In the far northern reaches of Scotland, Sutherland, Caithness and Ross-shire are regions that, by their very nature, demand to be taken slowly. Single-track roads dominate, skirting lochs and winding up and over moorland and mountains carpeted with blanket bog, settlements are few and far between, and you’ll often feel outnumbered by sheep as yet another flock ambles across a road leading to a crumbling castle, old fishing port or alluring ancient site. But biding your time is no inconvenience here, not when every corner reveals a yet more staggering view, when remote coastal cliffs throb with the cries of seabirds, or when following a sign down a potholed road leads to an empty cove of sand that shimmers pink and blue in the ever-changing Highlands light.

There are no large settlements here – the second-largest town has barely 1,500 inhabitants – so visitors focus very much on the outdoors. Getting into wilderness is joyously easy: within moments of parking your car or stepping out of your B&B, you’re striding among scenery so enchanting and dramatic it feels like it’s been conjured up by someone’s imagination. Whether you crave clambering over rocks to discover secret beaches, watching dolphins leap, kayaking to uninhabited islands or trekking to the UK’s highest waterfall, far northern Scotland is the kind of place that gets its teeth into you – a place that people return to again and again. Just the place, indeed, for Bradt’s Scotland’s North Highlands to provide the perfect travelling companion.

SLOW TRAVEL FROM BRADT GUIDES

• Eating – where to taste the region’s best produce

• Sleeping – accommodation with character and colour

• In Depth – key attractions and lesser-known places covered in detail

• Walking – where to find the best local rambles

• Dog-Friendly – places to visit with your pet