Skye Report May-June 2008
Jun 14th, 2008, 05:50 PM
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Skye Report May-June 2008
We spent an absolutely fabulous two weeks on Skye at the end of May and beginning of June.
This is our second trip to Scotland and the second time we've been extremely lucky with the weather. This time we had about two overcast days, one partly rainy day, and all the rest of the days were mostly sunny. (I don't count fog in the morning or a spritz from a passing cloud.) It was heavenly.
My husband was attending a symposium at the Gaelic college in Armadale, Sabal Mor Ostaig, and so we rented a self-catering property just a little bit further south, in Aird of Sleat (the point of Sleat).
If you have ever -- as I did two years ago -- stood in Mallaig staring over at Skye, it is in the very last little group of white cottages you see before the island ends.
Here is the website to the cottage: www.beautifulskye.com. It was wonderful in every way; comfortable, extremely well thought out, and nicely equipped. It is a small cottage (one room with a double bed, one with two twins, and a small "bunk room" downstairs where you could put extra children) but the space was cozy rather than tight.
The drive between the cottage and Armadale was along a windy single-track road. The first time we did it I was on the edge of my seat, but by the end of the first week I was fairly comfortable with it.
For us, the location worked out very well. If you wanted to spend most of your time on the north end of Skye, of course, it would be too out of the way. It is a (relatively) quick drive from Armadale up to Broadford, most of it on an uncharacteristically wide highway, but it's still half an hour to Broadford and an hour to Portree. (In case anyone's planning to take the ferry in the immediate future, the section of road just north of Armadale was being reconstructed the entire time we were there, but they were making good progress, and it will be wider and easier to drive when they're done.)
But if you want relaxation in a beautiful setting -- Sleat is very green and lush compared with some other parts of the island -- and you don't mind driving a little bit to do some sightseeing -- Sleat is a great place to be.
The Armadale Castle grounds are a nice place for a walk (the castle itself, or what remains, has been gutted, but there is a small yet interesting visitors' center on the grounds). There is a beautiful drive you can take (or make on foot, as some of our friends did) that makes a circle through Ord and Tarskavaig, on the other side of the peninsula, with fabulous views to the mountains further west.
There is also a very scenic walk at the very end of the island -- you take the road south from Armadale, past Ardvasar, another four miles or so until it comes to an old church (now a gallery for a watercolor artist, http://www.skyewatercolours.co.uk/). There is a place to pull the car over and a sign warning that livestock grazes freely on the land ahead. Two and a half hilly miles later, with a little detour that's signposted, you can either climb to a lookout point or descend to a sandy beach.
It was perfect for us because my husband's schedule and our children's ages (9 and 4) precluded some of the walks we would have taken on our own.
There are some fairly well known eating options in the area, but we did not eat out much, except to have dinner twice at the Ardvasar Hotel. The staff there was extremely nice and friendly, and the food was good.
We did not really do much up in Broadford other than shop at the Co-op. I also bought some gorgeous yarn at a shop called The Handspinner Having Fun right along the main road through Broadford.
From Broadford, we also drove down to Elgol twice -- once as a sort of test run, and once to take a boat trip on the Bella Jane (http://www.bellajane.co.uk/) over to Loch Coruisk. That was, unfortunately, one of our only non-sunny days, but it did not mar the experience at all. The boys were thrilled with the boat ride. I had hoped to go back to take one of the other available trips (http://www.aquaxplore.co.uk/boat_trips.asp), especially out to Eigg, since we spent part of each day staring at it from our cottage, but we ran out of time. That just gives us a reason to go back!
When I find the notes I left on my husband's computer, I'll add some more about what we saw on the rest of the island.
This is our second trip to Scotland and the second time we've been extremely lucky with the weather. This time we had about two overcast days, one partly rainy day, and all the rest of the days were mostly sunny. (I don't count fog in the morning or a spritz from a passing cloud.) It was heavenly.
My husband was attending a symposium at the Gaelic college in Armadale, Sabal Mor Ostaig, and so we rented a self-catering property just a little bit further south, in Aird of Sleat (the point of Sleat).
If you have ever -- as I did two years ago -- stood in Mallaig staring over at Skye, it is in the very last little group of white cottages you see before the island ends.
Here is the website to the cottage: www.beautifulskye.com. It was wonderful in every way; comfortable, extremely well thought out, and nicely equipped. It is a small cottage (one room with a double bed, one with two twins, and a small "bunk room" downstairs where you could put extra children) but the space was cozy rather than tight.
