Drumbeg Stores

The old Drumbeg Stores sits right on the road through Sutherland, a single-storey whitewashed building that's seen better days but hasn't given up the ghost. It's one of those places that feels properly remote - the kind of shop that once served crofters and travellers with everything from provisions to post office services. These days it's a landmark more than anything else, a reminder of how life ticked along in the Highlands before supermarkets and online shopping made these small-scale trading posts obsolete.

What you're really doing here is soaking in a bit of Highland history without trying too hard. The building itself is the point - weathered, authentic, the sort of thing that tells you something true about rural Scotland. It's not a museum or attraction with opening hours and entry fees. You pull up, have a look, take a photograph if you're that way inclined, and move on. Five minutes maximum. It works best if you're already driving through Sutherland rather than planning a detour specifically for it.

Walkers and history types will find it more interesting than others. Family road trips benefit from these little stops to break up the journey. If you're camping nearby at Clachtoll Beach Campsite, you'll pass Drumbeg on the way to and from other activities, so it's worth a glance. Free, obviously. Best visited when you've actually got somewhere else to be in the area.