After a restful night, we woke up refreshed and ready to start our day. Fiona had us a delightful breakfast laid out to fuel us for the upcoming adventures. Today we were going to explore the Isle of Skye. What we came to realize is that island life in Scotland can be very eventful. The start of the day was a typical overcast day with a light breeze, but little did we know that we were about to experience a true Scottish storm blow in from the North Atlantic! We headed out for our first adventure at the Fairy Pools at the base of the Black Cuillians Mountains. They are called black for the same reason we call the hills in South Dakota the Black Hills. From a distance the mountains look black, but as you get close to them you see they are dark, dark green.
For anyone making the drive to the Fairy Pools be aware that the one road in and out is treacherous at best. It is a single lane road with cars traveling in both directions. They have some bump outs along the way for cars to move over so they can pass each other, but the asphalt is crumbling and it is very narrow. We heard about three vehicles tipping over as they tried to manouver around another vehicle on the day we were at the pools. Once a car is stuck everyone is stuck. I would recommend an early visit in case there is an issue. There are toilets at the fairy pools, but no other services.
The other thing to be aware of is how fast the weather can change in the highlands and the western isles. The picture above and the picture below were taken about five minutes apart. The temperature plummeted and the rain was coming down sideways.
Once the winds picked up we started to second guess our choice on this adventure. I have never been so drenched! We had our rain gear on, but with 40 to 50 mph winds blowimg, the rain found every crack and opening in our clothes. David actually held his hands up on this one and we both decided to bow to Mother Nature. It is hard to enjoy the scenery when you are getting blasted by the elements and can barely see through your glasses! We did get to see a few waterfalls and such before heading back up the trail, so that was something at least. The last picture in this group was from one of our friends on the tour. They literally ran to this pool and raced back to get out of the weather. They were nice enough to share the picture with us.
(Note: cannot take credit for photo below)
After getting battered by the winds and rain our guide thought it would be a good idea to stop at a local whiskey distillery for a comfort stop and to put a little fire in our bellies if we chose to partake. Not too far down the road from the Fairy Pools is the Talisker Whiskey Distillery in the tiny hamlet of Carbost. They have whiskey tastings and tours available. However, after the deluge we had experienced, I have to say that the bathrooms were an added perk. This place probably has the best bathrooms on the entire island. After hiking for a while the bathrooms felt almost like a spa. (Sorry no pictures).
We decided to skip the whiskey tasting (a wee bit early in the day for us) and choose to grab a hot cocoa and coffee instead!
By this time we were ready for lunch in the beautiful town of Portree. This is the biggest town on the island with a population around 1,000. I know that sounds small, and it is, but every other town we've visited thus far typically had less than a hundred people, so Portree felt huge.
Portree is most famous from pictures of their harbor. It is a colorful row of businesses with the backdrop of a hill and water. We quickly decided on lunch at Cuchullin. David had the fish and chips and highly recommended it. Julia and I chose a seafood chowder that was great too. It wasn't your typical cream based soup, but it had a variety of seafood and hearty potatoes and vegetables in it.
After lunch it was time to head back out on the road again. We thought we had gotten through most of the weather, but Mother Nature was about to show us what she could really do. As we were on our way to see Old Man Storr (which is a unique mountain on the island) the weather turned nasty again. The clouds dropped down and covered most of the mountain face. Rain began to move in and rather than hiking up the mountain side in the rain we voted to skip it.
The story about Old Man Storr was that he and his wife used to hike up the mountain every day together. After many years of doing this the wife sadly passed away. The husband wanted to take his wife up the mountain one more time, but it was hard going by himself. The local fairies saw him and asked what he was doing. When he told them they asked if we would like to stay with his wife on the mountain forever. He thought about it and said it was a lovely idea, so they turned him into part of the mountain.
If you look at the picture below you can see a little bit of the old man’s face.
Next up was Kilt Rock, which is an iconic waterfall near the ocean. The rain had lightened, but the winds were even worse at this point. The guide felt we were dealing with around 90 kph (60 mph) winds. In fact, when he opened the door of the coach the winds wrenched the door backwards. The guide was able to get it to close again, but it showed us how bad the winds were at this point.
Only a handful of people wanted to get out of the bus to see this waterfall and David and Julia were in that group. I, on the other hand, decided to partake in the warmth of the bus and dry out a little! The water eventually makes it to the ocean a short distance away. David said while he was taking pictures that it was almost impossible to hold his phone due to how strong the winds were blowing.
Little did we know the winds were only going to pick up even more at our next stop: Mealt Falls! This waterfall pours from the cliff directly into the ocean. The winds were whipping us all around. At one point Julia leaned forward to see if the winds would hold her up and they did! Even though the weather was brutal we laughed and had so much fun at this stop. There was just something so wild and free being at the top of these cliffs with the crazy weather!
As rough as the day had been we had no idea the beauty that awaited us as we wrapped up the day. Our guide debated if it was safe to journey to Quiraing in the far north of the isle. In the end he decided to chance it and we were so glad he did. This was my favorite stop the entire trip. It was so beautiful.
David told me when he thought about northern Scotland and the western isles the views below are exactly what he envisioned. The winds were still blowing hard, but somehow that just added to the experience. The desolation was absolute, yet so much beauty there as well. We survived the elements, the roads and many delays, but as we soaked up the views before us we knew we had “made it”. This was what we had waited to see. I hope and pray everyone will have the chance to see this same view one day.
The picture below is one of David’s favorite pictures from the entire trip. The single lane road disappears into the distance as the rugged mountain peaks disappear into the North Sea.
Finally, it was time to leave this beautiful place. We had yet another magical place to see along our route. We were off to see the Fairy Glen and Castle on the western coast of the Isle in the town of Uig.
This was both a favorite stop and a strenuous stop for me. As someone who adores all things magical and mythical- this part of Scotland really captures those moments. You can almost feel the fairies presence all around you as you step further and further into their realm. There is a well worn path that leads towards the top of the mountain and to the top of the castle. As previously mentioned, the hike is a bit strenuous, but the views are beautiful. Additinally, the last part of the hike requires you to squeeze between two rock walls. However, once you break free of the rocks you have a 360 degree view of the surrounding countryside. To me this part of the trip encapsulates everything that is Scottish.
As we made our way back to the B&B on the isle the guide made one more pit stop. Apparently the Scottish folks have their own “fountain of youth” legend. Our tour guide, Chris, told us that in order to capture your, one must dip their face into the pool. So... as the rain pelted us we made our way to the river banks to dip our face in the water. I sometimes wonder if the guides do this just to see who is willing to freeze the skin on their face. Hey, when in Rome!
As we crawled back on the bus we were exhausted, but thrilled with all we had experienced. The weather taught us some tough lessons, but we have memories we will cherish forever! This was as perfect a day as we could have hoped for on the Isle of Skye.
We made it back into town and stopped at the local pub for a quick bite. I got a traditional Scottish dish called Cullen skink which is a thick Scottish soup made of smoked haddock, potatoes and onions. It was absolutely yummy and really hit the spot. I can see why hearty soups and stews are a mainstay in this part of the world!
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