The drive between the cottage and Armadale was along a windy single-track road. The first time we did it I was on the edge of my seat, but by the end of the first week I was fairly comfortable with it.
For us, the location worked out very well. If you wanted to spend most of your time on the north end of Skye, of course, it would be too out of the way. It is a (relatively) quick drive from Armadale up to Broadford, most of it on an uncharacteristically wide highway, but it's still half an hour to Broadford and an hour to Portree. (In case anyone's planning to take the ferry in the immediate future, the section of road just north of Armadale was being reconstructed the entire time we were there, but they were making good progress, and it will be wider and easier to drive when they're done.)
But if you want relaxation in a beautiful setting -- Sleat is very green and lush compared with some other parts of the island -- and you don't mind driving a little bit to do some sightseeing -- Sleat is a great place to be.
The Armadale Castle grounds are a nice place for a walk (the castle itself, or what remains, has been gutted, but there is a small yet interesting visitors' center on the grounds). There is a beautiful drive you can take (or make on foot, as some of our friends did) that makes a circle through Ord and Tarskavaig, on the other side of the peninsula, with fabulous views to the mountains further west.
There is also a very scenic walk at the very end of the island -- you take the road south from Armadale, past Ardvasar, another four miles or so until it comes to an old church (now a gallery for a watercolor artist, http://www.skyewatercolours.co.uk/). There is a place to pull the car over and a sign warning that livestock grazes freely on the land ahead. Two and a half hilly miles later, with a little detour that's signposted, you can either climb to a lookout point or descend to a sandy beach.
It was perfect for us because my husband's schedule and our children's ages (9 and 4) precluded some of the walks we would have taken on our own.
There are some fairly well known eating options in the area, but we did not eat out much, except to have dinner twice at the Ardvasar Hotel. The staff there was extremely nice and friendly, and the food was good.
We did not really do much up in Broadford other than shop at the Co-op. I also bought some gorgeous yarn at a shop called The Handspinner Having Fun right along the main road through Broadford.
From Broadford, we also drove down to Elgol twice -- once as a sort of test run, and once to take a boat trip on the Bella Jane (http://www.bellajane.co.uk/) over to Loch Coruisk. That was, unfortunately, one of our only non-sunny days, but it did not mar the experience at all. The boys were thrilled with the boat ride. I had hoped to go back to take one of the other available trips (http://www.aquaxplore.co.uk/boat_trips.asp), especially out to Eigg, since we spent part of each day staring at it from our cottage, but we ran out of time. That just gives us a reason to go back!
When I find the notes I left on my husband's computer, I'll add some more about what we saw on the rest of the island.
Jun 14th, 2008, 06:22 PM
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Thanks so much for this report, Barbara_in_FL! You've painted a lovely picture of your location and the general area of Skye. I love that little drive on the Sleat Peninsula through Tarskavaig, etc., and I appreciate all of the other detail that you've provided about southern Skye.
Just today I draggeded out books and maps (and a pulled up a few trip reports) and began some early planning for a possible trip to the Scottish Isles for next June. Your report could not come at a better time!
Any further details you provide will be very welcome. 2 weeks on Skye sounds like a heavenly break from early Summer (late Spring) in the south (we've had some VERY hot weather in Georgia lately)!
Just today I draggeded out books and maps (and a pulled up a few trip reports) and began some early planning for a possible trip to the Scottish Isles for next June. Your report could not come at a better time!
Any further details you provide will be very welcome. 2 weeks on Skye sounds like a heavenly break from early Summer (late Spring) in the south (we've had some VERY hot weather in Georgia lately)!
Jun 16th, 2008, 06:29 PM
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There is something to be said for not feeling any pressure to get "up and at 'em" on any given day. Staying as long as we did gave us plenty of time to relax. Of course, the downside was that even after two weeks, there were things I wished I had done. But really, the view from our cottage was so lovely that I would have been happy to just sit and stare out the window (I have since changed the wallpaper on my laptop).
For example, on our first full day there, all we did was find the nearest rocky cove (there is a little one just down the hill from the cottage), go for a short drive as far as Sligachan, looking up at the Red Cuillins, and do some grocery shopping in Broadford. Dinner was fresh mussels harvested from "our" rocky cove.
The next day we drove at a leisurely pace to Portree, stopping several times for photos, and rented a bike for my husband. There is a good bike/fishing shop called Island Cycles right along the main street through Portree, above where all the tour buses park (and where there is also a daily parking lot for visitors). The owner was very helpful and accommodating, had all the equipment my husband needed, and had a very sweet black Lab named Bella that the boys wanted to borrow too (but the owner said he would miss her too much).
