Up early and out the door for a full day (sans Hubby or Little, who slept in at the castle) on the Isle of Skye!  We left before dawn, stars in the sky, knowing it would be a very long day of driving. Little and hubby stayed behind because it would be tough for the kid to spend the day driving as long as we planned to do, so it was an adult adventure and the day was met with a brief snowstorm that made us contemplate turning back.

Historically, the Isle of Sky has been occupied by the Norse, the Scots, the Gaelic and the Romans even spoke of it. It’s geography is sparse and desolate, with more sheep than people. As we approached the Isle, we first stopped at the lovely Castle Eilean Donan, the iconic castle on the loch that you see in so many pictures. It was stunning and lovely. The McRae clan had rebuilt the castle for residency in the 1930’s and it was awesome to tour the inside, where the tour guide pointed out secret chambers and spyholes through the great room.

From there, we traveled of the Skye Bridge and onto the island for the next few hours. On the agenda were Kilt Rock with it’s 350’ cliffs, the Old Man of Storr, the Quiraing and other geologic wonders. The entire trip took just under 10 hours round trip from our space in Granton-on-Spey. During that time it rained, snowed, rained sideways, hailed and sun shined on us at different times. We stopped at a little chippy for a quick “take away” in order to maximize our time on the road, only to find out that everything was fried in beef fat. The fish, the chips, the everything and without apology.

Once we were back at the castle, the stars were bright and back out, and I was excited to see my guys so we headed back out for a relaxing dinner. We found the Craig Pub, a delightful RAF-themed pub with a wonderful owner and even better pies. I had a goat cheese, sweet potato and spinach pie as suggested by the owner (mmmmmmm!) and Ben enjoyed a steak and Guinness pie with a pint of Guinness. Little guy picked out chicken nuggets and fried – well, he enjoyed and I can’t hold it against him. I wish he would be a bit more adventurous in his eating but I’m thrilled he’s up for the adventure we are on, no matter what.