John o'Groats Trail

Highland

The John o'Groats Trail (JOGT) is a coastal walking route under development along the eastern shores of the Moray Firth from Inverness to John o' Groats, traversing back lanes, footpaths, shorelines and cliff-tops of the Scottish Highlands. Accommodation, meals and shops are available at the end of most stages of the walk. It is listed by the Highland Rangers as an official virtual trail.

The route is a work in progress. All of the route is walkable, and is walked, both by local and long-distance walkers. However, in most places the trail is little more than a sheep track with occasional stiles and bridges, some of which are yet to be installed. About half the route had been marked by April 2018. This is where Friends of the John o'Groats Trail, come in - their purpose is to build and promote the trail with volunteer help - see the website below for trail updates, events, volunteer days and related walks and contact information. If you decide to try this walk, please beware that it contains some obstacles that an established trail normally would not. Some stages currently require barbed wire fence crossing, stone wall climbing, river fording, boulder scrambling, and strenuous walking through summer vegetation. These can be dangerous activities if not done with care by a fit, experienced walker. In places this is a route, not a path.

Update November 2022, from Graham Smith (Trail Warden for the Alness to Golspie stretch): "The JoG Trail remains a work in progress. Ron McCraw (who helped on the John Muir Way in southern Scotland some years ago) has been commissioned to look at the entire trail with a view to making it safer and more walker-friendly. His report, with one of the Friends' funders, Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland, is now being fine-tuned with various recommendations about parts which require attention (such as bridges). [...] In addition, a full-time Trail Manager (Kenneth McElroy) was appointed in summer 2022 to oversee development. [...] The two main problem areas - where bridges are being proposed - are Loth Burn in Sutherland and the River of Wester in Caithness, whereas the more southerly parts are ok. There is no doubt that many parts of the JoG Trail are difficult and some are downright dangerous."

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Details:

Path Type:	Other Paths
Waymark:	Octagonal marker with a directional arrow and the trail name.
Attributes:	Challenging Coastal Forest/Woodland Moorland
Start:	NH666449 - Inverness, Highland
Finish:	ND379734 - John o'Groats, Highland
Open Date:	2014
Web Sites:	John o'Groats Trail Walk Highlands - Scotland's Long Distance Walking Routes

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Publications, Badges and Certificates:

Guidebook

Walking the John o' Groats Trail  (Cicerone Press  - 2023 )

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