Isle of Skye, Scotland

I had the van for seven days and here is my summary about my trip travelling through the Scottish Highlands and the Isle of Skye.

Day one - Picked up the van:

I got to the pickup location at noon and in my instructions, I wouldn’t be allowed to pick up the van till 3 pm. I was totally willing to wait it out but since I was the first one to book with them for the season my campervan was ready to go. So, after all the housekeeping checkovers and introductions we needed to do, I was driving out of there by 1:30 pm roughly. I had time to navigate my first two-lane roundabout on the opposite side of the road and get groceries! Once all that was taken care of I was on the road by 3 pm-ish.

I drove to my campsite for the night. Now, when I say “campsite” it’s used loosely. Campsite refers to a wild campsite that was more often than not a parking spot tucked off from the main road.

A few challenges that first day:

• the size of the vehicle and getting used to the width while driving

• The narrow roads

• The abrupt edges of the lane on the left-hand side

• My tendency to drift to the left to avoid large passing vehicles on my right

• The rain

• The darkness creeping in for the evening

• The one-lane road to get to my “campsite”

• The howling wind and stormy rain jostled the campervan all night

(Just a few challenges).

Day two - Harry Potter Locations:

Barely slept the night because a) it was my first night in a new place and b) there was intense rain and wind rattling the campervan (I would soon understand this is typical Scotland weather and have trouble sleeping for the next 7 nights).

In the morning it was sunny and I was on the move! Made a lot of short stops along the way! Went to the Buachaille Etive Mór lookout, visited The Meeting of Three Waters, and the Three Sisters viewpoint. Made my way to the location where Hagrid’s Hut was filmed. Honestly was expecting to find the hut there but after hiking around and Google searching I realized it was just the location.

If you are unaware of Hagrid’s Hut check out the movie, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban!

Likewise, if you are unaware of the Glenfinnan Viaduct you need to watch Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets! Which is where I went next! The train unfortunately wasn’t running because it is a seasonal thing but it was still beautiful to hike to the viewpoint and imagine a flying car overhead of the steam engine rolling through!

I drove to my campsite for the night where I was surrounded by other campervans and didn’t experience any crazy winds!

Day three - Eilean Donan Castle:

With Google Maps being my co-pilot I don’t like to put on the notifications because I find she can be very annoying. The downside to that is that once I put in a location I have to constantly keep checking to make sure I’m on the right path. Thank god for CarPlay! Understandably I missed a few sights I marked down to see but with the campervan, it wasn’t worth finding a spot to turn around and go back so we (me, myself, and I) just forged ahead!

I made it to Eilean Donan Castle (that one wasn’t hard to miss). Beautiful day for it! I was very warm in my puffer jacket and got away with wearing a technical long-sleeve and my sweater. Despite having bought a ticket and touring the castle I still don’t think I quite understand the significance of the castle. It’s not a very old castle, I mean it is about 300 years old but they were using electricity and the great great descendant of the original owner is still alive today! She is turning 97 I think and will be passing it on to her eldest daughter but it’s not like the castle is in ruins and storytellers are piecing together the history of the castle. There was a bit of Canadian history on display as a little memorial to John McCrae’s “In Flanders Field” poem and the men who served and lost their lives. The only thing that stood out to me was the location of this castle! Being surrounded by water except for a bridge connecting it to land (which of course used to be a drawbridge in the olden days). So after touring around I had lunch back at the campervan. Chips in my sandwich and eating with a stellar view!

On my drive along the highway to the Skye bridge I saw a man in his small motorboat gliding across the water. The ripple effect looked like corrugated glass. Would have been nice to spend the morning on the water that day!

Once I passed the bridge to Isle of Skye I drove to Portree for a rest stop break. Looking around at the scenery before me makes me think of the colours that make up Scotland. I think of browns and greens, but it’s not one shade of either it is a mosaic of browns and a collection of greens. I am sure in a month or so those browns will bloom into Heather bushes and everything will be much more colourful! Looking over Portree is The Old Man of Storr. It made me feel like I was a part of a Star Wars universe where you would just casually see a planet or a giant shipwreck off in the distance!

I pulled into my campsite for the night and could perfectly see Old Man Storr from my parking spot! The Loch right next to the campervan was putting on a show for the night with the sky changing colours to pink, purple and blue.

Day three - The shitstorm

Apparently, my first trip to Portree was a waste because I didn’t actually do the things I needed to do. I woke up to the intense pounding of rain and wind! My plan was to hike Old Man Storr but I couldn’t even see it! I decided to backtrack and go into town to run errands and then continue touring clockwise around the Isle of Skye and save the hiking for better weather hopefully!

I needed to fill up the LPG gas tanks for cooking and heating the van but of course, no one at the gas station knew what to do or could help me fit the nozzle on correctly. My hands were freezing and the rain was blowing sideways! I tried asking for help multiple times and read the instructions and almost gave up but miraculously the gas started filling up.

I needed a serotonin boost after that so of course I went to go see the Highland Cows! They are so picturesque even in a torrential downpour. I thought I was having a moment with one (you know cow to girl) buuuuuut then it started going to the bathroom… I guess it just needed to concentrate on something to help with the flow… Anyway, my spirits were still lifted and I continued to the Sligchan Bridge. Mind you the winds were 40 km/h and the wind gusts were at 85 km/h. So, I didn’t stay out very long on the exposed bridge. Just got my shot and left pretty much. The next stop was the Fairy Pools. The area was protected from the wind a bit and the rain lightened up but it was still very wet. I had originally planned to go swimming at the Fairy Pools but the river was raging and it was a very cold day! I chickened out for sure! Also, I couldn’t make it to the end because the river had cut off the walking path and I wasn’t keen to get my boots wet when I use them every day for walking. So, I turned around which was disappointing but I was also cold and hungry so probably a good call.

