Thursday 13th April 2023
Damp and grey start to the day. We left Loch Ness at 9am and had a fairly long drive to the aisle of Skye. Stopped off for coffee and a snack on the way then drove over the Skye bridge onto Skye. We are on the northern side of Skye so had a little more driving until we got to our next site. Which is Skye CCC site.
We have a fabulous pitch overlooking the sea loch.
Friday 14th April 2023
Beautiful blue skies first thing and we were up and away by 9am to drive to the Fairy Glen. It’s down a long single track road so we wanted to be early to avoid congestion! The Fairy Glen just few miles out of Uig looks like a Quiraing landslip in miniature. Cone-shaped hills make the place fascinating and otherworldly looking.
From there we drove along yet more thin winding roads to an area called the Quiraing. We completed the hill circuit of about 4.5 miles long and it took us around the Prison, Needle and other features. There was a lot of clambering over rocks, tussocks and waterfalls and the ground was extremely boggy in places with loose shale. Steep climbing up and very tricky coming down. We found it hard going and was extremely glad to see the van again! We changed in the van and had a late lunch. Our next view point was closed due to building work so we made our way home driving through a heavy hail storm at one place! Later the sun came out and we ate tea with sun streaming through the windscreen.
Saturday 15th April 2023
Another sunny blue sky morning so after breakfast we set off for Dunvegan Castle and Gardens. It’s been home of the Macleod Chiefs for 800 years and the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland. We did a tour of the castle first then went out into the sunshine to explore the gardens, particularly my favourite, the walled garden. Had a coffee and snack in the cafe then I got the bikes off the van and Sarah made a picnic lunch.
We set off on a 4.5 mile bike ride to Claigan Coral Beach. It’s made from crushed white coral which makes the water look tropical blue when the sun comes out. We had a mile walk from where we left the bike to the beach. With the sun shining it looked almost tropical. Had our sandwiches on the beach and took lots of photos before the walk and ride back to the van. Got back to the campsite around 4.30pm.
Sunday 16th April 2023
So windy last night it blew over both our bikes that were attached to the bike stand! Let’s hope it abates during the morning as we don’t fancy going out in it! Sadly wet and windy this morning with gusty winds so boring chores to be done, laundry and van tidying. After lunch it was drier but misty over the hills so we decided to drive to the Fairy Pools at Glen Brittle. More very thin windy roads to get there plus some massive pot holes. One even had a cone inside the pot hole! Arrived at 3.30pm and parked up (£8-expensive) then set off on the walk through the Vally to the falls and pools. Sadly we didn’t see anyone swimming in the pools, but the water looked very clear and blue. The overhead clouds came down to form a mist but then they’d simply evaporate and it would be clearer again.We walked back the same route to the car park then took the bumpy uneven road back out towards home again. Got back to the site around 6.30pm and after sorting ourselves out we had a late tea.
It’s still misty out over the sea loch infront of the van but the wind has died down a little compared to last night.
Monday 17th April 2023
Weather much improved this morning, blue skies with some sun, and no wind. We set off at 9am for The Old Man of Storr. It’s 160ft pinnacle of basalt left behind after an ancient landslide swept the rest of the hillside away. According to the legend, the old man of Storr was a giant who lived on the Trotternish Ridge. When he died and was laid to rest his thumb, ( the Old Man) remained partially above ground. It was about 1.5 miles climb to the top but we climbed the whole way on a mixture of gravel paths and stone boulder steps. Even coming down was tricky as we had to pick our way back down over the uneven boulders.
After a coffee in the van we drove another 5 miles along to the Lealt Falls viewing lay-by. There is a viewing platform with views of the waterfall. We then walked along to views the other side looking out to sea.
We then headed for Portree, parked up and had a wander. There’s not much there and we were fairly underwhelmed by the place! Shared a fish and chip takeaway down by the harbour and after a whippy ice cream we made our way back to the van.
Got back to the site at 3.30pm sun still shining, time to relax.
Moving onto Glencoe in the morning.
