The needle of the Duncansby, the 60-metre sea-stack that the rises from the Pentland Firth (the strait between the Orkney and the Caithness, the most dangerous tidal race in the UK, the 12 knots at the spring tide, the whirlpool of the “Swelkie” that the inspired the “Charybdis” of the Greek myth, and the water that is the slate-grey and the churning), the green top of the stack (the turf, the seabirds), and the sense that the Duncansby Stacks are the older and the more dramatic than the Old Man of the Hoy (the 137 metres, the Orkney, the most famous sea-stack in the UK, and the Duncansby are the less known but the more beautiful), is the essential far-north-of-the-Scotland experience. The Duncansby Stacks are the 2 miles from the John o’ Groats (the most north-easterly point of the British mainland, the 876 miles from the Land’s End), and the Duncansby are the true north-east corner of the UK. Here is your guide.

A Guide to Duncansby Stacks

• The Duncansby, the essential visit: The Duncansby Head is the most north-easterly point of the British mainland (the John o’ Groats is the tourist sign, and the Duncansby Head is the true point. The 1.6 miles from the John o’ Groats, the walk along the road, the 30 minutes), the lighthouse (the 1924, the Stevenson family, the Robert Louis Stevenson, the white, the automated, and the essential first stop), the walk: the Duncansby Head to the Duncansby Stacks, the 1.5 miles each way, the coastal, the 1 hour return, the grass, the cliff-top, the fulmar, the kittiwake, the puffin (the May–July, the 1,000 puffins on the cliffs, the best puffin-watching in the northern Scotland. The essential: the 8am or the 6pm for the best light and the best puffin activity), and the view that the opens up: the 13 Stacks of the Duncansby, the Thirle Door (the largest, the arch, the tunnel through the rock, the most dramatic sea-arch in the UK), the 60-metre stack, the smaller stacks in the line, the sea that is the deep blue on the clear day and the slate-grey on the cloud, the Orkney Islands on the horizon (the 10 miles across the Pentland Firth, the Hoy, the Flotta, the Stroma), and the essential Duncansby experience: the stand at the cliff edge at the 10pm on the 21st June, the summer solstice, the sun does not set until the 10.30pm, and the golden light on the stacks is the most beautiful scene in the northern Scotland. The free, and the essential: the parking at the Duncansby Head is the £2. More UK →
• The John o’ Groats and the Caithness, the essential far-north itinerary: The John o’ Groats: the most famous “end of the Britain” landmark, the tourist sign (the £15 for the photograph, the most photographed signpost in the UK, the white, the 3 arms, the Land’s End: the 876 miles, the New York: the 3,236 miles, the North Pole: the 2,200 miles), the First and Last Gift Shop, the ferry to the Orkney (the 40 minutes to the Burwick, the May–September). The essential John o’ Groats experience: the sign, the photograph, and the departure, the Duncansby is the better. The essential Caithness day, the northern Scotland itinerary: the Wick (the Old Pulteney Distillery, the 1826, the single malt, the maritime, the €10 for the tour and the tasting, and the best distillery in the far north), the Castle of the Mey (the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, the summer residence, the 1952–1996, the garden, the £12, and the best castle in the far north. The essential: the open the May–September), the Whaligoe Steps (the 365 steps the down the 250-foot cliff to the tiny harbour, the 18th-century, the herring fishing, and the most dramatic harbour access in the UK. The free, the essential: the café at the top, the cake, the tea, the £5, and the essential post-steps reward), the Dunnet Head (the true most northerly point of the British mainland, the 18 miles from the John o’ Groats, the lighthouse, the view of the Orkney, and the most lonely point in the UK. The free), and the essential Caithness accommodation: the Forss House (the 1810, the £120/night for the double, the fire, the library, the whisky, and the best hotel in the far north).