My campsite for the night was on the top of a hill right by the ocean… I had to readjust the van so I was facing into the wind and even then I was still jostling from the gusts. Although it was a hard day physically and mentally I got through it!

Day four - The Quiraing Hike

According to AllTrails (or as my former roommate Alias would say “SomeTrails”), you are not recommended to hike the Quiraing in high winds… but, it was a sunny day and this was the allotted hiking day I carved out so I did it anyways!

I had all my layers with me, snacks, and a water bottle. I checked in with myself and took note of the hazards around me. I had to do a few crevice crossings with streams but they were minor and nothing to worry about. There was one point where a dark grey cloud was coming up behind me and started pelting me with hail. Luckily enough there was a little one-person cave in the rock to shield me from the oncoming cloud. I was maybe there for 5 minutes before the cloud passed and the sun came out again, so I continued on! I met a friend on the hike who was also crazy enough to hike during the high winds so we joined forces and finished the hike together. On our way back we were pelted by hail again and were literally running into the wind and going nowhere! The added resistance training worked up an appetite for lunch! We took refuge in the campervan and made a game plan to go onto Kilt Rock and Brother’s Point together. Afterwards, we parted ways and I returned to the campsite I had previously stayed at my first night on Skye. By the end of the day, I just needed to escape the wind.

Day five - Old Man of Storr:

Woke up to another stormy morning. Was on the fence if I wanted to hike Old Man of Storr so I waited until it cleared up and then I made the trek up! Another windy hike but so cool! The thumb of the giant, as the legend goes, was protruding out of the hillside. I hiked to the lookout and at that point, I don’t know what came over me but I decided to hike to the very top despite being nearly blown over on my walk up… I kid you not I had to crouch down to avoid falling and then I quickly removed myself from the very top in between wind gusts!

On my way down I was kind of jogging because I could see a dark cloud moving across the ocean. The ocean on the right was sunny and turquoise and the ocean on the left was grey and dark blue. I did stop because it was mesmerizing seeing the clouds move in but that just means I got caught in the rainstorm that followed. I was soaked through by the time I got back to the campervan…

After I warmed up and ate some lunch I left the Isle of Skye and made my way through the Scottish Highlands to Loch Ness! Before we talk about Nessie, the snowy-capped Scottish Highlands were, chef kiss, marvellous! I decided to stop and camp in a place where I could still see them because I wanted to be able to enjoy them a little bit longer!

Day six - Loch Ness:

For all of you who don’t know my nickname growing up was (and still is to some people) Nessie. I kid you not I was unaware that someone or something already claimed that name. My almost 2-year-old nephew is named Lachlan. So together we are Lach Ness🦕💛

I finally made it to the Loch Ness research centre and it was so cool! In a small group, we walked through the research centre being led by a video tour to learn the background and how the legend started. We learned about the research people have undergone and it is crazy to see how many have dedicated their lives to finding some sort of truth. It’s very hard for me to dismiss the idea entirely because it feels scientific but it also seems like a conspiracy theory, so I can’t make up my mind. Would I ever swim in Loch Ness? Definitely not! If Nessie is real I don’t need all my nightmares about swimming in freshwater to come true!

Afterwards, I drove to Urquhart’s castle which is located on Loch Ness. I saw a boat pass by and could see how the wake might be mistaken for the body of a water creature… (I am hesitant to say monster because I don’t think Nessie is a monster).

My campsite for the night was at a self-service campground called Highland Horse. The only campground I stayed at that wasn’t on the side of the road. However, upon my arrival, it looked abandoned and kinda sketchy but I went into the barn which is where the reception was and a cute little Jack Russell met me at the door. As I walked in to meet the man who invited me in I quickly learned that this wasn’t a sketchy place they aren’t just really open for the season yet. This man was very excited to talk to someone and show me around the property, he told me he’d been to Canada and his brother met Queen Elizabeth. He showed me where to park my campervan and was very helpful with answering my questions!

Day seven - Return the campervan

In the morning, which was a sunny but cold morning, I woke up early because I had to pack, clean the campervan, and empty out all the waste while I was at the campsite. Then I had to drive an hour and a half to Perth to fill up on gas for the car and the electricity and then I had to drop off the van by 11 am.

I got there just before 11 and the people at the rental place were surprised that the van was in such good condition, especially since I didn’t have a passenger to help with backing up! That made me feel good because whenever I would drift to the shoulder it DID NOT sound good! So glad it all worked out and I got my damage deposit back! The company drove me to the train station and I got a train to Edinburgh!

I’m glad I did the campervan thing just because it worked with my travel plans. I was able to drive it myself, see all the things I wanted to see, wild camp, and didn’t have to live in a hostel for a week! Would I do it again by myself with the same company? Probably not! I’d also choose to do it maybe a little bit later so that I could see all the flowers in bloom instead of the brown mosaic. I don’t think any time of year you will be able to escape the wind, but keep that in mind when you plan your travel to Isle of Skye because if you have to cook your food outside your campervan you need to pack extra layers to be able to withstand the wind and rain for that long! I really liked just being able to park the van and start cooking inside away from the elements.

I feel accomplished having done the whole campervan thing and on to Edinburgh I go!

Thanks for reading along, see you soon for the next post!

P.S. I kept seeing all these yellow bushes which are the only natural flower in bloom. There are daffodils and other flowers but they are more common in gardens but the yellow bushes really stand out. It occurred to me that the yellow bushes are SCOTTISH BROOM IN ITS NATURAL HABITAT!!! Hate that stuff in BC! The pollen RUINS my life! So I flipped off the Scottish Broom for infecting BC. I haven’t had to deal with any allergy attacks from the pollen yet, but I’m sure it’s on its way!