Holiday time again so we decided to stay in Scotland for our summer break and 8th wedding anniversary so we decided to visit somewhere new. As we didn’t manage to camp last year we thought we would dust off the canvas, air the sleeping bags and head off to Skye.. midges and all!
Six hours later and cats (Spice and Mosto) packed off to their Aunty Liz we arrived in the stunning but misty Skye. After setting up the tent in Torvaig Camp Site, just outside Portree, we headed into the town and Ali treated me to a lovely anniversary meal.
We spotted a lovely looking Bistro and decided to give it a try. Both Ali and I had the Smoked Cheese and Roasted Tomato, Rocket Salad to start which was extremely tasty. For mains I had the deliciously fresh Salmon with a Teriyaki and Chili Sauce and Al had a rare and oozing steak (yuch!). The food was fabulous but the service was so bad we decided to give the pudding a miss and head back to the tent for a early night in anticipation for our big walk the next day. Shame we camped on a hill and next to a family who seemed to love The Kaiser Chiefs so much they wanted to share it with the rest of the camp site until 1230 in the morning!
After a night of snoring from Kaiser Chief man in the next tent we got up, had some bacon rolls for breakfast, packed up our tent (very noisily!) and headed north to Uig.
Uig is a ferry port to Harris and North Uist so gets busy with people island hopping and delivery vehicles. It’s not the most thriving place in Skye but the people are friendly and it is a good base for lots of stunning walks inland and around the coast. We pitched our tent in the only camp site which had a huge friendly Bearded Collie the size of a pony who slept all day (usually in the middle of the road!) and looked about sixteen years old but was actually four; he must have had a hard life!
Our first walk of the holiday was to Greshornish Point which is a small promontory jutting out into Loch Snizort with Loch Greshornish to the east. From the advice of our guide book we followed sheep tracks and and came quite close to the edge of those cliffs! Although it was quite misty the views of the moorland and cliffs were wonderful and the walk made for a very peaceful and relaxing start to our visit to Skye.
We had a nice surprise where we came across a secluded bay and noticed a seal poking it’s head up from the water, keeping an eye on us. We didn’t manage to shoot it though (I mean take a picture of!), we only got a sheep who also came wandering around the cliff and got the fright of it’s life when she realised there were people on her beach!
This friendly bird visited us both mornings while staying at Uig, he was extremely tame and flitted from tent to tent hoping for some breadcrumbs. He even stepped on the hot ring of our stove while cooking our breakfast. We caught him here having a look in our car.. but I think Ali’s boots soon made him scamper.
After our walk we headed west to Loch Dunvegan and it’s Castle. Unfortunately, it was so misty and alive with midges we didn’t get any decent pictures. Even our trusty Avon ‘Skin So Soft’ didn’t deter these monsters! So, we headed back to the camp site for some lovely Aberdeen Angus burgers and hot chocolate…yum!
We got up nice and early and decided to head east to Trotternish to walk up The Storr which is the highest summit on the Trotternish Ridge and has some really interesting geology. The highest of the pinnacles is known as the ‘Old Man of Storr’ (the big rock on the right hand side of the left picture) which is 165 ft high and 40 ft in diameter at the base. We climbed to the base, known as ‘The ‘Sanctuary’ which has spectacular views over the land below. It’s a popular walk but if you head round to the other side of the Old Man there are lots of spots to sit down on a rock and cool down while having lunch.
Heading down was much quicker and easier than the climb up but we were pleased to get back to the tent and rest our weary bones! After dinner we headed into the local pub for a nightcap and a comfy seat.
This is my hubby Ali when we reached The Sanctuary and yes, we did trudge the tripods all the way up!
Once packed, with a quick stop in Portree to get our Skye fudge for our Kitty Keeper, we headed down to Glen Brittle in the South West of Skye. We found a camp site nestled between the spectacular black sands of Loch Brittle and the striking Cuillin Hills. If you ever visit Skye this is definitely the place to stay, the views waking up in the morning are simply breathtaking. Even though the mist didn’t really lift it gave the looming Cuillin Corries a very atmospheric and peaceful feel. Also, the staff were extremely friendly and helpful and I really liked how the site itself was well kept and the pitches were set in private grassy hillocks.
After putting up our tent and picking up some essential provisions for tea we headed off for our last walk of the holiday which was to the headland of Rubh’an Dunain. This lies at the tip of the peninsula separating Loch Brittle from Soay Sound. We passed some wonderful waterfalls and stunning views of the southern end of the Cuillin ridge.
It was also rather boggy! Again, we carried all our camera gear all the way but the lighting wasn’t really conducive to capturing great photos! On our way back we had a great view of the Cuillins which popped out the clouds for a short time.
On our last day of our hols we thought we would take it easy before our long drive home. We passed through stunning Sligachan and stopped off at the famous bridge to get a long exposure of the water. Again, shame the sky wasn’t better; it’s no wonder really that Skye is also known as ‘Misty Isle’!
It was sad to leave the Island but we had to head home otherwise the cats would have been in the huff for weeks! On the way home we stopped off at Plockton for some paninis at ‘Plockton Shores’. A wonderful, smart bistro with excellent service, I would highly recommend a visit
We will definitely be back to Skye, I think it is one of my favourite places in Scotland :0)
