Isle of Skye

Isle of Skye

Skye, simply beautiful. 

Our highlights were The Storr and the Kendram Turf House.

The Storr

Our GPS told us that we’d arrived, so we parked. At this stage we couldn’t see The Storr in fact we could not see much through the fog and rain. Being a wet cold day, we donned our waterproof jackets, hoods up to protect our ears from the wind. Craig felt the need to double up and wore a beanie as well. We set off, walking up the steep mountain for about 30 minutes before the fog cleared revealing The Storr, and in particular, The Old Man.

The Storr are rock pinnacles, some 100+ metres high clinging to the top of a steep hill. The slopes of the hill are covered in lush grassland. Like the 12 Apostles on the Great Ocean Road, The Storr has been formed through erosion.  The Old Man is the most prominent of these rock formations. The walk up to the Storr starts with a steep gravel path that gradually becomes steeper then deteriorates into uneven rocks, mud and slush.   

Near the top at The Old Man we met an older lady in a purple jacket. She asked us to go past as she was taking the climb at her own pace. We began talking and she shared with us that she had several brain tumours removed and as a result had been paralysed down her left side. Through extensive rehab, she had fought her way back to be fit enough to able to scramble up The Storr.  I will always be inspired each time I think of the lady in the purple jacket at The Storr.

Kendram Turf House

If you are as great a junky to Kevin and Grand Designs as we are, you will know of the Kendram Turf House on Skye. The Turf House is a one bedroom modern passive building (meaning: it is airtight through construction) and it has a green roof. The owners (artist couple, from Edinburgh, one of whom originates from Australia) also built a small studio at the back of the block. Both the house and studio have picture windows with views to the ocean. 

The Turf House and studio are smaller than we had imagined. The green roof originally had succulents and heather woven into it, but now has self-seeded to mimic the surrounding grasslands making the house almost invisible from some angles. The studio is no longer being used as such, and is now a café that sells the owners artwork. The view from the picture window is better and more beautiful than I could have imagined.

Isle of Skye

The Isle of Skye is beautiful. It is largely farm land dotted with sheep on the lower mountains. Like the Isle of Mull, Fish farms and timber dominate.  Connected to the mainland by a bridge, Skye receives many more tourists than Mull. It also has better infrastructure, with two lane roads, making it easier to see the island.