The Isle of Skye was our Highlight of Scotland. It is a picturesque isle of dramatic landscapes and natural beauty, the quintessential Scottish scenery from postcards and Pinterest. We spent one day on the isle and could have spent many more. As it was peak season, and we were not organised enough, we were unable to get accommodation overnight, so made the most of it in one big day.

As with most of Scotland, the scenery is green, green, green. The treeless hills give the illusion of soft rolling carpets shaped like mountains with an occasional tear where a gentle waterfall seeps through.

The isle offered the best walks we did in Scotland and we wish we had time for more. The first walk we took was a relatively easy walk uphill to see the dramatic rock formation ‘The old man of Storr’.

We continued on past some other popular landmarks such as ‘kilt rock’, a stunning waterfall which tumbles over the rugged cliff into the water below.

With barely a stop for lunch, we then headed into the centre of the island to walk the ‘Quiraing’. This is a spot in which the farmers used to herd cattle when the viking ships were seen on the horizon. A hidden paddock called ‘the table’ is disguised behind the rough cliffs, providing a lush flat grazing place for precious cattle which could not be seen from sea, thus saving the cattle from imminent viking raids. Herding the cattle up such steep hillsides would have been no easy feat and the story of this landscape is a reminder of just how tough times had been. Look out for ‘the table’ in the pictures below.

Once on top of these beautiful hills, we were completely enveloped by cloud. We were soaked to the core and Rob’s waterproof jacket proved to be not so waterproof. The ground was sodden and the heather so thick that it was like walking on a giant wet sponge, our feet rarely touching the ground.

Finally the clouds lifted and we were treated once again with the magnificent views.

 

We took a scenic drive back to the mainland which took us past postcard perfect villages. Once the sun was starting to set, the day trippers had left and the island took on a whole new sort of quiet. We stopped to capture fading silhouettes, and warm shades of light and were treated with one last gust of beauty from Mother Nature showing off with a colourful sunset as we crossed the bridge back to the mainland.

Skye is certainly worth exploring for every nature lover, walker or photographer visiting Scotland. Stay if you can, research some walks before you go and have the camera charged!