From Somerset to the Western Isles and back in 17 days

[Debs]

Yes indeed, we stopped at a cafe that was a church back in 2000, now converted to an Artisan cafe, bone china plates and cups, wasted on me but decent sandwiches and cake....which wasn't wasted on me

Always puzzled me, the difference between 'artisan' & 'homemade'

So did I read correctly then.....you tried to find the fairy pools last year but couldn't, you've gone this year, down the same road but did find them? ..... well named aren't they, by the sound of it
Did you get the pics?

 

[Dave K]

Always puzzled me, the difference between 'artisan' & 'homemade'

So did I read correctly then.....you tried to find the fairy pools last year but couldn't, you've gone this year, down the same road but did find them? ..... well named aren't they, by the sound of it
Did you get the pics?

I of course blame the co pilot

A couple of pics, Kath will love that one, she doesn't like wearing hats . I'm on the ferry at the mo and have 4G but don't know how long that will last

 

[Debs]

Wow....

 

[CWH]

We did the anti clockwise route, stunning scenery, also stopped off at the croft museum which was very interesting

Ah, I thought you'd meant you were booked on the ferry tomorrow.
I haven't been to the museum yet; though it's definitely on my 'to do' list. What was the entrance fee?
Nice photos of the Fairy Pools; I was up there in January, the car park was unsurprisingly pretty empty then. But a couple of girls were swimming...

 

[Teuchter]

Having driven the Loch Lomond route a couple of times I felt the Loch Lubnaig route was a lot easier to navigate, there were still coaches and lorries on the route but I didn't feel like I needed to breathe in quite so much.

Definitely agree with that Dave - a much better/safer and just as scenic route even though it is a whole seven miles longer!

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[Dave K]

Ah, I thought you'd meant you were booked on the ferry tomorrow.
I haven't been to the museum yet; though it's definitely on my 'to do' list. What was the entrance fee?
Nice photos of the Fairy Pools; I was up there in January, the car park was unsurprisingly pretty empty then. But a couple of girls were swimming...

Entrance fee was £2.50 each, Flora MacDonalds grave is also there

 

[Dave K]

We've had a couple of days on Harris and Lewis, the scenery is stunning, particularly the beaches on West Harris

For the 2 nights we used the West Harris trust spots at Luskentyre, you basically donate £5 to the trust for every night you stay in the designated bays, so you get views like this

We had a bit of rain last night and then the sun reappeared which gave us this rainbow

A beautiful sight. We take the ferry to Berneray tonight for a couple of days on Uist, more to follow!

 

[aldhp21]

We've had a couple of days on Harris and Lewis, the scenery is stunning, particularly the beaches on West Harris

It looks absolutely stunning.

 

[Dave K]

It looks absolutely stunning.

It is Alan, I've not seen scenery like it before anywhere else, hope you get a chance to get out and see it for yourself

 

[DavidG58]

Glad you got the sun, the real problem will be you are now hooked and will be on your way back as soon as you can

that's a stunning spot you found didn't (or rather haven't yet) found that one, is it on the road to Luskentyre ?

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[aldhp21]

It is Alan, I've not seen scenery like it before anywhere else, hope you get a chance to get out and see it for yourself

Cheers Dave, the plan is September this year.

 

[Dave K]

Glad you got the sun, the real problem will be you are now hooked and will be on your way back as soon as you can

that's a stunning spot you found didn't (or rather haven't yet) found that one, is it on the road to Luskentyre ?

Yes it is David, there's about 5 spots along that road, that was the first one about 1/2 mile from the turning off the main road, we used one further up the second night which is nearer the beach, also stunning.
We visited the eagle observatory but didn't have any luck but whilst walking the dogs early evening today we saw one so we're made up now!
I've got to say I love Lewis and Harris, I could retire here I think, in fact anywhere on the West Coast would do me

 

[Dave K]

Yesterday we visited the Harris Tweed shop and the Gin distillery, i treated myself to a waistcoat, we have 2 weddings this year so why not, we also bought a bottle of gin which I'm sat having a drink of as I write this, I like it, quite strong at 40% but still a smooth drink, I think I'll be ordering some more at some point. From there we travelled to Leverburgh to catch the ferry to Berneray, Leverburgh isn't the prettiest of places in comparison to other parts of the island but it's functional with a shop and fuelling station.
We arrived at Berneray at 19.30 and then travelled South to Kilbride campsite which I'd recommend, very clean, decent facilities, near a beach and a friendly, helpful owner. As we travelled south we saw a few deer and there are numerous warning signs for otters on the roads, apparently Uist is a great place to see otters. Today the weather has been changeable, very windy with a heavy showers so we've had a lazy day today, it's been a bit hectic since we left home, tomorrow we will be exploring the island in search of wildlife, hopefully we'll have some luck!
Have a good week everyone.

