[Closed] Trip to Skye

look at the OS maps on Bing Maps and plan a nice half-day walk near Neist Point lighthouse?

Sligachan to Loch Coruisk via the shoulder of Sgurr na Stri. Return via Camasunary.

Good day out. Take provisions.

Worth a trip to Raasay. Nice walk up Dun Caan, and there's a wee distillery, away from most of the crowds.

Or take a trip on the Glenelg ferry. Just make sure your brakes are on...

What scotroute says, defo

Walk in to Loch Coruisk from Elgol - either past or stop at the Bad Step. Trotternish Ridge is good but ideally want a car at either end.

I could not recommend anything based around Neist Point. Horrendously busy.

Given that you have suggested strenuous, I would recommend having a go at getting up to one of the corries off the ridge; Coire Lagan or Bhastier would be recommendations. They give a real feel for what the Cuillins are about.

Closer to where you are staying, I would recommend a circular walk; down to Lorgill (easy road/track) and then back over the Hoe, Ramasaig Head and Waterstein Head.This is a stunning cliff walk. Bonus is you will see Neist without going anywhere near it.

Finally, a tour of MacLeod's tables would be a strenuous half day and you won't see anyone!

I said medium strenuous ;-). Had heard that Neist can get a bit grim... Thanks for the suggestions - more the merrier.

Given that you have suggested strenuous, I would recommend having a go at getting up to one of the corries off the ridge; Coire Lagan or Bhastier would be recommendations.

I would second walking up into one of the carries. Coir a Ghrunnda from the campsite at the end of Glen Brittle is a not too strenuous way of getting close to the Cuillin Ridge.

Enjoy the crowds.

Enjoy the crowds.

He's not wrong.

We drove through Syke (landed in Uig, drove off over the Bridge a couple of hours later) just before the English schools broke up. Didn't look too bad. But a friend on the other hand was on holiday there end of last week and over the weekend. She sacked it off early and moved on because it was too busy to be enjoyable. All the honeypot locations were full to bursting with the council towing cars parked on verges and parking attendants ticketing. Stressed tourists being arseholes to one another and police on the bridge again (I think it happened a couple of years ago) encouraging tourists to think again.

Seriously - are those plans definitely not flexible?

This place is a nightmare just now 😑

Oh, also book your evening meals before you depart home.
I've had three friends and colleagues on three trips this summer ending up eating from the cold aisle of the CoOp, having been laughed out of any restaurant and one even turned away from the chippy as the queue was too long...

ideally away from the masses

A km or 2 away from carparks should sort that! 😆

Glen brittle campsite +/- car park
The walk to the end of the peninsula, ruined Brock, view across to Rum. Flat if in places a touch damp. Sit of end of cliff, watch for whales, seals and dolphins
Corrie Lagan busier but definitely WOW

Or to be virtually crowd free, follow the path to the southern end of the ridge, then climb up to the last peak. Walk back along the narrow grassy ridge, and eventually into the Corrie. Requires scramble out, but for all the world looks like Mordor...

Finally, a tour of MacLeod’s tables would be a strenuous half day and you won’t see anyone!

That was literally true when I walked them. Surprised to hear that other places are so busy though - has it changed in the last few years?

has it changed in the last few years?

Massively. Especially in summer school holidays. If you are not limited to school holidays it would be a very poor choice of time of year to go.

Suggestion above re Glenbrittle is good IF you are able to pass the chaos around the fairy pools which is completely fouling up the road a couple of miles north. I guess setting off before breakfast, having food for breakfast and lunch on you so you are not reliant on getting into a cafe, and as someone said above walk more than a couple of km from a car park and it might be tolerable. Extracting you car from the car park later would then be you only issue. And avoid any tourist orientated wet weather alternative like distilleries.

There is a pleasant walk round Glen Brittle forest you can do. Pretty self explanatory if you look at a map.

Boat ride from Portree to see the sea eagles.

Walk round the Quiraing.

Climb Bruach na Frith, the easiest top on the main ridge.

Old Inn at Carbost is a great pub. Look out for the live music nights.

It's hard to believe how busy Skye is these days. As a kid I went on family hols there every year from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. Fairy pools we pretty much always had to ourselves, even in July.

It’s hard to believe how busy Skye is these days. As a kid I went on family hols there every year from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. Fairy pools we pretty much always had to ourselves, even in July.

It is. Glenbrittle campsite is an interesting example of the transformation. Even 5 years ago (around the time of the infamous Danny Macaskill fence flip at the campsite in his 'The Ridge' vid and Bear Grylls using it as HQ for making one of his programmes) it was still a pleasant little thing mainly the preserve of more adventurous families and walkers. No electrical hookups and a tiny fridge in the warden's office which had a few pints of milk and packs of sausages at the end of a long singletrack road past the fairy pools. 5 years on it has 120 electrical hookup pitches and employs 'baristas'. But it's still at the end of a long single track road past the fairy pools. Only snag is 120 families that would have previously not been prepared to forgo electricity and home comforts are daily dragging their white boxes up and down the inappropriate lane with a gazillion overseas tourists in hire cars who have never driven on a singletrack road also in the mix.

The cuillin ridge is a nice little outing, take sandwiches!

Glenbrittle campsite [...] 5 years on it has 120 electrical hookup pitches and employs ‘baristas’.

