From Edinburgh airport, I’m on my way north to Aberdeen and then over to Banff where my journey west will follow the coastline by the Moray Firth. Inland is Speyside and the whisky country where working distilleries will make me welcome on another day. My mission on this trip is to capture small harbours, sandy beaches and an active sea with my auto companion, a Suzuki Jimny – well suited to wriggle in and out of the tight roads along the way.
In size, the Jimny compares with a city car but in looks it’s rather like a small Jeep. If shrunk a little more it might be related to a child’s pedal car. With me and my wife each measuring six feet and more, the front seats are quite crowded and I dare say from the pavement we may look like out-of-place adults on a fairground carousel.
It is not the happiest place to be with fast moving traffic all around and me and Jimny stuck on a safe maximum 60mph. This car has a hopelessly weak engine and overtaking huge eclipsing lorries is a tense mission. I feel as if the car is bobbing about a lot and I am in the likes of a Sinclair C5 at Le Mans.
Thankfully, the road is dry and the weather is bright and sunny. I am in no particular hurry and I have determinedly set my manual cruise control to 58mph, an agreeable and happy speed for its 1.3-litre, 85ps petrol engine.
United to this is a five-speed manual gearbox where my transactions would not impress any driving test examiner but I would claim in mitigation that I was operating in very cramped conditions.
There was quite a lot of play in this gearstick and on the road while in fifth gear, it waggled enthusiastically like a happy dog’s tail.
As I battled on there was nothing in this car in the way of creature comforts to entertain me. The car did not have heated seats, an outside temperature gauge, not one steering wheel control, no touchscreen but a Pioneer radio with minuscule controls and a frustratingly challenging procedure to get Radio Anything.
This car is a product of the seventies and it has undergone few alterations from the day it was created. In its favour it has all-wheel drive that can be electronically selected as well as low-ratio all-wheel drive.
In the past, I have driven this car over fairly horrible landscapes that were muddy, slippery and with plenty of suction to halt progress. The Jimny sailed through because it is light and simply dances over the ground. It is much more capable in these conditions than the heavier Land Rover Discovery whose weight will bog it down, requiring harpoon and winch to pull it out.
At last we have the sea before us at Macduff and Jimny has been freed from the rat race. Deep draughts of ozone-rich air mingle with a strong fish smell emphasising the town’s role as the hub of the area’s fishing industry. Catches are landed on the quay but nearby there’s much activity at the shipyard where boats are being repaired.
East of the harbour on the High Shore is perhaps the area’s greatest attraction, the marine aquarium. Here you’ll meet all the sea creatures that live in the Moray Firth and the divers that hand feed the fish at the kelp reef exhibit.
About one mile from Macduff across the seven-arch Deveron Bridge is the town of Banff where, despite a football club and golf club making a first impression, the yellowing elegance of Banff Castle and the grand mansion that is Duff House built by William Adam in 1740 comes into view. But what I like most of all about this town is its jumble of independent traders who seem to be surviving in an era where tablets, phones and the internet is taking over every aspect of life and High Streets are shutting down.
Jimny is happy scooting around the narrow streets here and he is easy to park, squeezing into spaces others must pass. We leave the town heading west and past the links with its lengthy sandy beach. If I stopped for a moment and cast an eye to sea there is every chance of spotting dolphins and porpoises or even a surfer.
A must-visit on this coastline is Crovie, which for me requires turning back for a few miles. Its collection of houses are built at the bottom of a cliff almost on the shore and there is no access for a car. Even Jimny has to wait in the small car park at the top of the cliff. What is remarkable is that in its heyday around 300 people lived here and more than 50 fishing boats used its harbour. Access is by way of a very steep hill and it said to be the best preserved fishing village in Europe.
My journeys are less frenetic and Jimny is almost delivering a pleasing driving experience. As I once again head west there are signs of fishing’s role in life along this coast and I guess the fish suppers are excellent. But on reaching Portsoy, I have received some local knowledge that a worthwhile stop is the ice cream shop with more than 100 different flavours. I stick with vanilla as my taste buds must be in good condition for my next stop along the way at Cullen.
I have sampled Cullen Skink, a soup made from smoked haddock, potatoes, onions and milk, in many places. Some have been disgusting, others have been acceptable but, just like Guinness is to Dublin, Cullen Skink is to Cullen, its spiritual home. If you are a disciple of this soup you must visit the town in the summer when a world championship takes place. It is fabulous and after a generous bowlful, I have the need for no more food. This coastline is clean and tidy and at almost every turn and small town there is a point of interest.
Wee Jimny has been happy on his journey along this route but as I turn to head south I know I must content myself to cover the mosses, waters, slaps and styles at a pace that when the going gets good will be around one mile a minute.
DriveFacts
Make: Suzuki
Model: Jimny 1.3 SZ4
How much: £14,784
How fast: 87mph
0-62mph: 14.1 seconds
Economy: 39.8mpg, combined
Emissions: 162g/km
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