Scottish Highlands & Isle of Skye

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We're off on a three-day tour of the Scottish highlands and Isle of Skye with Rabbie's Tours. Weather is on and off rain, which makes the mossy glens more mysterious (to look on the bright side)! We are glad not to be driving on the winding roads which are handled well by our driver, Graham. The first day of the tour involves a long drive from Edinburgh to Portree on the Isle of Skye with many stops for scenic viewpoints of lochs (lakes), glens (valleys), and bens (mountains). Everything is green. Signs are in English and Gaelic, with lots of unpronounceable "gh" and "ch" names.

We felt the water in Loch Lubnaig, and I would guess it to be about 55-60 Fahrenheit. Too chilly for swimming, one would think. But no, suddenly two swimmers appeared, towing safety floats and accompanied by a kayaker. Granted, they were wearing wetsuits, but still! Then as we left our stopping point, we saw more swimmers scattered back for about two miles, apparently participating in a marathon swim or iron woman triathlon. These Scots are tough!

We stopped for lunch at the Clachaig Inn (smoked salmon sandwich and lentil pie) owned by the MacDonald clan, where a sign said, "No Campbells," confirming that the feud continues!

Our B&B for two nights is the Gables, about 1 mile out of Portree, the largest town on Skye with about 8000 people. The view from our room takes in the quiet harbor, seaside village, and sunrise over the mountains -Wow! There are even occasional breaks of good weather to enjoy it. Supper the first night was haggis and pineapple pizza at L'Incontro, something we will probably never have again! Not bad, I have to admit. Haggis works pretty much like sausage or hamburg as a pizza topping.

Full Scottish breakfast with eggs, black pudding, bacon, mushrooms and tomatoes, and we're were ready to go for day 2, which started out very wet. We were silly enough to get out at Dun Beag Broch to see the ruins of the old broch (combination fort and village storeroom from 200 BC) and came back to the bus soaked!

Fortunately, after a coffee break to dry out, we headed over to the far western point of Skye, Neist Point, where we got a little break in the rain, if not the clouds, to take in the surf and rocky cliffs and hike for about an hour down to the lighthouse. Lunch followed at Critsag's, where the sweet potato & Greek yogurt soup was wonderful and warming. Then we headed up along the northern peninsula of the island to Quirang, dramatic scenery! Along the way we saw the grave of Flora MacDonald, who aided Bonnie Prince Charlie in his escape from authorities as well as some thatched-roof "black houses" which were one room housing a family with their livestock. We were so blessed that the sun finally made an appearance for this part of the tour, because the sights at Quirang were the best. Also worth a look in that vicinity is Kilt Rock (named for being folded like a kilt) and a sharp rock pillar called "The Old Man of Sorr".

Back in Portree we enjoyed the Taste of India with a Luxembourger friend from our tour and then a little walk on the scenic peninsula in town, The Lump.

Day 3 had the craziest weather yet, with rain and sun alternating about every 20 minutes. We soon drove past the small island of Braes and had a history lesson: the Highland Clearance, from the late 1700s to 1885 started with Bonnie Prince Charlie (Stuart royal line) trying to take the throne. Then Britain decided to break up the clan system, ban bagpipes, clan identification, and Gaelic language, and grant private land ownership to a few individuals who started kicking the crofters off the land. Many went to USA, Australia, Canada, until the women and children of Braes stood up to the authorities (literally) with their pots, pans and broomsticks. As a result of their effort and that of other Highlanders the Crofters Act was passed saying that as long as the farmers paid rent, the landowners couldn't kick them off.

Two final highlights of our tour were (1) the Eilean Donan Castle, beautifully restored and furnished and the site of many battles to defend the land from invasion via water, and (2) Loch Ness, where we had a one-hour boat ride and, alas, failed to spot even a hint of the monster. However, the boat ride was scenic and entertaining, as we learned how huge this lake is: large enough in volume to hold the water from all other lakes in the UK combined (and there are a lot of them)!

The route back to Edinburgh passed through Pitlochry, with more ice cream shops per block than any other UK town, and then some beautiful oat fields and sheep pastures. Too soon we had to say goodbye to our new friends. Can't say enough about the professionalism of our guide, Graham, and of the Rabbie's tour company in general. Just bring rain pants and jackets!

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