On day three, my husband's conference started. I wanted to take the boys on a boat trip out of Elgol, so I thought I would drive over to see how long it took. Longer than I thought! I never did get comfortable with the speeds the locals drive on those one-track roads. But it was a beautiful day, the scenery on the way to Elgol is lovely, and we were surrounded by sheep, so the boys were entertained. We spent the afternoon just walking near the cottage and relaxing.
On day four, we took a "Bella Jane" boat trip over to Loch Coruisk from Elgol. The boys absolutely loved it. Unfortunately, it was one of the only rainy days we had, but at least the rain held off until we were on our way BACK from the Loch, so we were able to appreciate the mountain peaks surrounding us. I think I already included the URLs for the Bella Jane and another day-tripping boat in the first post.
After the Bella Jane, though, I realized that my 4-year-old was not quite ready for a longer boat excursion, at least not one where I would have to carry him while he slept (he still naps mid-day and fell asleep on the Bella Jane on the way back, even though it was raining and he was balanced rather awkwardly on my arm). So, at the end of the week, we took a ferry ride from Armadale over to Mallaig and back. That was just perfect. (And, if you don't arrive by ferry, it gives you some gorgeous views of the Sleat peninsula and other nearby islands.) We were hoping to see the steam train pull in before we had lunch at the Tea Garden, but as it turned out the steam train had broken down that morning.
We saved a day for a drive around the Trotternish peninsula. The entire island seemed to be surrounded by a fog bank and, as we approached Portree, we could see the Old Man of Storr rising above the clouds. The fog began to burn off, but the road leaving Portree was still fairly grey. Abov the Storr Lochs it cleared, and we looked back and realized just how low the fog was staying, so we turned around and went back to a parking place we had just noticed where people were hiking up the side of the hill. We quickly rose above the fog and had a tremendous view of the Storr and all the surrounding mountaintops, although we could not tell where the lochs were or, for that matter, where the mainland was.
Without our 4-year-old we would have turned it into a real hike, but he is too big to carry and too little to walk for hours, so we turned around at the point where the trail really started to rise. As we drove around the rest of the peninsula the fog bank stayed just offshore, giving it almost the feeling of being a separate island. I kept thinking of "The Mists of Avalon."
We stopped at the Duntulm Castle Hotel for some tea (for us) and ice cream (for the kids). Although the hotel discourages people from walking directly to the castle ruins, access was just a bit further up the road, and the hotel had a lovely view. We also made a stop at the Skye Museum of Island Life. If you like that sort of thing, and I do, it was very informative without being "too much."
I am getting my days a little out of order here, but I don't think it matters. Another day we took the local road to Kylerea (I may be spelling that wrong), where there is a small, private ferry that carries half a dozen cars at a time over a very swift current to the Glenelg peninsula. The local road on both sides of the water is a windy single-track road, but my only complaint was that it was hard to appreciate the scenery and drive at the same time. The boys loved the ferry and also loved seeing otters swimming in the water near the landing. The Glenelg peninsula is spectacular and also a great place for hiking -- the next time we go back. We drove around through Shiel Bridge and hopped on the A87, which quickly deposited us at Eilean Donan Castle. My 9-year-old marveled at how quickly we were back in Kyle of Localsh on the main road, compared with how long it took us to get from Broadford to Shiel Bridge on the local road. (Does it mean we were starting to acclimate that the A87 felt almost like an autoroute?)
Going back over the bridge we stopped in Kyleakin and went to the Bright Water Visitor Center, http://www.ukattraction.com/a_print/...853ODJ&a=0. I was hoping to take the boys out to the former home of writer Gavin Maxwell, but missed the last tour (I think the visitor center was open until 4, but the island only accessible until 3, and the last tour had been at 2). The website says that the hours vary, so if this is something that interests you it might be worth a phone call ahead of time. The Visitor Center also had a lot of information on guided walks nearby. The Center itself is small but interesting, perhaps not requiring a special trip (unless, like me, you remember seeing Ring of Bright Water -- am I dating myself too badly?) but worth a stop if you are in the area.
Two other excursions we made were in the direction of the Talisker distillery and Dunvegan Castle. The boys really enjoyed Dunvegan. I was pleasantly surprised as well; my expectations had been low because the Rough Guide at the house was somewhat dismissive of it. We also drove out to Trumpan (near the tip of the Waternish peninsula) to see the ruins of the church where, in 1579, a group of MacDonalds set fire to the sanctuary roof while a group of MacLeods were inside, killing all but one (apparently in retaliation for the MacLeods setting a fire outside a cave on Eigg that killed many MacDonalds). Retribution was swift. It is amazing that there was anyone left at the end...
