Isle of Skye
Early in the morning we slipped our moorings at Inverie and sailed the short distance “over the sea to Skye”. Prominent on the shoreline ahead of the ship were the white buildings of the Gaelic College and Armadale Lodge, the former a welcome if belated display of interest by the authorities in the historic language of the Hebrides. Standing forlorn between them were the grey ruins of Armadale House, the focal point of the Clan Donald Centre, the object of our morning excursion. The Centre is set in magnificent grounds, with many fine trees from the west coast of the Americas collected by that intrepid band of Scottish plant collectors, among whom David Douglas is particularly noteworthy. We walked along the coastal path to the lodge and then went directly to the Museum and Archive, an exemplary small museum that tells the story not only of the Clan Donald but also of the Lordship of the Isles with great clarity and style. Iris Barry gave a guided tour of the museum and afterwards Konia Tack led a tour of the gardens.
We sailed over lunch along the Sound of Sleat and into the Kyle of Lochalsh, the latter a notorious stretch of water for local sailors with its tidal race and unpredictably gusting winds. Kyle of Lochalsh lost its function as the principal ferry port for Skye when the new bridge was constructed at the end of the last century although the scenic and skillfully engineered railway is still operational with regular trains from Inverness. Our berth was at the old ferry terminal beside the station. For our afternoon excursions there were two options. Our band of hikers set off over the bridge to Skye to explore the Red Cuillin, a famous granite landscape much loved by hill walkers. A gentler option was the short coach ride to Eilean Donan castle, one of the most photographed sites in Scotland, where we had a guided tour before proceeding to Plockton, a fishing village also famed for its scenic qualities. We had the added bonus of an encounter with a fold of Highland Cattle on the common grazing land in the middle of Duirinish, rounding off a memorable afternoon in perfect light for the many keen photographers on board.
The final evening saw fond farewells mixed with some anxiety as news of the impending arrival of Hurricane Irene on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States reached us with its potential to disrupt travel plans for the journey home. The mood at dinner was nevertheless celebratory: the haggis was piped in and addressed by the ship’s hotel manager, Brian Copland, splendidly attired in his dress kilt, yet another photo opportunity!
