After getting up Thursday morning to pack and grab some food for my trip, I hopped in the car with Joy and her friend, Alex to begin our journey to Skye. I was very excited for this trip and thankful for the opportunity and invitation.
We started the trip with some great conversations in the car and making our first stop in Glencoe. Scotland has a fantastic law called the Right to Roam. The Right to Roam allows individuals to explore any part of Scotland as long as they do it within respect and reason. With the golden hour quickly upon, we stopped to explore the infamous brothy in Glencoe and walked along the river seated at the bottom of the Three Sisters.
Not far from the mountains of Glencoe is a classic Scottish pub called the Clachaig Inn, where we grabbed dinner and I tried a whiskey cider which I highly suggest. Afterwards, we drove through Fort Augustus to get to our Air B&B in Cullin, Scotland. We called it an early night for a busy day ahead of us tomorrow.
We got up early Friday morning to finish our drive to Skye. We also took a quick detour at Aldi's to grab some food for our trip. As we are peacefully driving along our merry way, we suddenly found ourselves with a flat tire. I have never seen a flat tire like the one we had. The entire tire was peeling away, we were all shocked. We luckily had a spare tire but did not have a crank to elevate the car. Thanks Enterprise! At last though, the friendly farmers and shepards of Scotland came to the rescue. A Scottish shepard, Bob and his friend so kindly came to the rescue and grabbed their own crank to fix our tire. Nothing like some Scottish hospitality!
We continued along our way, really admiring the Scottish Highlands as we drove at tat a whopping 25 mph. Despite our flat tire, we still decided to stop at Eileen Donan Castle, one of Scotland's most famous castles. We decided to pay the ticket fee to explore the inside where we met a lovely tour guide who gave us a few laughs!
We stopped at Kyle of Lochlash to get a new tire, stopping at a local cafe for a warm baked potato and some ~deluxe~ hot chocolate as we waited for our tire to get fixed. After picking up our car, we crossed the Skye Bridge and made our first stop at Kyleakin, admiring the blue waters of the harbors and the ruins of a castle. Ironically, the ruins were getting reconstructed after a lightning bolt struck it down. Only in Scotland they would reconstruct a ruin.
Since we were all eager to touch the sea, we stopped to explore a rocky beach and stumbled upon a local artist where we watched the cat inside and waited for the artist to return.
We drove as the sun set and arrived in the colorful and charming town of Portree. We stopped at a local pub to grab a wee pint until our stomachs called for something more. We hopped to another pub where we grabbed lentil soup for dinner and started a lovely conversation with Cam and Katie from Edinburgh University. Katie is from the Orkney Islands and Cam is from the Scottish Lowlands, along the British Borders. After some pints with our new friends, we drove to our Air B&B, home for the next few days. It was an adorable warm and little cottage, exactly what we needed!
We got up early Saturday morning to start our adventures on Skye. We stopped in Portree to grab breakfast at an adorable cafe with a beautiful view of the Portree harbor.
We had a beautiful day ahead of us, we got extremely lucky with the weather. Our first stop was the Neist Lighthouse. We also stopped to say hello to some of the locals. The drive to the lighthouse was magnificent. The landscape is so dynamic and ever changing, it truly was memorizing. The Neist Lighthouse was breathtaking! The cliffs were a bright kelly green color and the waters were a beautiful color of teal. It was extremely windy though.
The next stop were the magical Fairy Pools! The Fairy Pools are even more magical than they are in the pictures. I was truly in awe of how the landscape in Skye varied so much. The teal waters of the Fairy Pools were a stark contrast against the black mountain that loomed up and behind the pools. We even spotted a rainbow. It was truly a magical experience. I did spot some swimmers and I was very jealous, wishing I could have jumped in too! After much exploring and photo taking, we drove back to Portree for some window shopping and dinner. We met back up with our friends Katie and Cam for a few pints at the pub too.
Driving back to our cottage, it was a rare crystal clear night in Scotland. The stars were extremely bright that night and I pulled out my camera to snap a few photographs. I was very excited for the opportunity. It was lovely to just lay on the ground and admire the stars. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful day.
Our first stop on Sunday morning was the Old Man of Storr. It was a beautiful morning with the golden hour among us. We stopped by a loch with a beautiful reflection of the Old Man of Storr. We begun our hike up Storr which was a magnificent and dynamic landscape of white and black stone and green hills. The hike was the perfect way to start the day. Next, we stopped at Kilted Rock and grabbed a late lunch at an artsy cafe. I had a warm baked potato and Joy and I shared a slice of carrot cake.
The next stop was the enchanting landscape of the Quiaring. We hiked through the green mountains of the Quiaring, walking over small streams and getting the most out of the Right to Roam law. I have never seen such a landscape of the Quairing before, I truly was memorized. The landscape had such a distinct look. It was one of my most favorite places I have ever been to.
With daylight quickly fading, we rushed to explore the Fairy Glen. The Fairy Glen was amazing. I truly was surprised by the experience. The glen was a miniature Scotland! I would have loved to run around there as a kid. I can definitely see why it is called the Fairy Glen. I was especially surprised by the swirls drawn on the grass, definitely made the experience more magical. I wish we had more daylight to explore.
We drove back to down to Portree to grab dinner and relaxed back at our little cottage. I was able to get another peek of the stars. We listened to the howling wind and Scottish rains as we fell asleep that night.
We woke up and packed up for our last day of our Isle of Skye adventure. We drove through Skye, taking a few pit stops to explore the landscape and a small Scottish mountaineering exhibit.
The next stop was Talisker Distillery. The only distillery located in Skye. We treated ourselves to a delicious chocolate and whiskey tasting. Afterwards, we walked to the Old Inn pub just down the street to grab lunch. I had the soup of the day, I could not tell you what it was but I could tell you it was one of the best soups I've ever had. Joy and I also shared one of the best toffee puddings I've tried since I have been in Scotland.
Before we knew it, we were saying goodbye to the dynamic and beautiful landscape of Skye as we crossed over the bridge and made the trip back to Stirling.
I was absolutely amazed by the Isle of Skye. The landscape was so dynamic and ever changing and even reminded me of a greener version of Monument Valley. It truly was one of my favorite spots that I explored and I could definitely see it becoming a happy place for me one day. I am extremely grateful I was able to find a friend to rent a car to explore Skye because that is truly the best way to discover the Isle. Until, we meet again Skye. Cheers!
P.S. Feel free to listen to my Isle of Skye playlist on my Spotify account at carolinestepchuk!
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