A long walk on the Isle of Skye 2012
Day Five: 12th May
Weather: Mostly sunny with brief showers
Route: Sligachan to Portree - 12.2 miles with 1017ft of ascent
How annoying are computers and ‘intelligent’ phones? I spent an hour blogging away on this day walk and it’s was swallowed and spat out into the ether. Believe me it was the best piece I’ve ever written (large tongue in cheek), so now you’ll just have to put up with this shorter version. Tsk. It was nice to wake up to another relatively clear day and a leisurely start as it was a predominantly flat stage most of the way to Portree. Looking out of my window this morning I spied blue sky over Sgurr nan Gillean so knew I was in for another good day. The route today was fairly straightforward and didn’t have many alternatives, the bus being one of them if the burns are in full spate. There are many side streams along the loch shore, and it has been reported elsewhere that after heavy rain the path becomes almost impassable. There are one or two diversions today that I could have made but didn’t, and my route followed the one laid out in Patersons book. After a light breakfast in the Sligachan Hotel I was out and down to the bridge to capture a morning shot of the sunny side of Sgurr nan Gillean. There was a photographer set up with tripod etc, so I nipped down beside her to get a shot – it saved me faffing around, lining up my view etc and I was just in time as two bus loads of Japanese tourists poured out to spoil her view. A little bit wistful about leaving the Cuillin hills behind me I set off across the busy A87 road towards the campsite, wandering through the tents, and then down by the river Allt Dubh. I couldn’t really go wrong as the path follows the northern shore of Loch Sligachan and is a well trodden stretch. One thing to note of today’s route is that after heavy rainfall with the burns in spate it would be difficult to make progress along here. Many of the smaller burns run straight down the hillside in narrow valleys and these would fill up rapidly, I saw it last year and the power of water is frightening close up. I counted up 18 burns to cross before you reach the road at Peinachorrain But today was dry again and river crossing was easy. The River Sligachan is quite wide in places and with a bit more water in would require a bit of careful crossing, but today it was nice and easy across a dry river bed, with plenty of big stones to help keep dry. On the opposite shore the main road south to Broadford intrudes a little but not for long, in fact the noisiest thing passing today was a Eurofighter which flashed past in a blur. I watched the ferry from Sconser to Raasay cross the short distance between islands, and as I moved further along the shore the Cuillins became a distant view once more, which I was a little sorry to leave behind. South of Loch Sligachan the skyline is dominated by the big bulk of Glamaig, which effectively blots out the sunlight for a lot of the area to it's north - must be gloomy in the wintertime. The end of the loch marks the end of the stony path and a change of scenery down onto the road that runs along through The Braes. it was pleasant walking along the road through the small settlements of Peinachorrain, Balmeanach and Gedintailor, with only a few cars passing by, and all of those very courteous – no rushing about these roads. As I came down off the hill to the road the view directly in front of me led my eyes beyond Raasay to many snow capped mountains on the mainland, and as I turned the corner I took the lower road and was rewarded with good views over to Raasay, with the flat topped hill of Dun Caan stood proud of the island. This area must have been used for a lot of crofting and there is plenty of evidence in the fields and a few original crofts still standing – one with a tin roof weighed down with old yokes on chains, one held together with a bolted timber frame and one gracefully sagging at the hip of the roof. There is an interesting bay below Balmeanach which leads over to a promontory with the remains of a Dun on the end, that begs an exploration at another time. There’s a few old bits and bats along this coast, and some interesting properties that give the Braes a feel of distinction, calm and relaxing. After Gedintailor the road veers to the north west and the big local hill of Ben Tianavaig comes into view. This gives a taster of the landscapes to come in the next day or two. It could have been a route option but I’ve enough ascent to do over the next two days There is a small cairn and bench to sit on north of Gedintailor, this commemorates a bit of a battle between the local crofters and the Glasgow Police in 1882 - There's a song written - about the Battle of The Braes, this from their website -
