The Isle of Skye takes its name from the old Norse “sky-a”, meaning ‘cloud island’, a Viking reference to the often mist-enshrouded Cuillin Hills. With a length of 50 miles, it’s Scotland’s second-largest island.
Most visitors to Skye come for the stunning scenery, where green velvety moorland and sparkling fresh water lochs lie beneath jagged mountains and towering sea cliffs. If the mist does close in, there’s still plenty to keep you occupied. You could visit one of the many castles, crofting museums, the dozens of art galleries and craft studios.
Throw in some rare wildlife, intriguing history and abiding myths, not to mention the abundance of excellent restaurants, pubs and cafes, and you can see why Skye is one of Scotland’s premier tourist magnets. If you like a bit of peace and quiet, you can escape the crowds - provided you have your own set of wheels. Getting around Skye by public transport can be tricky if you want to get away from the main Kyleakin-Portree-Uig road. With a car, motorcycle or even a humble bicycle, you can explore the island in a few days and easily avoid the radar. Wherever you stop off, if you’re walking very far from your car, take a waterproof in the backpack.
Along with Edinburgh and Loch Ness, Skye is one of Scotland’s top three tourist destinations. However, the crowds tend to stick to Portree, Dunvegan and Trotternish – it’s almost always possible to find peace and quiet in the island’s further-flung corners. Come prepared for changeable weather: when it’s fine it’s very fine indeed, but all too often it’s not.
Trotternish peninsula
The A855 road loops around the northernmost spur of Skye, the Trotternish Peninsula. It’s a stunning drive, passing the Old Man of Storr, an iconic basalt spire featured in the opening scene of director Ridley Scott’s recent blockbuster, Prometheus. You can walk to the Old Man’s base from the car park at the northern end of Loch Leathen. Further north the road follows the peninsula’s eastern coast, where you’ll find viewing points to watch waterfalls tumbling hundreds of feet into the sea, whilst taking in the panorama across the Sound of Raasay to the mainland.
However, the star attraction of Trotternish has to be the Quiraing. It’s a surreal escarpment of pinnacles, crags and bluffs dating from the Jurassic period and can be easily explored on foot within a few hours. The well-worn circular walk starts from the car park at the summit of the Staffin to Uig road. As it rounds the tip of the peninsula, the A855 passes the ruins of the Duntulm Castle and further on you’ll find the Skye Museum of Island Life, a preserved crofting township of traditional thatched cottages.
Heading south, the A855 passes through stunning Uig Bay, from where ferries run to the Outer Hebrides, if you really want to get off the beaten track. A few miles south of Uig, a small road leads to the Fairy Glen, a weird, miniaturised landscape of conical hills, buttes, and even a tiny roadside loch.
The Cuillins
The Cuillins Hills are the British Isles’ most formidable mountain range, with jagged ridges, mist-wreathed crowns and intimidating expanses of bare rock. The range, which includes twelve Munros (Scottish mountains over 3000ft), is a playground for experienced mountaineers only. If you don’t have experience, there are plenty of local instructors offering expert tuition for those wanting to try their hand at the higher routes, which include the two-day traverse of the Cuillin Ridge. If you’d rather not dangle from a rope above a sheer drop, don’t despair - there are plenty of good low-level routes to explore in the Cuillins, most of which start at Sligachan to the north or Glenbrittle to the south.
Waternish, Dunvegan and Duirinish
Despite its blood-soaked history, the Waternish peninsula in the northwest of Skye is now a centre of arts and crafts. Here you’ll find the ultimate sheepskin rug, and you can even watch them being made on a tannery tour at Skye Skins. Waternish is also home to the 18th-century Stein Inn, the oldest public house on Skye, which occupies a great position on the shore of Loch Bay. It’s an atmospheric place with comfortable, unfussy rooms, a welcoming bar, some good food and an excellent little beer garden in which to linger on a fine day.
South of Waternish you’ll reach Dunvegan, home of Dunvegan Castle, the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland. Built on a rocky outcrop in Loch Dunvegan, the clan seat of the MacLeods is one of the island’s major attractions. West from Dunvegan, take the small A844 road to get to the island’s premier gastronomic attraction, the multi-award-winning The Three Chimneys. Despite being housed in a small crofter’s cottage, it nevertheless deserves its big reputation and you’ll need to book far in advance to secure a table. Serious spenders can also stay overnight in one of the plush five-star rooms.
Going west through the hamlet of Glendale you’ll pick up signs for Neist Point, the most westerly spur of Skye. It’s a magical spot with an amazingly photogenic lighthouse perched on top of the sheer cliffs overlooking the Minch toward the Outer Hebrides.
Worth the trip for the sense of isolation alone, this is also the best vantage point in Skye for spotting whales, dolphins, porpoises and basking sharks. As the sun sets, the air comes alive with the cries of roosting gannets, guillemots, razorbills and shags.
Elsewhere
Portree, the island’s capital, is worth a visit, even if just for the simple pleasure of strolling around the postcard-perfect harbour, with its brightly painted houses. Portree is a good place for relaxing over a coffee or catching a boat for wildlife spotting in the Sound of Raasay. You’ll also find a reasonable selection of B&Bs here. The Aros Experience on the outskirts of the town combines a visitor centre, gift shop, restaurant, theatre and cinema, with a live CCTV feed of sea-eagle and heron nests. At the bottom of Skye lies Sleat, a low-lying peninsula that offers some dreamy woodland walks, with hikes to remote lighthouses and views across the Sound of Sleat to the Knoydart. The major attraction here is the Museum of the Isles, a 20,000-acre estate that includes a castle, restored gardens, and a visitors centre. The museum itself unravels the complicated clan history of this amazing piece of Scotland.
Title Image Credit: Jonathan Combe (Image Cropped)