For example, on our first full day there, all we did was find the nearest rocky cove (there is a little one just down the hill from the cottage), go for a short drive as far as Sligachan, looking up at the Red Cuillins, and do some grocery shopping in Broadford. Dinner was fresh mussels harvested from "our" rocky cove.
The next day we drove at a leisurely pace to Portree, stopping several times for photos, and rented a bike for my husband. There is a good bike/fishing shop called Island Cycles right along the main street through Portree, above where all the tour buses park (and where there is also a daily parking lot for visitors). The owner was very helpful and accommodating, had all the equipment my husband needed, and had a very sweet black Lab named Bella that the boys wanted to borrow too (but the owner said he would miss her too much).
On day three, my husband's conference started. I wanted to take the boys on a boat trip out of Elgol, so I thought I would drive over to see how long it took. Longer than I thought! I never did get comfortable with the speeds the locals drive on those one-track roads. But it was a beautiful day, the scenery on the way to Elgol is lovely, and we were surrounded by sheep, so the boys were entertained. We spent the afternoon just walking near the cottage and relaxing.
On day four, we took a "Bella Jane" boat trip over to Loch Coruisk from Elgol. The boys absolutely loved it. Unfortunately, it was one of the only rainy days we had, but at least the rain held off until we were on our way BACK from the Loch, so we were able to appreciate the mountain peaks surrounding us. I think I already included the URLs for the Bella Jane and another day-tripping boat in the first post.
After the Bella Jane, though, I realized that my 4-year-old was not quite ready for a longer boat excursion, at least not one where I would have to carry him while he slept (he still naps mid-day and fell asleep on the Bella Jane on the way back, even though it was raining and he was balanced rather awkwardly on my arm). So, at the end of the week, we took a ferry ride from Armadale over to Mallaig and back. That was just perfect. (And, if you don't arrive by ferry, it gives you some gorgeous views of the Sleat peninsula and other nearby islands.) We were hoping to see the steam train pull in before we had lunch at the Tea Garden, but as it turned out the steam train had broken down that morning.
We saved a day for a drive around the Trotternish peninsula. The entire island seemed to be surrounded by a fog bank and, as we approached Portree, we could see the Old Man of Storr rising above the clouds. The fog began to burn off, but the road leaving Portree was still fairly grey. Abov the Storr Lochs it cleared, and we looked back and realized just how low the fog was staying, so we turned around and went back to a parking place we had just noticed where people were hiking up the side of the hill. We quickly rose above the fog and had a tremendous view of the Storr and all the surrounding mountaintops, although we could not tell where the lochs were or, for that matter, where the mainland was.
Without our 4-year-old we would have turned it into a real hike, but he is too big to carry and too little to walk for hours, so we turned around at the point where the trail really started to rise. As we drove around the rest of the peninsula the fog bank stayed just offshore, giving it almost the feeling of being a separate island. I kept thinking of "The Mists of Avalon."
We stopped at the Duntulm Castle Hotel for some tea (for us) and ice cream (for the kids). Although the hotel discourages people from walking directly to the castle ruins, access was just a bit further up the road, and the hotel had a lovely view. We also made a stop at the Skye Museum of Island Life. If you like that sort of thing, and I do, it was very informative without being "too much."
I am getting my days a little out of order here, but I don't think it matters. Another day we took the local road to Kylerea (I may be spelling that wrong), where there is a small, private ferry that carries half a dozen cars at a time over a very swift current to the Glenelg peninsula. The local road on both sides of the water is a windy single-track road, but my only complaint was that it was hard to appreciate the scenery and drive at the same time. The boys loved the ferry and also loved seeing otters swimming in the water near the landing. The Glenelg peninsula is spectacular and also a great place for hiking -- the next time we go back. We drove around through Shiel Bridge and hopped on the A87, which quickly deposited us at Eilean Donan Castle. My 9-year-old marveled at how quickly we were back in Kyle of Localsh on the main road, compared with how long it took us to get from Broadford to Shiel Bridge on the local road. (Does it mean we were starting to acclimate that the A87 felt almost like an autoroute?)
Going back over the bridge we stopped in Kyleakin and went to the Bright Water Visitor Center, http://www.ukattraction.com/a_print/...853ODJ&a=0. I was hoping to take the boys out to the former home of writer Gavin Maxwell, but missed the last tour (I think the visitor center was open until 4, but the island only accessible until 3, and the last tour had been at 2). The website says that the hours vary, so if this is something that interests you it might be worth a phone call ahead of time. The Visitor Center also had a lot of information on guided walks nearby. The Center itself is small but interesting, perhaps not requiring a special trip (unless, like me, you remember seeing Ring of Bright Water -- am I dating myself too badly?) but worth a stop if you are in the area.