Gawd almighty! That shatters my illusions. I have fond memories of 'upgrading' from a soggy tent to a crooked caravan (clamped to planet earth by a couple of wire ropes over the top) on one of our abortive attempts at the Cuillin ridge, years ago. I sort of thought it might still be the same. Obviously not...

Yes I spent a delightful 5 days in a tent at Glen Brittle years ago (we were the only two people there) waiting for the rain to stop for a ridge traverse. It didn't.

Thanks for all the replies. No I definitely cannot change the timing - and determined not to regret it in advance...hence the request for out of the way places. Have dinner booked!

We will prob try one day out in the South around the ridge - thanks for the suggestions. But sounds like we will be better off keeping close to where we are staying or further North.

Hunish peninsula is a great area to explore (right up in the north of the island). Easy walking mostly, except for a short steep section down through some crags onto the peninsula itself. Amazing sea cliffs with great views out to Harris, and one of the best spots to sit watching for whales and dolphins.

More pictures please.

Lyrics from a 1978 song (translated from Gaelic)

The leaves are dancing

From the trees in the wind

The browns of autumn are turning our year around

Now that the summer visitors have gone

Content is the way you left me to my island

The lochs and the bays are all mine

My heart rests easy on the winter hills

Now that the summer visitors have gone

The day is over, the shops have closed

The castle will get a night's peace

Money will get some respite

Now that the summer visitors have gone

They changed our means of livelihood

They altered our language and way of life

But autumn, I can only welcome you

Now that the summer visitors are gone

Island autumn

Northern autumn

We can live a little like we used to

Before the crowds came

The heather on the hills

And the sunlit forests

Will reveal their colours for us

Until they return again

We went about 3 years ago and marveled at how beautiful and quiet the place was. It was early Oct when we visited but during a spell of lovely settled weather. Hardly saw a soul at Neist where we had an grand day climbing at the crag just under the car park / road. Friends went up earlier this year in May time, outside of school hols, and said it was horrendous and they'd never go back!!

Yeah, it was mad there today..
https://flic.kr/p/2gWtCVT

My recommendation would be to take a look on Instagram, check out the top ten #skye, and then keep well clear.

Is third the Sligachan Coruisk route. I did most of it today. Bike to Camusunary, cross the river and then up Sgurr na Stri to take a look at the aircraft crash site.
Found a thing -
https://flic.kr/p/2gWupj3

The carpark was insanely busy, but 99% are spewing from tour buses, taking a snap of the old bridge, and moving to the next photo op.
Almost made me come across all Tracksterman, but the hordes of Chinese tourists seemed exceedingly jolly. Each to their own.
Twenty seconds riding and it's all but deserted though.
Expect similar everywhere, apart from the Quirang and Old Man.
Driving is a ballache currently, accept you will be trundling along most of the time.

Pics there somewhere, Drac will be enjoying them on his iPad no doubt

Thanks all again. Looks like the Quiraing would be good to do. @scotroutes your suggested route to Sgurr na Stri - would that include the bad step? Or can you go to the top and down to Camasunary via the SE slope? Is fording the river at Camasunary troublesome?

Well first day today - did the Hoe, Waterstein Head loop (thanks @rossw)- did not see one single person for the full 6 hours we were out. Fantastic views between the showers. Beautiful place...no problems driving so far too. Hoping to go up to North tomorrow to look at Quiraing and possibly Hunish if we have time. Thanks all!

. @scotroutes your suggested route to Sgurr na Stri – would that include the bad step? Or can you go to the top and down to Camasunary via the SE slope? Is fording the river at Camasunary troublesome?

Just saw this. Yes, that route includes the Bad Step. I'd not let that worry you, it's really very, very simple. There's a massive groove in the rock.

The river crossing is (normally) just fine. At low tide there are stepping stones across the river. If these are covered then just head upstream a little and paddle across barefoot.

@bedmaker - There's quite a tale of the F111 - Heavy's blog has several articles (as one of the first on the scene).
https://heavywhalley.wordpress.com/2018/12/07/26981/

Got to say that I'm struggling with these Skyemaggedon visions of mobbedness that people are relaying.

I went in July two years ago to do the ridge and it wasn't at all busy.

I don't think I passed single car driving down glenbrittle the first day.

And the second day I definitely didn't pass anyone on the road. Though admittedly Fairy Pools was occupied.

Hell I almost failed to find someone to belay me on the Inn Pinn. Nowhere near as many people as expected.

Fair enough the first trip down Brittle was at 5:30am and the second was at 3am the next day, so I guess that's not representative...

And Sgurr Dearg is defo more than ten minutes from the road.

But the campsite and pub weren't that mobbed.

OK back home now. Second day at the Quiraing. Definitely more crowded and car park full by 8.30 am. Walk around was fairly busy and sad to see steep route up hill badly scarred. There were some absolute numpties on the road down to the East (eg overtaking whilst waiting in a passing place) and took some some time to get down. Sadly did not get up to the far north due to one of the group twisting ankle...the Trotternish Ridge though is beautiful.
Will defo go back - need at least a week or even two (we were actually pretty lucky with weather) but will not go in August next time. Final comment is that virtually every local we spoke to moaned about the number of camper vans - a combination of clogging up the roads/ "wild" camping/ and not spending whilst on the island.
Thanks for all the suggestions - @scotroutes thanks for the reply re Bad Step - that routes sounds perfect.

My ex-wife's uncle was the navigator on the crashed plane.
Suggests his navigation wasn't 100%