Inverness and the Journey to the Isle of Skye

After visiting Balmoral and Braemar, Em and I headed to Inverness for the evening. Inverness is considered the capital city of the Scottish Highlands and has a varied cultural and historical history. Unfortunately, Em and I were only staying in this “capital city” for the evening as a stopover on our way to the Isle of Skye and therefore did not get a chance to explore it.

When the traveling duo had been at Crathes Castle a few days earlier, the woman in the ticket booth convinced us that it would be a money-saving venture to buy a pass to all of the National Trust for Scotland sites instead of piece-mealing the tickets at each attraction we came upon. This helpful suggestion was given with a pretty tour book that outlined all of the sites we could access and their locations around the country. Since this appeared (and actually turned out to be) a great deal, we took it. As a result, we were constantly referencing the book to see what was around us. This is how we ended up in search of Torridon and the waterfalls and Strome Castle.

Our handy guide book showed a picture of a beautiful set of waterfalls and the GPS stated that it was approximately an hour and a half’s drive from Inverness, so to Torridon we headed. Torridon is small village (a few houses, a general store/café, a hotel, a youth hostel, and a community center) with some of the most beautiful scenery in the British Isles. The village abuts on Loch Torridon and looks like it stepped out of a tourist magazine or a Steven King novel; it’s breath-taking. We stopped in the general store for water and directions and proceeded up a steep one lane, bi-directional road to the top of the cliffs and drove for a bit before pulling into the only parking area. Here were where greeted by a sign informing us of a beautiful 8 mile walk, but none of the promised waterfalls. Back to town we drove and were told that the unseasonably warm weather meant that there hadn’t been any rain….and what does no rain mean? No waterfalls. If would figure we’d bring the sunshine and heat to the ends of the world and therefore ruin gorgeous waterfalls.

So leaving this stretch of the scenic coast we traveled south to the village of North Strome to visit Strome Castle. This town was so small that we had to actually GPS the next biggest town and then follow the half hidden signs once we got close. We actually passed by the Castle before realizing that it wasn’t a large repaired tourist trap like many of the other castles we’d seen, but actually a small ruin jutting out from the road and overlooking Loch Carron. It’s sad state of remains meant that it was unmanned and free and therefore available for thorough wandering (as thorough as a courtyard and few remaining walls can be).

The Castle has an interesting history. It was built by the MacDonald Earls of Ross and later owned by the Clan MacDonald of Lochalsh, but besieged upon by the Clan MacKenzie and Clan Matheson in 1642. This siege went on for quite some time until, as the story goes, “silly women” inside the castle mistakenly put water into the gunpowder containers instead of the water containers one dark night and when this mistake got back to the besiegers (by way of an escaped prisoner that overheard the men of the castle yelling at the women), the MacDonalds were forced to surrender. The MacKenzies allowed the MacDonalds to leave the castle with their lives, but forced them to watch as it was burned to the ground. The ruins remain relatively untouched from that time.

On a side note (to give my readers a laugh), as we were leaving the ruins, there were two cute little black sheep eating on the side of the hill. I put out my hand to encourage one to come closer so I could pet it and it happily started towards me. A few seconds later I learned why it stopped about 5 feet from the fence; as I was wiggling my fingers to attracted the sheep, I hit part of the fence and instantly received a large jolt that numbed the fingers for about a minute. The sheep apparently was smarter than me and knew that the fence was electrified.

So another “not quite what we expected, but still interesting side trip” was completed and we headed yet further west and further south to Eilean Donan. This is probably one of the most iconic castles in all of Scotland as it is the believed to be the most filmed and most photographed castle in the country. The castle is on its own island, which has a beautiful bridge (built during the reconstruction in the early 1900s) which patrons walk across to enter. The castle was built in the 13^th century and was a stronghold for Clan MacKenzie (they get around don’t they?). Clan MacKenzie or a friend of the castle held it until a failed Jacobite rebellion in 1719 that ended with the bombardment of the castle and its subsequent destruction.

The current Eilan Donan is almost completely modern. It was rebuilt by Lt. Col. John MacRae-Gilstrap, an ancestor of Clan MacRae, who lost 58 members in the failed rebellion in 1719, as they fought besides Clan MacKenzie. The Lt. Col. Tried to keep to the original structure and as a result it’s a wonderful place to visit and really shows the history of the place.

Our final stop for the evening (and resting place for the next two nights) was the Skye Backpackers Hostel in the town of Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye. This turned out to be a fantastic hostel and a great location. Opting for the budget accommodations, Em and I picked the caravan option, whose internet description stated that you’d be bunking in the garden. Not quite sure what this meant, but fascinated with the idea of maybe sleeping in a garden, we were pleasantly surprised when “caravan” accommodations meant that you were in a converted camper trailer. The trailer had been divested of its wheels and guts and fitted with five bunk beds. Two of these caravans were situated in the back garden and instantly put smiles on our faces. They were so cute and if they didn’t shake every time anyone moved (be it in bed or across the floor), they would have been perfect.

The inside of the hostel was as wonderful as the caravans. There was a homey feel to everything and the staff that worked there were all travelers that had come for a day or two and just stayed on. Instantly we started a tête-à-tête with a few long timers as the subject of our BMW piqued curiosity and we were invited to come join a group of 10 or so people at the bar later that night.

Kyleakin is a small town with two pubs that are the only thing open after 6 pm and therefore this is where everyone gathers. The drinks are reasonable and the company is made up of mainly backpackers and those passing through, but if you look hard enough, you’ll see the locals mixed in. As the night progressed and sunset and darkness were seem for the first time on this trip, our party grew as we incorporated everyone at the bar that made eye contact with anyone. It was a lot of fun and a nice relaxing evening/early morning.