Two other excursions we made were in the direction of the Talisker distillery and Dunvegan Castle. The boys really enjoyed Dunvegan. I was pleasantly surprised as well; my expectations had been low because the Rough Guide at the house was somewhat dismissive of it. We also drove out to Trumpan (near the tip of the Waternish peninsula) to see the ruins of the church where, in 1579, a group of MacDonalds set fire to the sanctuary roof while a group of MacLeods were inside, killing all but one (apparently in retaliation for the MacLeods setting a fire outside a cave on Eigg that killed many MacDonalds). Retribution was swift. It is amazing that there was anyone left at the end...
Jun 16th, 2008, 06:39 PM
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What a descriptive and wonderful trip report! It brings back such great memories. Scotland is paradise.
Glad you enjoyed Dunvegan. I've been to over 150 castles in the UK and while it is not one of my very favourites it was a pleasant surprise to me as well. There does not seem to be much written about it in guidebooks. The atmosphere and grounds are lovely.
Thanks for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed Dunvegan. I've been to over 150 castles in the UK and while it is not one of my very favourites it was a pleasant surprise to me as well. There does not seem to be much written about it in guidebooks. The atmosphere and grounds are lovely.
Thanks for sharing!
Jun 16th, 2008, 06:45 PM
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What a wonderful report! Enjoying every word of it. I've been around the Trotternish several times and the views have been different every single time. A fog layer like you saw, drizzly, foggy/misty, brilliant blue skies - it is an amazing place . . . . .
Jun 16th, 2008, 06:46 PM
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Sorry about the link to the Visitor Center; I think it will work if you cut and paste the entire link into your browser.
Near the church in Trumpan is a rough track you can walk towards the point of the Waternish; it is described on a placard near the church and I had also seen it referenced in some of the walking materials at the house. One of my regrets was not having enough time to walk out that way, because it is a fairly level walk that would have been easy to do with the little guy. But, as at so many other places, we just went walking along the road for awhile and enjoyed the scenery, which always seems to look different on foot anyway.
Our other major day-trip was -- because I had promised our 9-year-old -- a trip to Loch Ness. We got a slightly later start than I had hoped and so were not able to take one of the boats from Inverness or Drumnadrochit. But having a little bit longer to spend at Urquhart Castle was worth it for us -- as interesting as the restored castles can be, my husband and I both really enjoy the ones where you can imagine much earlier times. We also went to the Loch Ness 2000 Exhibition and thought it was well done (there is only so much you can do to avoid a certain amount of kitsch, but the program at the center was informative, and we came home with appropriate Nessie souvenirs).
Loch Ness was an easy day trip -- about a 2 1/2 hour drive each way.
If I think of anything else, I'll add it. I wish I could provide information on dining out, but we did very little of it, other than the already-mentioned Ardvasar Hotel.
If you only have time for two or three days on Skye, its beauty is worth the trip...but if you can spare more time, I don't think you'll be disappointed!
Near the church in Trumpan is a rough track you can walk towards the point of the Waternish; it is described on a placard near the church and I had also seen it referenced in some of the walking materials at the house. One of my regrets was not having enough time to walk out that way, because it is a fairly level walk that would have been easy to do with the little guy. But, as at so many other places, we just went walking along the road for awhile and enjoyed the scenery, which always seems to look different on foot anyway.
Our other major day-trip was -- because I had promised our 9-year-old -- a trip to Loch Ness. We got a slightly later start than I had hoped and so were not able to take one of the boats from Inverness or Drumnadrochit. But having a little bit longer to spend at Urquhart Castle was worth it for us -- as interesting as the restored castles can be, my husband and I both really enjoy the ones where you can imagine much earlier times. We also went to the Loch Ness 2000 Exhibition and thought it was well done (there is only so much you can do to avoid a certain amount of kitsch, but the program at the center was informative, and we came home with appropriate Nessie souvenirs).
Loch Ness was an easy day trip -- about a 2 1/2 hour drive each way.
If I think of anything else, I'll add it. I wish I could provide information on dining out, but we did very little of it, other than the already-mentioned Ardvasar Hotel.
If you only have time for two or three days on Skye, its beauty is worth the trip...but if you can spare more time, I don't think you'll be disappointed!
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