Isle of Skye

The place I most wanted to see in Scotland was the Isle of Skye. Not only is the scenery beautiful and the locals friendly but there’s also a personal connection: Mum’s side of the family originally called the Isle home. Although it’s been a few generations since any of them actually identified as Scottish, it’s still a nice little bit of family history. I found a travel partner (my flatmate Emma) and convinced her that we simply had to take the Jacobite to get there. The beautiful red steam train is better known as the Hogwarts Express and while it doesn’t run from platform 9 ¾ , it does take you from Fort William to Mallaig where it’s then just a short ferry trip to the Isle itself. The highlight is undoubtedly the Glenfinnan Viaduct, made famous by the scene from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets where Ron and Harry fly beside the train in the blue Ford Anglia. While you get a better view if you’re not actually on the train, we had the best seats possible: towards the back and on the left hand side. This offered beautiful views of the train and out to the Glenfinnan Monument and Loch Shiel.

The ferry ride across was short and we were now faced with the challenge of getting to Portree on the other side of the Isle. A short bus trip got us to the nearest major road and from there we tried to hitch a lift. A German couple took me and Emma as far as Broadford but Angus was our saving grace. He was semi-retired, very chatty and drove like a maniac. By the time he dropped us off in Portree we’d had a brief history lesson, been given recommendations for walking tracks and dinner spots and heard a fair bit of Angus’ life story. The front seat of his Mercedes was certainly more fun then the bus would have been!

The sun was still up and the weather was fair so we headed out to explore Portree and tacked the shorter of the walks: Sron a’ Mhill (better know as ‘the lump’). The half hour circuit offered lovely views over Portree Loch and Harbour and made it that much easier to justify having fish and chips for dinner (cooked in beef tallow and liberally sprinkled with salt and vinegar of course).

Given that time was short we booked in to do a full day tour on the Saturday and it was an excellent decision. Bill from Real Scottish Journeys took us all over the island and gave us its full history, from Viking raids to clan rule and eventually the Jacobite rebellion which made way for modern Scotland. We started with the faerie pools and despite the cool temperature and lack of swimming gear I decided to jump in. Between the Japanese family that kept taking my picture and the frigid water I soon got out again but had it been the middle of summer it would have been a lovely spot to spend a few hours.

We then moved on to Neist Point and the lighthouse which sits on the westernmost part of the isle. Although it hasn’t been manned since the 90’s a peek through the windows shows that plenty a squatter has made their way in and given the breathtaking views I can see some of the appeal.

The Faerie Glen was our next stop and it evoked a childlike sense of wonder and a desire to one again believe in faeries. There’s plenty of stories surrounding the site, from pipers with otherworldly talent to faerie parties that last for decades but we were promised that following the path to the centre of one of the stone spirals, leaving a gift for the faeries and walking out backwards would bring good luck. Given how lucky I’m feeling after all my travels I can only conclude it worked.

We continued home via kilt rock and the Old Man of Storr and arrived back at Portree shortly before sunset. We later found out that this had been the best weather that Syke had seen all year! While the heavy fog our flatmates had experienced a few weeks earlier made for a landscape where Macbeth’s witches would be quite at home, I enjoyed our sunshine and blue skies far more!

The next morning we were keen to revisit the Old Man of Storr. The towing rock forms part of the Trotternish ridge and can be seen for miles around, probably why it was once used as a marker for a significant viking silver hoard (not unearthed until 1000 years later in 1890). We hitched a lift to the Stor from town and spent most of the morning working our way up to one of the surrounding flat topped rocky mounds. The clouds and rolled in and visibility wasn’t as clear as it has been Saturday but it was none the less a stunning view.

We hitched back to town and then tacked the other walk Angus had recommended; a short loop around the Scorrybreac headland that abutted the Portree harbour. Concerns about missing our bus meant we moved at a less than leisurely pace but it still made for a beautiful finish to our time on Skye.

The island had somehow managed to live up to my idealised ideas of the Scottish landscape, history and people. I only wish I’d been able to explore more of the Hebrides during my time in Scotland. But, I suppose there’s always next year.

P.S.
I know! This post is long overdue. A stolen laptop, exams and more travel has made it hard for me to stay on top of photo editing. I’ll be trying to post the rest of my journey soon though 🙂

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