Over the sea to Skye
Monday 15 October 2018
We safely ensconced in the Uig Hotel, surrounded by hordes of Americans who have descended on this quite remote part of Skye for a wedding. There’s a gale tomorrow and it looks like the ferries will be affected, so it’s good news for us and bad news for them. The Americans are not coping well with this 200 year old hotel, which seems to us to be very comfortable but which causes the sexagenarian ladies next door to stand outside our door and complain loudly about everything. Thankfully, it’s a proper British hotel and allows dogs, which some of the more local guests have with them, so there’s something to smile at.
It was a bit windy and cold today as we waited for the ferry at Lochmaddy, but it was crisp and clear. We had chance to have a look in the local craft shop, which was a cut above tourist tat. I would guess that the locals have rather too much pride to have their stuff made overseas, so most of it is really local crafts – something that the purveyors of Indonesian boomerangs should note. There was precious little room on the ferry because of cancellations over the past few days and the threat of Tuesday, and the number of “HGVs”, as they call semi-trailers over here, was a reminder of how far away the Isles are – and how many tourists they are getting. Every place we have stayed has talked about the growth in tourism, a combination of the weakening pound keeping the poms at home and giving the Germans (in particular) the chance to tick of the bucket list. Apparently the Great Glen Way and the Hebrides Way are a big ticket for walkers in Northern Europe.
We were sad to leave the Hebrides, although we gave the place a pretty good going over; but there was still more to see, especially in Harris, which we loved, and South Uist. The winding sea-lochs in Benbecula and the nearby Islands was entrancing and we were sad not to have the chance to do a wildlife tour to spot otters and (more) seals. The mountains and hills would have been worth climbing in in drier weather and we still haven’t seen deer, except on a plate!
Once we got with sight of Skye, we forgot about that, because it has to be some of the most dramatic and beautiful scenery we have every seen, with the possible exception of NZ’s South Island. We were a bit late in, so all we have done is walked down to the ferry from our hotel and taken pictures of the headland, but it’s very easy to sit in the bar and look out over the bay to Idrigil (above the ferry terminal), or over the Inner Seas to the other arm of the loch and the lights of the hamlets of Gillen and Geary. The Skye Brewery is at the terminal head, but I’ll resist visiting and focus on drinking their brews (the red ale and session ale are good but the IPA is a great drink). Only a hurricane will stop us exploring tomorrow, and Wednesday we have the long promised wildlife cruise.
