Today we explored the Isle.
After a good night’s sleep – which we definitely needed – we woke this morning to a fairly cloudy sky – and quite windy. The forecast was only for things to get worse so after another lovely breakfast we quickly hit the road to see what we could before the worst of the weather arrived.
We drove past the Old Man of Storr – still visible despite the low cloud – and onto the Lealt Falls.
Here the wind had started to pick up and a fine mist of rain was falling. A couple of photos – getting hard to hold the camera still with the wind ! – then back to the car for our next stop at Kilt Rock and Waterfall. I had thought this might be a good spot for the drone however the wind would have sent it to the mainland ! We did manage a couple of photos before the rain really started.
But on we went, to the north of the island and our goal at the ruins of Duntulm Castle. This place is dramatically perched right on the cliff overlooking the sea. At this stage the rain and wind had really set in – sorry, I mean gale-force wind ! The walk out to the castle favoured the direction of the wind – so it was a very quick trip ! Taking photos/video was a challenge as it was almost impossible to stand still with the buffeting gale ! The sheep grazing on the hill were apparently reported missing a few hours later – but ended up being found on the mainland 😂😂😂
Battling the wind and rain at Duntulm Castle
Sheep clinging to the mountainside near the castle ruins
We struggled back to the car in the wind, almost bent completely forward and with the rain and wind driving into our faces – this weather was getting worse and worse ! However, we battled on for a while – the single track roads with passing spots proved interesting – and as the description of most of the sites on Adrienne’s itinerary included “worth a stop on a nice day” in it, we decided we might have to concede on the “scenery” side of things.
A bit of chaos along the single track !
Tallisker Distillery was not far away so we set our sights on some indoor relief – however, battling the single lane road in was clearly an indication of the lack of parking so when we got there it was just a matter of turning around and heading out again ! So we passed up on a couple of the other main sights on our list – the Quirang and the Fairy Pools as they were just not suited to the weather.
On our way back to Portree we stopped at the Cuillin Brewery – I had had a nice sample from the brewery at Sea Breezes last night – however our aim for today was really just a nice hot coffee !
After a nice coffee in the dry and warm cafe, we headed back to Ben Tianavaig for a quiet afternoon – and catching up on some blogging !
For dinner we decided on the Portree Hotel for a nice pub meal – which didn’t let us down. We went a bit early to be sure we got a table. As we left to walk to the hotel, Charlotte the owner told us that the Skye Pipe Band usually played in the square on a Tuesday night, weather permitting.
We left the pub just after 7pm and it was still raining – though a bit brighter – and wondered if the band would perform or not. We went back to the hotel and just on 8pm the unmistakeable sound of bagpipes drifted in the window so we went back out to listen to their performance. There is still plenty of Scotsman in me as that sound always stirs the blood !!
Tomorrow we head for Aultbea along the coast – and as we are due a “good” day, the forecast looks a little better .
Today’s Tour Trivia – for the Harry Potter fans – The “Pride of Portree” are a Quidditch team formed in 1292
– for everyone else – The Isle of Skye is one of over 790 offshore islands in Scotland