you will have is the children, as I sure you are aware they can get bored rather quickly, therefore you have to keep them interested. So I would advise you to ensure that you try to remain online as much as possible. This may be something you would like to get away from, but I don’t reckon your kids wI’ll think likewise. If you don’t have a mobile router I would suggest getting one, and the 3 network is almost useless on the west coast, EE have the best coverage in rural Scotland.

Scotland in October is gorgeous, and thankfully you should miss the midges, and it gets a lot quieter. If you wish to do an organised route like the NC500 it should have quietened down considerably by October, but it can still be problematic when seeking a place to park up. Quite frankly the west coast of Scotland has so many places were you can stop you hardly have to do any planning. We were up as far as Ullapool in April and had no problems finding places to park. But there’s a great carpark in Morvich near to the campsite, Torridon is awash with places to stop over. Gairloch has a great elevated carpark uphill from the local shops. Honestly just keep driving and you will se spots just off road. There are plenty of forestry carparks also.

I would think joining this forum would be beneficial to you. As well as the thousands of pois on the location app, there are are a lot of very knowledgeable people on here who are only to willing to help.

Make sure you know were you will empty your toilet, get fresh water, and get rid of your grey water. Try not to park outside houses, don’t stay any longer than one or two nights, just be careful, considerate, and use your common sense, and you will have a great trip. Enjoy.
Click to expand...
Deffo sign up ,I've just saved £200 from last year on my motorhome insurance I asked on this site for reccomendations and hey presto sorted and saved than you to all who replied.
 
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