All your suggesgtions are good, but the West Highland Way is lacking in gourmet options, though it scores well otherwise.

Weather is the driest of the year according to many resources.

Thank you, Ackislander. Does what we're thinking of sound manageable, or are we trying to jam too much into one week?

If you are looking for scenery AND food - Skye has both Three Chimneys is delightful high end dining - we had a fantastic lunch there@

Some info and photos from our recent trip with somewhat similar interests:

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/scotland-trossachs-skye-and-loch-ness-an-indydad-trip-report.cfm

Highly recommend the following site for walking info:

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/

Good luck and have fun.

Thanks, GreenDragon, Three Chimneys looks fabulous and Skye walks will fit the bill nicely. Oh wow! indy_dad, thanks for the info. Your photos are stunning! I can hardly wait.

A couple of other recommendations for fine food on Skye are Cafe Arriba in Portree, and I had a dinner at Toravaig House Hotel that was arguably even better than the Three Chimmneys. Certainly Skye is a good choice for those who enjoy both walking and dining, but be aware that the Cullins can be treacherous. Do your research via the walkhighlands website.

For Toravaig House www.skyehotel.co.uk

Also note that if thinking about doing the West Highland Way, the Moor of Rannoch Hotel is both a great place to stay and to dine.

www.moorofrannoch.co.uk

Wonderful info. Thank you all. We are experienced hikers/backpackers, but not technical climbers. I expect that will limit our Munro options somewhat and will do research. All the Skye recommendations are wonderful. That leg of the trip may last a while!

North West Highlands might also be a good option for both your interests.

Suggest mega midge repellant. This year is reputed to be the worst on record.

Thank you, Sheila. I just ordered bug-resistant pants to go along with the repellant. Do you have particular recommendations of places to stay/eat/hike in NW Highlands?

http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationRentalReview-g186525-d1451091-Very_Central_City_Apartment_Dublin_Street_WiFi-Edinburgh_Scotland.html

We stayed here last Sept. We loved it and she will book it for 3 nights. We did a day tour of the Highlands but wish we had stayed and seen more of Edinburgh. It was more of Rob Roy drank in that pub as we drove by. Sterling castle was like Disney. Edinburgh Castle was nice and did get there in time to see the firing of the canon at 1:00 pm. Salmon and steak were fab. Don't eat fish on Monday. Our landlord said it is not fresh. Wait till Tuesday.

It is Stirling Castle - and it isn't at all 'Disney-esque' IMO. There are a few sort of tableau and a few docents in period costumes. But the Castle itself is magnificent and not tarted up.

Sterling castle was like Disney.

That made me choke on my cornflakes this morning - you are kidding aren't you? Stirling Castle is one of the most important historical sites in Scotland over the past 900 years. Unlike some of the ghastly tourist "sites" the ill-informed flock to as soon as they get of the plane (London Dungeon, Madame Tussauds etc etc), Stirling Castle is the real thing.

Places I would/would like to stay in in Sutherland include:-

The Kylesku Hotel, The Albannach (***)Mackay's rooms and restaurants in Durness, The Summer Isles (****), the Plockton, the Pool House, the Plockton Inn, the Applecross Inn. For big hills, you have Torridon and Assynt and Coigach; but you have low level walks to paces like Durness, and Cape Wrath.

Have a look at the Walkhighlands website

... the firing of the canon...

Was he defrocked as well?

Thanks everyone. You are wonderful! Stirling Castle looks like a great day trip to do with our son before we leave him at St Andrews. From the other posts I've read, car rentals sound tricky. How does this sound: To spend a few days around Glen Coe (our son's recommendation), we take the train to Fort William and rent a car there. We turn the car in and take the train and ferry to Skye. Rent another car there and turn it in before we leave. Train to Glasgow and from there to Edi.

I'm not sure what you've heard, but I can assure you there's nothing "tricky" about car hire in Scotland - it's a great way to get around the country with maximum flexibility. Outside the busy centres of Glasgow and Edinburgh, driving is remarkably straightforward.