'A combination of increasing numbers of people working on a land too poor to support them and landowners who could earn more from sheep rearing than from subsistence farmers, resulted in many leaving the land in the 18th and 19th centuries. Some went abroad to the better themselves and many were forcibly evicted in what became known as "The Clearances". In 1882, the crofters in Braes of Portree on the Isle of Skye stopped paying rent until their demands for the return of common grazing land were met. Using the force of law, the landlord, Lord Macdonald, tried to evict them. The ensuing "Battle of the Braes" was reported in the press and eventually Parliament passed laws giving crofters more security of tenure. It is sometimes argued that the Battle of the Braes was the last battle fought on British soil (rather than Culloden in 1745). 'An interesting piece of history and a nice bench to pause at. Looking back along the road the Red Cuillins were still in view and ahead of me appeared the coast to the north of Portree and a very distinct prominence of the Old Man of Storr. In places the coast reminded me a little of Cornwall, but only small patches of it. The road rises steadily for a while after Gedintailor passing fewer buildings, with an escarpment above the road to the left and the big hill to the right the land becomes typical of Skye once more with a mix of rough grass, heather and scrubby birch. There was plenty of birdlife flitting along to keep me occupied as my feet ate up the miles of tarmac. It was a couple of miles on the quiet B road before I reached Peinmore, just before the main A87, but there was still a little interest - the odd building here and there, an old Chapel and a converted telephone exchange - must be the smallest property on Skye! From here the route took me off the road beside the River Varrigill which became more estuarine and tidal towards Portree. It was a real pleasure to put foot to turf once again after a day of road walking, passing through sweet smelling gorse on a good path before stepping along the banks of the Varrigill. There were plenty of Oyster Catchers flitting around, sea pinks in flower and springy turf beneath my feet. Most guide books point to leaving the river at the Aros centre and suffering the fast moving traffic along the main road to Portree. Thankfully for me the tide was out and it enabled me to walk along the high water mark below the cemetery and around to a slipway where there is a path that leads up to the road. This is probably inaccessible at high tide but well worth the effort and is much more peaceful than the main road. I got to chatting with a local who told me I could have carried on around until reaching the bridge over the river in Portree where steps lead up to the road. But as I didn't know I had a short walk of around a mile to reach the B&B. It was good to see some activity and stroll through the town on another fine day. The storm clouds were gathering for tomorrow though, to pay me back for all the fine weather I have ever had on my long walks.
a fine view of Sgurr Nan Gillean
Marsco to the left with Sgurr Nan Gillean above the Sligachan Hotel
crossing dry-shod is easy today
the path meanders across some flats before taking to the hillside
the first of many side burns ahead
the big hill of Glamaig dominates the southern shore of Loch Sligachan
up onto a good path along the base of the hillside
and it runs and runs all the way along the lochside
across the water is Glamaig which consists of two peaks - Sgurr Mhairi and An Coileach
the mainland in the distance
one of the many burns that has to be crossed
Sgurr Nan Gillean and Sligachan now retreat in the distance as I near the end of the Loch
across the water is the ferry terminal at Sconser
a small rise just before dropping down to the road - Rubha an Torra Mhoir is down on the right
the corner of the route at Peinchorran
ahead lies the high road or the low road passing the Braes
the Red Cuillins in the distance beyond Glamaig
the low road gives good views down over the old crofting pastures, and the mainland beyond
looking back along the road from Balmeanach - the two small hills are Torr Mor and Torr Beag below Peinchorran
held together with a timber frame before remedial work is finished
One of the 'Black House' graciously sagging along the roof
Ben Tianavaig lies ahead
an old converted chapel
the roof is held together by old yokes and rusty chain
looking back down the road as a shower passes by
Ben Tianavaig with Camustianavaig in the sunshine
The Storr appears on the skyline
the distinct flat topped hill of Dun Caan
leaving the Braes behind
approaching Peinmore with Portree beyond - looking stormy for tomorrow
plenty of harvesting going on the other side of the main road - I turned off just after the bridge
onto a gorse lined track and path
the Old Man of Storr now showing on the horizon
the River Varrigill meanders through the floodplain
becoming more estuarine as I approach Portree
looking back along the riverbank
I continued along the high tide mark - nice and spongy turf - beware it can be very wet
the estuarine flats of the Varrigill with some of the Cuillins peaking above the horizon
hugging the high tide mark, ahead I can see some of my route for tomorrow - Ben Chracaig
storm clouds gathering
this part of the path would be difficult to pass at high tide
the slipway where I departed the coast and made my way up to the main road into Portree