Motorcycle Explorer November 2016 Issue 14 | Page 18

Travel Story: paul pitchfork and pau
Talk to anyone who has ridden on the west
coast of Scotland and you will hear the
repeated mention of ‘Applecross' - the
name of a small coastal village
overlooking Skye. It is not, however, the
village everyone speaks of with an air of
subtle awe; it is in fact the Beach na Ba, or
‘The Pass of the Cattle’ - a single track
road that climbs 600 metres over the
mountains, switch-backing up the final
stretch to the pass and reminding us of
countless mountain roads we had ridden
through the Andes. It’s a short but
beautiful ride and from the pass, if the
weather is kind, a visitor is afforded a
stunning view of the Cuillin Hills on Skye.
Reaching the foot of the Beach na Ba, we
had finally joined the North Coast 500 - a
route of approximately 500 miles which
circumnavigates the northern tip of
Scotland from Inverness. Despite the
feeling that summer was finally giving way
to Autumn, the roads were still full of
motorcyclists touring the NC 500. A broad
selection of machines was on display, but
the large majority had one thing in
common - they were all big. Against this
big bore backdrop, I found myself
reflecting on our choice to shun the
‘adventure bike' tag, instead going small
and light. For a while, I had almost
forgotten we were aboard such small
bikes, so effortless and fun they were
proving to ride.
The little Scramblers were easily handling
80 litres of luggage - I exaggerate not
when I say it went completely unnoticed
as I rode. They had carried us along nearly
400 miles of motorway in sufficient
comfort. And on the twisting, often single
track routes through the mountains it was
entirely at home. Light and low, it was a
breeze exploring dirt tracks; with an
impressively tight turning circle, and small
enough to manoeuvre in the most
awkward of places, I was no longer
concerned about u-turns on narrow,
download-sloping roads. After 40,000
miles exploring dirt roads on the overly-
tall Tenere, it felt like riding a BMX.