27 to 29 August - Dundonnell to Isle of Skye

We awoke at Dundonnell on the 27 to this:

Sunshine! What a wonderful surprise!

Alas, it lasted long enough that we could dry the tent from the overnight showers, and a wee longer as we climbed a long steep hill last Gruinard. 

We were treated to this view of Gruinard Bay. 

And then it clouded over and we spent the rest of the day in the rain.

We past through Poolewe, which has the smallest distillery in Scotland. Sadly, we were so cold and wet that we didn't want to stop for a taste, so we've put it on the list for the next time we are back here!

We also passed the Inverewe Gardens, home to a fantastic garden containing plants from around the world. The warm and wet climate along the western Scottish coast allows plants from all around the world to thrive, and a huge garden has been built to showcase them. Sadly, were were so cold and wet that we didn't want to stop and look at wet plants, so we carried on and added it to the Next Time List. 

We made it to Gairloch late in the day, and found a great heritage museum (ahhh- warm and dry!) with an actual light house prism from an old lighthouse. 

The lens is about six feet tall! We've seen a number of light houses on our trip, and it's interesting to see just what is built into the working end of a light house. (Actually, most light houses now use sealed-beam lamps, which are quite like headlamps on cars. So this is a relic.)

At Gairloch we  were wet and cold, to the point that we were shivering. Our feet were soaked, as well, and we decided to stay in the hostel. It was a wise choice since the rain didn't let up and the wind was howling in from the sea. The house was built in the late 1800s, and was donated in 1932 for use as a hostel; it's one of the oldest hostels in Scotland. It's been updated over the years and is lovely in its character, comfort, and views of the Isle of Skye (when the weather is good). If we could have stayed several days we would have. 

On the morning of the 28th we left Gairloch, heading southward on the A832. 

Gairloch is a cute town, with a small winding Main Street. Again, we were treated to a little bit of sun in the morning, and we soaked up every bit we could. 

We wound our way south along Loch Maree, which owes its name to a 7th century Irish monk Maol Rubha, who brought Christianity to this area. He lived on a small island on the loch, which was later made a shrine by pilgrims. The waters of Loch Maree attracted the sick and insane, who drank and plunged themselves in the holy waters in hopes of a cure.

Loch Maree fronts the Beinn Eighe mountain and national nature preserve, and we got to see it for quite a long time as we rode past it on the A896. We visited the Beinn Eighe center in Kinlochewe.

The Beinn Eighe nature reserve is the oldest Scotland, est. in 1951 to protect the largest stand of ancient Scotch Pine, and all the wild life that is supported by the forest. We took a wee hike in the preserve, ate some wild blueberries and lunched there (under the highway overpass to escape the rain). 

After lunch we started a downhill run to a very special place...

Treated again to more mist and rain on distant hills on our way ...

... to Torridon! This is a special place for us, and for our musician friends at home, because we play a fantastic tune called Loch Torridon. Arriving in Torridon was a milestone in the trip.

We took a break at Torridon and went to the craft and food faire at the village hall, toured the village art gallery, and stocked up on groceries. 

We rode west along Upper Loch Torridon and came to Shieldaig, where we found a free community camp ground. The first thing we did was pull out our instruments and play Loch Torridon - it was nice to play for a bit, and the weather and midges temporarily  cooperated. 

The wind wasn't too bad for part of the day, but by evening it was a blustering wind - which means we had Nae Midges!!!! And we had a great view over Loch Shieldaig and this beautiful island covered in pines. Interestingly, the pines were planted so the trees could be harvested and used as poles for drying fishing nets. 

We added extra ropes to the tent for stability, and cooked dinner with a desperate frenzy while the rain showers barreled in on us. Not long after we settled in for the night the rain started in earnest, and tested the integrity of our tent. Thankfully, it held up like a champ and we stayed warm, dry, and safe. 

The morning of the 29th we headed south again. After a few miles we stopped for a coffee and a brief spell on the Internet to try to catch up on emails. 

When we came out there was another touring bike parked next to Bob's. It kinda looks like this guy has even more stuff than we do ... And we thought we had a lot!

We were at a decision point - head west around the Applecross Peninsula, or head south on the A896. The Applecross road offers tremendous views of Raasay and Skye, but is a brutal climb on a bike. We'd have spent the entire day to make our way around the peninsula, and would have spent ourselves, too. Ultimately we decided not to do it, mostly in part because the weather was bad enough that we wouldn't have been able to enjoy the scenery. And we think we made a good decision, considering how tired we were. We added it to the Next Time List....

On our way to Kinlochewe ... Hints of sun in the distance, between showers. 

Along the A896, after Ardnarff, with Loch Carron on our right. 

Then a big moment: Entering the county of Skye!

We took a detour to Dornie, home of the Eilean Donan Castle. This castle was rebuilt in the 1920s, finished in 1932, and is still privately held. You might recognize it from various movies like 'The Highlander' or James Bond. It was also used as inspiration for the castle in the animated movie 'Brave' and has been featured in countless Bollywood movies. It's a neat tour and a pretty castle, but a bit over-touristy. To our surprise, we were a bit bothered by the density of people. After being in so many remote places it was rather shocking to be thrust into a tourist attraction with teaming throngs of people. 

We did have a bit of sun, and wind. All in all, it was a nice break off the bikes. 

It's neat to see the Scottish flag and realize that we're in Scotland. Hard to explain what that means, exactly, but we're mighty fortunate that we're able to experience this adventure. 

After our brief spell of tourism, we headed west on the very busy A87 toward Skye. It was already getting late, and we had to find a place to camp. 

Here's the Skye Bridge! We're about three miles from it, and it looks huge!

It's also STEEP! It took quite a while to cross it, and we were fortunate (?) to have a straight headwind rather than a treacherous gusting side-wind. 

After we were on Skye we found the road to Kylerhea, and climbed about two miles in intermittent rain until we found a suitable camp site.  It was again quite windy, but that means Nae Midges! 

It was about 9:00 pm before we ate, and again within minutes of climbing into the tent the heavy mist rolled in, followed by the torrential downpour. And, again, the tent held up like a champ. If we didn't have such a good tent we'd have been in serious trouble. Thank you REI!

At the end of the day on the 29th, we were on Skye!

Day by day summary:

August 27 - Dundonnell to Gairloch via A832. Passed through Badcoul, Gruinard, Aultbea, Poolewe. Total 34.24 miles. 

August 28 - Gairloch to Shieldaig on A832 and A896. Visited Beinn Eighe, Loch Maree for picnic lunch and Torridon for craft/food faire. Passed through Kinlochewe. Total 41 miles (20 of which were extremely wet, the remaining 21 very windy).

August 29 - Shieldaig to Isle of Skye (on road to Kylerhea) via A896, A890 and A87. Visited Bealach cafe/gallery, Eilean Donan castle. Passed through Kishorn, Lochcarron, Strathcarron, Ardnarff, Auchtertyre, Nostie, Dornie. Biked over Skye bridge. Total 52 miles (intermittent pounding rain, complete with headwind)