Damp and grey start to the day. We left Loch Ness at 9am and had a fairly long drive to the aisle of Skye. Stopped off for coffee and a snack on the way then drove over the Skye bridge onto Skye. We are on the northern side of Skye so had a little more driving until we got to our next site. Which is Skye CCC site.
We have a fabulous pitch overlooking the sea loch.
Friday 14th April 2023
Beautiful blue skies first thing and we were up and away by 9am to drive to the Fairy Glen. It’s down a long single track road so we wanted to be early to avoid congestion! The Fairy Glen just few miles out of Uig looks like a Quiraing landslip in miniature. Cone-shaped hills make the place fascinating and otherworldly looking.
From there we drove along yet more thin winding roads to an area called the Quiraing. We completed the hill circuit of about 4.5 miles long and it took us around the Prison, Needle and other features. There was a lot of clambering over rocks, tussocks and waterfalls and the ground was extremely boggy in places with loose shale. Steep climbing up and very tricky coming down. We found it hard going and was extremely glad to see the van again! We changed in the van and had a late lunch. Our next view point was closed due to building work so we made our way home driving through a heavy hail storm at one place! Later the sun came out and we ate tea with sun streaming through the windscreen.
Saturday 15th April 2023
Another sunny blue sky morning so after breakfast we set off for Dunvegan Castle and Gardens. It’s been home of the Macleod Chiefs for 800 years and the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland. We did a tour of the castle first then went out into the sunshine to explore the gardens, particularly my favourite, the walled garden. Had a coffee and snack in the cafe then I got the bikes off the van and Sarah made a picnic lunch.
We set off on a 4.5 mile bike ride to Claigan Coral Beach. It’s made from crushed white coral which makes the water look tropical blue when the sun comes out. We had a mile walk from where we left the bike to the beach. With the sun shining it looked almost tropical. Had our sandwiches on the beach and took lots of photos before the walk and ride back to the van. Got back to the campsite around 4.30pm.
Sunday 16th April 2023
So windy last night it blew over both our bikes that were attached to the bike stand! Let’s hope it abates during the morning as we don’t fancy going out in it! Sadly wet and windy this morning with gusty winds so boring chores to be done, laundry and van tidying. After lunch it was drier but misty over the hills so we decided to drive to the Fairy Pools at Glen Brittle. More very thin windy roads to get there plus some massive pot holes. One even had a cone inside the pot hole! Arrived at 3.30pm and parked up (£8-expensive) then set off on the walk through the Vally to the falls and pools. Sadly we didn’t see anyone swimming in the pools, but the water looked very clear and blue. The overhead clouds came down to form a mist but then they’d simply evaporate and it would be clearer again.We walked back the same route to the car park then took the bumpy uneven road back out towards home again. Got back to the site around 6.30pm and after sorting ourselves out we had a late tea.
It’s still misty out over the sea loch infront of the van but the wind has died down a little compared to last night.
Monday 17th April 2023
Weather much improved this morning, blue skies with some sun, and no wind. We set off at 9am for The Old Man of Storr. It’s 160ft pinnacle of basalt left behind after an ancient landslide swept the rest of the hillside away. According to the legend, the old man of Storr was a giant who lived on the Trotternish Ridge. When he died and was laid to rest his thumb, ( the Old Man) remained partially above ground. It was about 1.5 miles climb to the top but we climbed the whole way on a mixture of gravel paths and stone boulder steps. Even coming down was tricky as we had to pick our way back down over the uneven boulders.
After a coffee in the van we drove another 5 miles along to the Lealt Falls viewing lay-by. There is a viewing platform with views of the waterfall. We then walked along to views the other side looking out to sea.
We then headed for Portree, parked up and had a wander. There’s not much there and we were fairly underwhelmed by the place! Shared a fish and chip takeaway down by the harbour and after a whippy ice cream we made our way back to the van.
Got back to the site at 3.30pm sun still shining, time to relax.
Moving onto Glencoe in the morning.
