Day # 10 now arriving - Isle of Skye

Blog post for Day 10 - 10 July, 2009 Writing on 11, July 14:18

Yesterday was wonderful day, the clouds were gone and we encountered wonderful scenery along a pleasant drive. We drove from Drumnacachdit to Portree on the Isle of Skye. We had the pleasure of navigating along roads that passed through beautiful mountain passes, across small little streams and brought us wonderful views of the ocean. I'm glad that Beth has become the official photographer as she isn't shy about taking shots whenever she can. We stop when we can, but she is also willing to take shots through the windshield and works hard to capture the wonderful sights we are seeing. As you might expect the highway engineers do not have pull offs for every scenic overlook that exists so her persistence is paying off.

Our first official stop was the Eilean Donan Castle, which is reported to be the most romantic castle in Scotland. It is a beautiful place and we think it was in the movie - Highlander. The castle was destroyed and then rebuilt in 1912. The interior was fun to see (in some parts) as it looked like a castle may have looked in the 1500s or there about, but other parts of the castle had been set up to look like they did in the 1920s. The kitchen was set up this way and although it was well done with well placed mannequins, good use of light and sound, I would have preferred to see an earlier kitchen. It was also disorienting to walk from one room with paintings, swords and so forth as decor into another room that has framed photographs from a more recent wedding on the bedside table. Despite my critique it was an interesting place to visit. The location (as I hope the photo captures) is outstanding and it must have been better when there wasn't a visitor center or highway right next door.

The bridge that crosses on to the Isle of Skye has breathtaking views. There is a little debate, as there may be in other island communities, as to whether the bridge is a good or bad addition. For us it was great, as it made a visit to the Isle of Skye a little easier. It is a definitely a tourist destination, there are lots bicyclists, motorcyclists, caravans (a.k.a. campers) and folks from all over. This island is a very special place, but it seems like you need to escape the tourists to truly experience it (we did escape the tourists on 11 July).

Our room is very small with a wonderful view of the ocean (the photo is looking out our window). We're in the Pier Hotel, which is on a Pier and isn't a hotel. In the last photo we're in the blue building - top floor - second window from the right. It is a guest house with 8 rooms, but the size of the rooms is made up for by the view. We're on the third floor with a large 4 foot high window, which opens from the top in or can be opened like a door and you can sit in the sill. We shared this with Stacy when we Skyped (video chat, if you're not familiar; although Skype has some other services as well) with the Fawell family yesterday. Dad, you would love the staircases that wind up from floor to floor and are covered in thick red, shag carpet, but the fire exits and paths are marked very well, they even identify the meeting place outside the structure.

We settled in, in the afternoon, rested a little, updated the blog (wifi is available) and wandered around the small town of Portree (population ~2500). We forced ourselves to try the local ice cream (it is good - and they even had banana, one of Beth's favorite flavors!), inquired about a boat trip and planned out the day for today (11 July). We ate dinner at a small restaurant filled with Scottish bikers (the motorcycling kind), Beth had cajun chicken and Taber had Haggis again. It had a whisky gravy and was very good.