Arriving on Skye

Our trip to the Isle of Skye did not get off the best of starts.  Whilst cleaning out my van Friday afternoon, my power steering pump went, leaving a stick red puddle under the van.  After a few frantic phone calls I managed to get someone to fit a new pump Saturday morning.  This however meant delaying our trip until Sunday morning.  Arriving early to pick up my dad, we left for Skye at 6:30am.  Usually we split the 615 mile journey over two days, taking a stop near Fort William, but with already a day lost we did the trip over eleven and half hours to arrive at Portree for 7pm.

Driving through the highlands the clag refused to lift off the snowy peaks but from Fort William onwards the conditions cleared.  Crossing the Skye bridge spirits were high as we weaved our way through the mountain passes.  The sun shone through the clouds reflecting off the blue waters and white peaks, we were finally here!!!

Spectacular views of the white topped Cullin mountains presented themselves at our base camp at Portree.  Mid May we didn't expect to still see snow on the tops and it was surprisingly very cold, we had both optimistically packed shorts.  On the plus side there were no sign of the dreaded midges.

My home for the next week, a little more cramped than usual with the added addition of the two bikes.  We unpack and head into Portree for a few pints of Isles Ale and wild boar sausages and Angus beef and ale pie for tea.  We dwell over the forecast for the next few days of strong winds and showers but improving as the week goes on....