Roof Down in the Scottish Highlands, Part One: The Road North and the Cairngorms

I was up at 6am, showered and packed, and with the bags left in the room I could just jump into the MX-5 and head out and be back in time for breakfast. Roof down and the lanes to myself, I wound out past Little Langdale, a quiet valley tucked between the fells, for the 35-minute drive to Castle Howe. It's a modest peak at around 170 metres, but it punches well above its weight.

I pulled up on the narrow lane just as the sun cleared the fells…