What to See and Do on the Isle of Skye, Skye, Scotland

The largest of the Inner Hebrides, Skye’s name comes from the Old Norse word meaning the “Misty Isle” because of its often unpredictable weather. It was a part of Scotland we were probably most excited to see – rain or shine – with its dramatically beautiful and rugged landscape, which we planned to take full advantage of during our 2 days on the Isle of Skye. The irony though was that the weather was near perfect while we were there without any interruption from the elements.

We said goodbye to Inverness and headed west on A82 passing a handful of interest spots along the way like the one and only Loch Ness, home to the fabled monster of the same name and the ruins of Urquhart Castle. Both Nessie as the monster is affectionately known as (we may or may not have had a sighting of the elusive creature) and the castle were worth a brief stop and photo opp from the side of the road. As we got closer to Skye the scenic drive transformed into more of what I imagined Scotland to be like – lush green hills as far as the eye could see with the more than occasional roadside flock of sheep and a few photogenic hairy “coos” for good measure. Right before crossing the Skye Bridge we also stopped at the Eilean Donan Castle, a picture-perfect stony castle and former Mackenzie stronghold that sits on an islet where 3 lochs meet and is sure to be featured on the Scotland calendar you have hanging on your wall. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).