The A9 continues north to John O' Groats before disappearing into the sea at the boat slipway! A side road leads to Duncansby Head and from here a path leads over the cliff tops to a view of the Duncansby Stacks, spectacular rock formations just off the coast. Further west and another side road leads to Dunnet Head, the most northerly point of mainland Britain.
The main road from Wick to Thurso cuts across this north-easterly corner of Caithness, before turning west along the "top" of Scotland toward the region of Sutherland. Sutherland was so named by the Norse inhabitants a thousand years ago when, to them, it was the south of their territory.
At Scrabster, near Thurso, is the departure point for car ferries to Orkney. The windswept Orkney Isles have some fascinating archaeological sites to discover from stone circles to once buried villages like Skara Brae.
West of Thurso is Melvich with a pretty bay, one of the small villages along this northern stretch of coastline which leads to Durness, Tongue and Cape Wrath.