It makes no sense (and will be very expensive) to go by train to Fort William, hire a car then inexplicably return it one or two days later before heading on to Skye on public transport and hiring another car there... Just hire a car for the whole trip at Edinburgh airport.

I wouldn't make a point of going to Fort William at all, unless you're just passing through - it's a ugly dump of a place despite its proximity to some amazing scenery.

There is absolutely nothing tricky about renting cars. The only tricky bit would be the convoluted train/car/train/ferry/car/train route you devised

Just collect a car at EDI or GLA (whichever one you land at) and drop it back at EDI. Could not be easier . . .

Oh, one other thing I wanted to get off my chest . It's a mystery to me that everytime Skye comes up on this forum, I guarantee someone will immediately recommend that Three Chimneys restaurant place - as if it and the island are somehow synonomous. I've been to Skye several times (live in the UK), and had never heard of it apart from on Fodors.

From what I gather it's a very expensive foodie restaurant, which is right out on the extreme northwest of the island past Dunvegan. Due to its remote location and the (no doubt) leisurely and elaborate service, to go there for lunch from, say, Portree or Broadford would take up most of the day. I'm sure it's very nice if you've got money to burn and time on your hands, but there is so much more to see in Skye than this restaurant if you're just there for a day or so.

Gordon: True about the Three Chimneys. It is a famous/foodie place but well outside the budget of many visitors and not at ALL convenient for the typical 2 or even 3 day stay. I have eaten there once--loved it, but seldom recommend it on here because they are mostly lightening trips w/ a night or two on the island. Or if someone is asking about moderate/cheap accommodations, or it is a family w/ a couple of kids . . . the Three Chimneys would probably not what they are looking for.

I do recommend it, and have only eaten there the once, for lunch, and it was fantastic. Yes, there is much more to see there - but there are other things in that area (scenery, MacLeod's tables, Skye Silver, Carbost folk museum) that would make a nice afternoon or morning jaunt combined with something else. I recommend it because it was the best meal I'd had in Scotland - and I had many lovely meals!

Trains are a hobby of the hubby, but I bet he can live with a round trip on the Jacobite steam train. My plan did look convoluted. It is good to hear that car rentals are not that difficult. Some of the other posts had me worried. We'll probably spring for a foodie meal or so, but mostly want good, fresh local food. Recommendations?

A few great (and affordable) places we've eaten in in the last year or so:-

Portree, Skye
Cafe Ariba (try the Talisker whisky flavoured lamb if it's on is wonderful): http://cafearriba.co.uk/

Harbour View Seafood Restaurant: http://www.harbourviewskye.co.uk/

Trottenish Peninsula, Skye
Flodigarry Hotel (local mussels out of this world) http://www.flodigarry.co.uk/

Kyle of Lochalsh
Kintail Lodge Hotel (amazing local seafood on the shores of Loch Duart) http://www.kintaillodgehotel.co.uk/

We now have a car reserved for the entire trip and a reservation at Old Pines for two nights. I'm about ready to make reservations for Skye, but I can tell that my husband is longing for Islay whisky and distillery tours. We only have two or three nights, which doesn't look like enough time for both islands. I suspect we'll have to save one for the next. If you had to choose one island to start with, which would you pick-Skye? Islay? Another?

OK - Islay is great but since you only have time for one island, it probably should be Skye. Your husband can visit Talisker. It isn't an Islay distillery, but one distillery is pretty much identical to every other one. So you can see the same distillery process as would happen on Islay.

Then most every pub will have a big selection of single malts so he can try all Islays he wants (as well as from other regions of course)

(OR - you could bag Skye all together and go to Islay instead )

Thank you, janisj. I think we'll take your advice and go to Skye first. We'll save Islay for another trip. With two more years of school after this one, we hope to see a lot of the country.

I always choose Islay. But it's horses for courses. I love teh place. And whilst one distillery may be similar to another (and some are very similar indeed), some of the Islay ones have so much distinctiveness that there truly is no substitute. Trust me; I've visited many.

What Islay lacks is the grandeur of Skye. And the bridge (lacking which is a good thing, IMO). But is has sooo much more.