When we first decided we were going to Scotland, we did research and found out about a small but quaint island in the Highlands called the Isle of Skye. We heard it was gorgeous from many sources and then found a 3 day tour through a company called Rabbies. The tours are pretty intimate and only accommodate 16 people. Our tour guide, James, was so wonderful – a true Scotsman in a kilt who has traveled the world and regaled our group with so many incredible stories that we, along with some of the other travelers, began to question their accuracy. He’s only 37 but he was already a soldier in the Scottish military, a scallop diver in Australia, an agricultural entrepreneur in Canada, a model for the Glenfiddich distillery, a fiddler player in a famous Scottish band called the Pete Bogs, and the list goes on and on. He is a descendant of the infamous MacGregor clan, who were known as thieves and bandits. This became an ongoing joke for the entire trip.
On our first day, we left Edinburgh and headed north past the Stirling Castle and into the Highlands. James told us all of the true stories of William Wallace and explained how almost everything that happened in the movie Braveheart is fictional. Turns out William Wallace was almost nothing like how Mel Gibson depicted him – he was a womanizer and straight-up cold-blooded murderer. We did pass the castle and bridge where Wallace defeated an English army while being outnumbered 4-1. The castle was used in many films and TV shows, including the pilot of Game of Thrones. The true “Braveheart” of the time was Robert the Bruce, who was the real leader in Scotland’s quest for “FREEDOM!” We also saw the Glencoe mountains, where we learned about the feud between the Campbell and MacDonald clans. In a famous incident, the Campbells slaughtered about 100 of the MacDonalds including infants and to this day, the name Campbell incites a strong hatred among the people of the area. James said he even takes the labels off his Campbell’s soup cans so as not to be ridiculed by his friends and family.
Assuming that the landscape would be similar to Ireland, Kevin and I were both surprised at how mountainous the Highlands are. We got a quick few shots of the peak of the Ben Nevis mountain, which is usually hidden by clouds or mist. After lunch in a cute town called Fort William, we were on our way to Skye when we came upon a massive car accident. They had just closed the road and we probably missed getting through by a few minutes. Unfortunately, on the small country roads of Scotland, it is not easy to quickly clean up a road accident. They told us it would take around an hour and since James explained there was really no other way to get to the island, we had to just suck it up and wait. Well, one hour turned to two which turned to three and we didn’t end up getting through there until about four hours later. I felt bad for James, who couldn’t have anticipated that he would have to entertain us for that long, but he was a good sport about it. We finally arrived into Portree, the small town we were staying in on Skye, at around 9:00 and our one thought was: FOOD. We were really worried that we wouldn’t be able to find anything still open but luckily one pub was still serving. Kevin was unfortunately less than satisified with the langoustines that he ordered, but they made for a fun photo. We had a few pints, played a few Belle & Sebastian songs on the jukebox and headed back to our room in an adorable B&B, whose view of the surrounding mountains and water was a pleasure to wake up to.
James picked everyone up the next morning from our B&Bs for a full day on the Isle of Skye. The other travelers on the tour were lovely and from all over the world including Canada, Hong Kong, Portland and Australia. While driving us around, James regaled us with several delightful stories of the “magic” of the island and how many ancient Skye residents used fairy tales (and I mean actual fairies) to explain how the grand geological cliffs and mountains were formed. We stopped at Loch Mealt, which had a very picturesque waterfall that could be observed at the edge of a precarious cliff.
We visited the Quaraing, a beautiful mountaintop with an amazing view of the ocean that reminded us of Connor Pass in Dingle, Ireland. One great story James told involved two small islands around Skye. Two rival clans both wanted control of the islands (which really had no value aside from bragging rights) and decided to have a boat race around them to determine who would be in possession. The rules stated that the first clansman to reach shore and place his hand on the land would be declared the winner. After two days had passed, one clan chief made his way to the land first but as he was celebrating with his fellow clansmen, he forgot to touch the land. The other chief then came up and, in an act of desperation, cut off his hand and threw it onto the land, thus winning the race.
In the afternoon we visited Dunvegan Castle, the home of the MacLeod clan for centuries. We were curious about a “Fairy Flag” that was extremely tattered and framed in one of the castle rooms. James explained that back in the day, when people swore by the power of fairies, they believed this flag held fairy magic. They would be able to wave the flag only three times for help in a dire situation. Two of the waves were used ages ago but they waited until the 1940s to use the last wave, when they sent it south and gave it to Winston Churchill to help with the war efforts. Outside the castle were lovely manicured gardens with a waterfall and stream running through them. While everywhere we went was beautiful, my favorite spot was the Neist Point Lighthouse. No words I use will express how gorgeous this was. After a quick dinner, we headed to the Isles Inn, the only pub in Portree that was open. There we met a man named Paul Kelly from Speyside, a remote area with the highest concentration of distilleries in all of Scotland, who taught us more about scotch than the Whisky Experience did (mostly because we tasted more with him).
The next day we were a wee tired when James picked us up, and the weather was not as nice as the day before, so we were in the bus for most of the day going back to Edinburgh. We did stop at Loch Ness (no sightings of Nessie, sorry) and found the area way too touristy simply because of a blurring black and white picture taken back in the 40s. Before we left Skye, however, Kevin snapped the photo below at a rest stop outside of Eilean Donan Castle, and to this day it happens to be one of my favorite photos he’s ever taken.
Recommendations:
- Rabbie’s Isle of Skye Tour. https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours/from-edinburgh/2-4-day-tours/the-isle-of-skye-3-day-tour.
- Quiraing. Trotternish, Skye, Scotland.
- Dunvegan Castle. MacLeod Estate, Dunvegan House, Dunvegan, Isle of Skye IV55 8WF, United Kingdom. https://www.dunvegancastle.com/.
- Neist Point Lighthouse. Isle of Skye IV55 8WU, United Kingdom.
- Isles Inn. Somerled Square, Portree IV51 9EH, United Kingdom. http://www.accommodationskye.co.uk/.
- Eilean Donan Castle. Skye, United Kingdom. https://www.eileandonancastle.com/.