 

[DavidG58]

My avatar was taken at Kilbride, I can never recall the site name when asked, possibly down to the gin

Isn't the ferry route interesting into Berneray, could be done in half the time if they went straight

You will not find many sites south of you now, but we parked at Polochar inn, very happy if you eat, probably not bothered if you don't

But now you have seen Harris, the rest to me just doesn't get close

 

[Dave K]

My avatar was taken at Kilbride, I can never recall the site name when asked, possibly down to the gin

Isn't the ferry route interesting into Berneray, could be done in half the time if they went straight

You will not find many sites south of you now, but we parked at Polochar inn, very happy if you eat, probably not bothered if you don't

But now you have seen Harris, the rest to me just doesn't get close

Thanks for the info, to be honest I'm beginning to think we've seen the best parts already, agree regarding the ferry, I think we were on a constant turn, that's certainly what it felt like anyway. It seems like the weather is taking a turn for the worst, we've been blessed so far but it appears a cold spell is coming with some snow, this holiday could get better, would love to see some snow as well!

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[Dave K]

Throughout the night the weather was horrendous, blowing a gale, rain and hailstones banging on the roof of the van , add into that the fridge developed a fault at some point throughout the night and every now and again would do a series of beeps .
On the plus side the morning walk with the dogs was dry but a cold gale force wind that could cut you in half, don't think I've ever experienced a wind that cold before, although you wouldn't think it from a pic I took this morning

That's a picture from our pitch, as I've said previously it's a good site with a great view. A quick note about the people of Uist, 95% of the vehicles we passed all waved at us in a friendly gesture, from elderly women to builders vans, the majority made a point of saying hello, that's a nice touch.
The dry weather was short lived, it soon became very cloudy, started with hail, then snow, still with the horrendous cold wind, so it wasn't a day for getting out of the van, we drove around the island and drove to Lochmaddy to check ferry times, there was one leaving in an hour so we decided to book it, there seemed little point in doing anything else than travelling on such a poor day. The system for embarking the ferry took me by surprise, the cars drove straight on first, then the lorries had to swing around and reverse on, strange I thought, and then we were signalled to swing around and reverse down the road and onto the ferry, and when we entered the ferry we had to parallel park in between 2 lorries, definitely wouldn't have fancied that in my caravan days!
The crossing was very choppy, the wind was still gusting and the snow was starting to come down, I'm still amazed though that having crossed all this open water we still haven't seen one lousy dolphin .
We arrived back at Uig on Skye in just under 2 hours, the snow was falling, the idea was to travel right through Skye, over the bridge and onto the mainland to stay at the CC site in Morvich, and we arrived at our destination about 7.00 tonight, Skye looked a different island with the added beauty of the snow dusting the mountains, it looked beautiful, I've got to say after spending more time on Skye I have a new found love for the island, in my opinion it's definitely worth a visit, Uist I could take or leave but Lewis and Harris is also a must, in my opinion .
Here's a pic I took on Skye when I pulled over to let the convoy past, shame about the Hymer in the way

As we got nearer to the mainland the snow was less apparent and here at Morvich the mountains that surround the site are covered but there's nothing at ground level, although apparently we have more coming. Walked the dogs tonight and saw a stag and a heavily pregnant Doe coming down from the mountain to graze, unfortunately it was too far away for the IPhone camera but a beautiful sight.
We're unsure where to head tomorrow, if it was up to me we'd be heading up the west coast to see as much as we can but I think we could end up heading East to find Findhorn valley on the recommendation of @DavidG58 and his wife Bev, really don't want the trip to end but I know it's not long now until we need to start heading south again, regardless of that it's been fantastic

 

[aldhp21]

It seems like the weather is taking a turn for the worst, we've been blessed so far but it appears a cold spell is coming with some snow, this holiday could get better, would love to see some snow as well!

Thanks for the update Dave, from your photos you obviously got the snow you wished for. Looks like you've had all the seasons in your short trip. Hopefully the eagles will come out to play for you.

Cheers
Alan

 

[Dave K]

Thanks for the update Dave, from your photos you obviously got the snow you wished for. Looks like you've had all the seasons in your short trip. Hopefully the eagles will come out to play for you.

