The Quiraing - Isle of Skye, Scotland - May 4, 2022

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Rhody Seth

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My wife and I were very fortunate to celebrate our marriage with a 15 year delayed honeymoon to Scotland. We booked a self-guided tour where we drove into the Highlands and stayed at several wonderful B&Bs. The fourth day of our trip brought us to the Isle of Skye and the magical Trotternish Peninsula. This region was wonderful to experience from a New Englander perspective. The hills are similar in size to what we have here but the lack of trees makes for a completely different landscape.

With limited time on Skye it was tough to decide what to explore but we ultimately choose the Quiraing with its reputation for unique rock formations. It was a great choice. The hills are covered in fine green grass and there are sheep grazing everywhere, with little newborns bounding behind their mothers. Out of the grass erupt tall rocks. The whole area is slowly eroding and you can see plenty of evidence of boulders strewn down the hills. The wind was howling through the parking lot but thankfully the hills blocked it for the majority of the hike. As with a lot of the trails we encountered in Scotland, there is little in the way of signage and while the path is generally pretty obvious there are sections where it goes every which way and it's up to you to figure out where to go. We encountered many other hikers but the majority were doing a loop hike which navigates around the Quiraing but avoids the steepest parts. We wanted to climb higher.

The clouds were constantly rolling through and it was spitting at times, lending an ethereal vibe that was very appropriate. There is an impressive rock structure known as the Prison and opposite of that is a steep climb that leads up to a maze of dirt paths surrounded by rock structures. The loose dirt and rock proved too much for my wife who struggled to ascend and told me to go on alone. I proceeded onward towards an grassy plateau known as the Table. The trails went every which way up there and I after a bit of searching I decided to head back so as not to keep my wife waiting. But then she surprised me by arriving at the top of the climb! She had reassessed and then found an easier way to ascend. Together we ventured on until we finally arrived at the Table. It was an emotional victory for her.

The clouds parted briefly and allowed us some spectacular views of Skye and the ocean beyond. Then the fog returned in force and we made our way back down. The Quiraing is truly a unique place and unlike anything we have around here. Definitely a highlight of our trip. Below is a video of the day. Skip to 2:57 if you want to get right to the Quiraing.

 
I visited Scotdland in the spring of 2016 for a week with my wife and son and grandkids. What a wonderful place. Most impressed with many castles (saw the actual sword used by Willam Wallce/Braveheart) and toured the ill famed Culloden battlefield. The kids actually saw (sort of, they thought) Nessie swimming in Loch Ness. Couldn't take the Distilllary tour due to underage kids, but my son and I did a bonding pub crawl in Inverness whille Grandma stayed with the kids. Time passed too quickly B&B to B&B, Wanted to visit Skye in a big way but it was a 5 hour out of the way drive and lodging was not available anyway. Picked up a an embedded tick at Culloden that had to be dug out.

Will definitly make a return visit to pick up what we missed.
 
I visited Scotland in the spring of 2016 for a week with my wife and son and grandkids. What a wonderful place. Most impressed with many castles (saw the actual sword used by Willam Wallce/Braveheart) and toured the ill famed Culloden battlefield. The kids actually saw (sort of, they thought) Nessie swimming in Loch Ness. Couldn't take the Distilllary tour due to underage kids, but my son and I did a bonding pub crawl in Inverness while Grandma stayed with the kids. Time passed too quickly B&B to B&B, Wanted to visit Skye in a big way but it was a 5 hour out of the way drive and lodging was not available anyway. Picked up a an embedded tick at Culloden that had to be dug out.

We saw so much and we barely scratched the surface. Would really like to visit the Cairngorns and the whole northern section of Scotland that we didn't get to. I got in one big mountain adventure on this trip but of course that only whet my appetite for more.
 
It's been a long while but I got to camp on Iona for three nights and it was a life-changing experience. The history and spirituality were overwhelming. Just reaching the island by crossing Mull was incredible. I hope to return soon.
 

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