Bruce and Elly do the Misty Isle

Tuesday 14th October: on Skye

Fiskavaig to Talisker Bay

waterfall on Huisgill burn
(not our path, although it could have been)

Talisker Bay (movie)

waterfall north of Talisker Bay

Talisker Bay Broch!

looking east along Gleann Oraid

hairy coos

why our car was called Glob

After an amount of discussion about where to walk today, we settled on the route from Fiskavaig to Talisker Bay. Getting to our start-point involved another crazy drive via a stop at the Talisker distillery at Carbost, mostly for a convenience stop. (The public toilets here only rate 1·5 Andrex rolls at the most but were very welcome none the less!)

We left Glob at the hairpin bend just south-west of Fiskavaig and splashed our way south for a couple of miles through Huisgill, via the waterfall above A' Chailleach to Gleann Oraid, then west another mile to Talisker Bay.

At the bay, we were treated to spectacular views of waterfalls and somewhat less spectacular, but amusing, views of children being carried over puddles. It now felt like lunchtime but we'd brought no food apart from Elly's stash of Green & Black's mini chocolate bars. So, after a last look at the bay, we started trudging back the way we came. As we came through the farm at Glean Oraid, we were passed by a van which then stopped to let out four shepherds and their pack of dogs. We were treated to a an impressive display of shepherding: the shepherds and their dogs had no trouble driving a flock of sheep up a hill far faster than we could walk it.

More splashing through lakes on the supposed path and a brief encounter with some hairy coos took us back north to Fiscavaig. Elly then drove to us to Sligachan. On the way we passed a sign to Ardtreck and there was some joking about whether we'd had one. We vetoed eating at the Sligachan Hotel's Steak House & Grill Room and so drove onto Portree, had a drink at the Royal Hotel, and then ate at a greasy-sppon diner where the staff misinterpreted Bruce's request for 'no cheese on my vegeburger' to mean 'put on lots of melted cheese'. We had a fairly queasy journey back to Six Willows followed by lots of sleep.

© (except the blatantly ripped-off bits) Random Bozo 2008