Beautiful countryside of Isle of Skye

Wednesday 30 May 2012  -From a walk in a park to a drink in a port on Skye

Day 48 and 111 to go

We were woken early by a random phone call that was not appreciated though it did not prevent us going back to sleep and getting a couple more hours before we got out and ready to face the day. The shower was a bit hit and miss and unfortunately Paul was scalded in it. Not a good thing.

We wandered down to the water edge outside to check the canal. We saw a red deer springing along the bank. It was quite fresh outside and the cloud cover prevented us from seeing any of Ben Nevis.

We ate the hearty breakfast that began with a delicious bowl of fresh tropical fruits. I made sure I filled up as we had a walk ahead of us.

Paul filled the car, we said our goodbyes and we drove back towards Fort William and on to the Glen Nevis visitor’s area. After gathering the info for the walk we continued to drive amongst the valleys of the mountains until we reached the final car park and began the walk up the gorge.

Unfortunately Paul’s hip was playing up and he wasn’t able to walk for too far so he returned to the car while I continued on. The walk was not extreme, but I needed to be cautious due to the rocky and wet ground. The whole time I was I awe of the scenery. The water was rushing past below me. I could see where the rocks had been sculpted by the water.

Around 20min later I came out into the wide valley. It was spectacular. A large wide glen spread out between the mountains with the Steall waterfall in the background and a river winding by.

I took the pictures I wanted, soaked in the cool air and then began the decent. 20 min later I was back in the car park and with Paul. We then continued the journey to Glenfinnan where the Harry Potter train travels over the viaduct. The views on the way continued to amaze with beautiful lochs and green mountains.

Passing the viaduct we continued on to the coastal spot of Mallaig where we were to catch the ferry across to Armadale on the Isle of Skye. We found the port and bought tickets before walking through the town centre and having a drink at the pub. We then returned to the car and at 1.30pm drove onto the ferry and found a place to sit up on deck.

The ferry ride was a quick one with us arriving 30min later. We drove off and continued our drive through to Broadford where we stopped briefly to gather tourist info. With the info we needed our first stop was Talisker Distillery about 40min away.

The road wound past lochs and mountains again through the town of Sligachan before we made it to the distillery. We were going to do the tour but we didn’t time it right so instead we were given a free tasting and of course Paul had mine.

We walked through the shop before heading on again. This time we followed the waters edge to Dunvegan where there is a castle. I was intending just to take some photos from outside but you weren’t able to see it unless you went in the gates and paid the fee so we turned around and headed for our B&B just out of Portree.
We arrived at 5pm and were met by Duncan who showed us around and then to our room. We got ourselves sorted and had a cuppa before we drove back in to Portree to explore the small fishing village.

We stopped at the Cuilin Hills Hotel where the view from the beer garden back over the harbour and the town was beautiful. The sun was shining and it was just glorious soaking in the rays. After our drink we drove back into the centre and found parking. We wandered around the town stopping at the brewing shop  gathering information from the owners. 

We continued our walk on to the pub where we had another drink, sitting outside and talking to one of the locals. We have noticed the people here are friendly and more than willing to have a chat.

We wandered on to the Quay where the buildings were all painted in paisley. Very quaint. We were hungry so we checked out a few of the restaurants many were full so we returned to the pub for an easy meal of fish and chips.

With dinner finished I drove the car back to our B&B where we watched tv, checked emails and prepared for tomorrow’s adventure. 

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