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 874 Miles to Land's End |
The sign above the harbour at John o' Groats says it's 874 miles from Land's End. And while Dunnet Head to the west extends further north, and Duncansby Head to the east is probably a mile or two more distant from Land's End, John o' Groats is the place you start or finish if you want to cover the length of Britain playing hopscotch or pushing a pea with your nose. And like all extremes, it's attracted quite a following over the years.
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Most of the guidebooks are unflattering about John o' Groats. It is true that for many years the most common response by first time arrivals was "is this it?" Nonetheless, the magic of the name continued to draw visitors in ever greater numbers. And it is good to be able to report that there's been considerable investment in the place in recent years, improving it significantly.
No longer are you greeted with just a windswept car park, a hotel and the odd souvenir shop. The newish tourist information centre and community of high quality shops for craft and other products may not suit all tastes. But they do at last provide something to appeal to the majority of visitors.
Coupled with the now well established John o' Groats ferry that carries foot passengers across the short distance to Orkney between May and September, and pleasure and adventure rides from the the harbour here, you begin to find, at last, a destination worth the journey.
 Seen from Duncansby Head |
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 John o' Groats House Hotel |
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 Modern Shops |
An additional attraction to the area is the opening of another ferry route to Orkney, this time for vehicles as well as passengers, by Pentland Ferries from the pier at Gills Bay, a few miles west of John o' Groats.
The only real remaining regret is the continuing closure of John o' Groat's most striking landmark, the John o' Groats House Hotel. This white Gothic building is due for renovation, but it's unclear when this will happen. If the hotel does come back to life it will complete the transformation of a once rather shabby shoreline into somewhere to enjoy in its own right.
Walkers or cyclists approaching John o' Groats from Land's End reading of the closure of the hotel on their laptops need not despair: the hotel's bar remains open so you don't need to miss out on that landmark drink when you arrive.
John o' Groats is named after a Dutchman, Jan de Groot. In 1496 King James IV granted De Groot the ferry franchise between the harbour here and Orkney, which was at the time still a relatively new acquisition by Scotland. Some say that De Groot gave his name to the silver coin, the Groat. This was the level at which his fares were fixed by the authorities to curb his efforts to cash in on his franchise.
De Groot also started the development of the area, building a house, reputedly octagonal, and located where you can now find a flagpole on its grassy mound near the hotel.
Whether he chose this shape to provide better protection from the elements, or to ensure, as one story would have it, that every guest at his octagonal dining table could believe themselves to be sitting at its head is debatable. Either way, it is interesting to see the shape reflected in parts of the design of the John o' Groats Hotel.
A few years ago it would have been hard to conclude this page with any recommendation to visit John o' Groats. But if you've not been before you will find things to do whatever the weather: and if you have been before, you will be pleasantly surprised by a return visit. And it will be better still when they've reopened the Hotel.