Cheers
Alan

Cheers Alan, so far we've only seen one which was circling quite high, would be great to see one a bit closer but with our previous luck I'm not holding out much hope .
The ultimate would be a sea eagle but that's even less likely. We were talking to a farmer on Harris who told us there were a pair of sea eagles nesting on a small island close by, he said it was like a barn door flying over, a wingspan of over 8 feet apparently, the downside of that was the eagles had taken a dozen of his lambs, so he said he'd shoot them if he could!

 

[DavidG58]

Not the best of forecasts for the next few days, but they are often wrong

If I was doing your trip, this would be my journey today, takes you up the Findhorn Valley, the bit on the map where you head south east just before the valley takes you quite high but not silly, have done it in January before, couple of tightish cattle grids but been through with 8m

The only reason I would not do this is that it will be too gloomy to see anything when you get there

But for us even in the rain it is nice, but better to be able to see more

enjoy your day

 

[DavidG58]

this would keep you on bigger roads, great stop over option, we have used a few times for decent walking, good eagle chances and overnight, great café about 5 miles further up the road

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[Dave K]

Not the best of forecasts for the next few days, but they are often wrong

View attachment 159551

If I was doing your trip, this would be my journey today, takes you up the Findhorn Valley, the bit on the map where you head south east just before the valley takes you quite high but not silly, have done it in January before, couple of tightish cattle grids but been through with 8m

The only reason I would do this is that it will be too gloomy to see anything when you get there

But for us even in the rain it is nice, but better to be able to see more

enjoy your day

Thanks David, we appreciate you taking out some time to do that for us, the weather isn't too bad at all here today, very cold but the wind has dropped, there's snow up on the high ground but not much else

Thanks again, have a good day

 

[DavidG58]

based on no updates I reckon you might have given the Findhorn Valley a try, beautiful as it is, with it comes no internet or phone access

 

[Dave K]

based on no updates I reckon you might have given the Findhorn Valley a try, beautiful as it is, with it comes no internet or phone access

Haven't got that far yet, we decided to head that way via Inverness, the weather was very changeable, isolated heavy snow for periods and then bright sunshine, decided to drive along some of the Moray Firth in an attempt to find dolphins, no luck and then headed for your favourite Grantown On Spey campsite which is where we are now, we did a 3.5 mile forest trail in the snow and haven't felt like doing very much else . Findhorn Valley is on the radar for tomorrow though as Kath fancies heading down towards Glen Nevis

 

[DavidG58]

taken probably in same woods Jan 2015

first one could have been mediterranean but below zero C, second one gives the game away

 

[DavidG58]

Is the shower block as warm as ever?

Did you call at the butchers?

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[CWH]

taken probably in same woods Jan 2015

View attachment 159668 View attachment 159670

first one could have been mediterranean but below zero C, second one gives the game away

I remember these photos (especially the 2nd one) from your Epic Voyage - what a fantastic thread that was! I was (still am) very envious of that journey

 

[Dave K]

Is the shower block as warm as ever?

Did you call at the butchers?

We will be trying out the shower block this morning
If I get chance this morning I'll check out the butchers. The site is very quiet at the moment but they are fully booked for the weekend apparently, it's a nice site, particularly good for us with the dog walks nearby, gives Rosie a chance to burn off some energy.
There's a lot of machinery working in the fields just opposite the site, they're clearing areas, not sure what's going up there, I'll try and find out today when I get a gas bottle.

 

[Tanya_and_Mick]

A top read mate - good to hear of your travels

 

[Dave K]

A top read mate - good to hear of your travels

Thanks mate, I'm looking forward to seeing that new van of yours, although I doubt you'll want to mix with us now you've got a Hymer

 

[Dave K]

Afternoon all
We decided (should read Kath) that we'd head back up North to Lossiemouth because on the Facebook wild camping page they bang on about the Beach Bar apparently, a place where you can eat and drink but they also allow you to stay in the carpark for the night, doesn't sound too illustrious but the car park overlooks the sea

We only stayed for lunch but I've got to say it was very good, decent food and good value for money so if you're up this way give it a try.
After lunch we then travelled back on ourselves again and headed for Findhorn Valley to wild camp for the night, @DavidG58 kindly gave us the details and after travelling along a long narrow road we came across it, a beautiful spot in the bottom of a valley with a river running through it, the best part was that in the evening herds of deer come down from the mountains to graze, a fantastic sight to see

It was that good even Kath forgot about the by ans internet, never been known .
This morning we're heading south as we start to make the journey home, strange feeling really because now I know we have to go home I just want to be home without eating up the miles first, but hopefully we'll be back on Saturday.
Have a good day everyone

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