John o' Groats () is a village in the traditional county of Caithness,in Highland Scotland, and is usually regarded as the most northerly settlement in mainland Britain. However, the most northerly point is actually nearby Dunnet Head at .
The name has a particular resonance because it is so often used in outlining the length of Britain when races, walks and charitable events take place between the Cornish point Land's End (at the extreme western tip of the Cornish peninsula) and John o' Groats. The phrase Land's End to John o' Groats (strangely, very rarely the other way round) is frequently heard both as a literal journey and as a metaphor for great or all-encompassing distance.
The punctuation and capitalization in John o' Groats is the correct form. The space after o' appears to vary but was probably the correct older form.
John o' Groats Hostel is in Canisbay at , about 3 kilometres west/southwest of John o' Groats.
External links
Last updated: 05-23-2005 12:22:51