To the Isle of Skye!

Like every other morning over the past eight days, we arose from our tents feeling stiff and achy. But today was different. Instead of a long day of walking, we had a relaxing train journey ahead of us. As always, first things first was a breakfast of coffee and bourbon biscuits. Then we packed up our stuff, squashed it into our backpacks, and headed to reception to check out. The manager, who had been a bit on the grumpy side the day before, was very friendly and chatty this morning which was a pleasant start to the day. We spent a good 15 minutes talking to him and another lady before heading off to the bus station. Our destination was Aviemore train station, where we'd embark on a scenic train ride to the Isle of Skye.

Campsite manager to the rescue

The bus stop was a short walk away, so we trudged slowly, feeling each step in our mangled feet. Once at the bus stop, we stood awkwardly next to some scary youths waiting for the bus to arrive. Unsurprisingly, the bus was late, and we began to worry whether it would turn up or not. We were discussing what to do next when suddenly a car pulled up at the bus stop. To our surprise, it was the campsite manager, and he offered us a lift as he was heading into town anyway. Dani made a beeline for the backseats, so I had the fun job of making conversation during the drive. Luckily, he was a mountain biker, so we had some common ground. A couple of minutes later, we were at the station with plenty of time to grab a coffee and some breakfast at the Explorers Cafe, we both opted for a vegetarian Haggis and onion chutney toastie, which was incredible.

We then popped into some shops for snacks, and Dani bought some souvenirs which included Feagour (who we will introduce later). Finally, our train to Inverness arrived, and off we headed to Kyle of Lochalsh.

"You're a Dingwall!" 

Our first train to Inverness arrived promptly, and we climbed on. The carriage was packed, but we were lucky to find two seats next to each other. There was nowhere to put our luggage, so I had to put my oversized backpack on my lap like a humongous baby. Dani found this very amusing and, of course, took a photo.

We didn't spend long in Inverness, and soon we were on the next train to Kyle of Lochalsh. The views on this train ride were absolutely stunning, and our tired feet enjoyed the well-deserved rest. We passed through a town called Dingwall and amused ourselves for far too long, using it as an insult. At one stage, a local lady got on the train with her beautiful black labrador. Being animal-obsessed, we couldn't help ourselves, and we asked whether we could pet him. We chatted with his owner about her life in such a remote area.

After a relaxing few hours, we arrived in Kyle of Lochalsh, a mainland Scottish town that is connected to Skye via a bridge. A huge grey cloud loomed over the town, waiting for us to disembark the train before it dropped its contents. We grabbed some chips and sheltered for a little while before beginning the walk over the bridge onto Skye.

We'd booked a hostel called Skye Backpackers in the town of Kyleakin. On first impressions, the hostel looked like someone's cosy cottage, and we struggled to find the entrance. Once finally inside, we chatted to the receptionist, a very friendly German lady, whom we discovered had been travelling all over the place for a very long time. We'd booked a four-bed female dorm and were sharing with a very quiet solo traveller. We emptied the contents of our bags and found the clothes that smelled the least to chill in while the rest made their way into the laundry. We were also in desperate need of a wash, so we went to explore the rest of the hostel. Now, to say this place was quirky is an understatement. It felt like we were staying in someone's family home, and the showers and toilets were in actual cupboards. I wish we'd remembered to get photographs. Our room was super cosy though.

We went down to make a hot drink to have with some biscuits and settled in the empty common room. Within about ten minutes, we were joined by five others: two Australian lads, a German couple, and one other. We had a good chat and were shocked to find out that the Australian lads had climbed Ben Nevis in the snow wearing shorts and trainers. Not the smartest idea, if you ask me! Exhausted from all the socialising, we decided to call it a night.

The next morning, we awoke feeling somewhat more rested. Our plan for the day was to catch buses around the island in order to see as much as possible while resting our tired feet. Before catching the bus, we walked through the sleepy town of Kyleakin to the remains of a small 15th-century castle known as Caisteal Maol. The short route took us across a pebbly beach where an abandoned boat rested on the shore. The weather was wet and wild, and the mist coming off the sea set a pretty eerie scene. Danielle brought Feagour to see the castle too, and here they are posing together.

We caught the bus to the town of Portree, and the views on the route were spectacular. Once off the bus, we had a decision to make: get lunch at one of the many cafes in town or get on bus 57A, which did a loop of the north part of Skye. We opted for the bus and were so glad we did because this bus journey was full of surprises. The bus driver let us on for free, and off we went. The rain was really coming down at this point, but we still got glimpses of the dramatic views all around us. We passed by multiple scenic attractions, including Bride's Veil Falls, Loch Leatham Dam, and Bearreaig Bay, and the bus driver called out each one like we were on a tour.

The next stop was the Old Man of Storr, and here a very soggy man got on. He gave us a very warm smile as he came down the bus, and he sat just across from us. He had a beanie hat on, and his glasses were steamed up because of the rain. Just as another group was about to get on, the bus driver decided to pull away for absolutely no reason at all other than to mess with the people trying to get on. We assumed he was pretending to leave without them and that he'd pull over again, but he didn't stop. We all looked around at each other in surprise. That's when the smiley guy started chatting with us, asking us about our trip and telling us about his life. His name was Rajesh, and he was from India. He was a cosmologist, and he'd lived all over the world doing his research. He told us that he had a family back home who had accompanied him on his travels for the first couple of years but had decided to stay in India when they'd had enough of constantly moving around. I asked, probably a bit presumptuously, whether he got lonely without them. He said he did, but that meeting so many people on his travels helped. By this point, a lady from further down the bus had come to join in the conversation. Her name was Nanci, and she was from Italy, but she was living in Edinburgh. She introduced her friends, also from Italy, that she was showing around parts of Scotland. Literally, everyone on the bus was now part of the conversation, and we took a group photo.

Raj shared a homemade snack of rice, chickpeas, and veggies dressed in a herby, lemon dressing with us, and it was delicious. This random exchange with absolute strangers on a bus in a very remote part of Scotland will always stick with me. The kindness of these people and their genuine interest in our lives was heartwarming. Rajesh was in awe of the walking trip we'd just completed, and we actually inspired him to go out and try wild camping for himself. While all of this was going on, we passed through some incredible landscapes in the rain and mist, making Skye look as majestic and mysterious as we'd anticipated.

The bus loop was completed and we were back in Portree and ready for some lunch. Nanci suggested that we all get lunch together, but Dani was clearly socially exhausted, so I saved her from this situation by making up an excuse. We then waited with a coffee outside for a table at a very busy, obviously very popular cafe called The Granary. I was delighted to see they had a halloumi sandwich on the menu, and Dani had a vegan burger. A meal definitely worth nearly missing our bus back to Kyleakin over!

As we got on the bus, we spotted Rajesh also waiting to catch a bus. He gave us a big smile and an enthusiastic wave. We had a very entertaining Liverpudlian in front of us on the bus journey back who cracked open a beer as soon as the bus set off.

Hostel Drama

Once back at the hostel, we went up to our room to discover that no one had replaced our old roomie yet. We naively hoped that we'd get the whole room to ourselves, but how wrong we were. We went out to grab a bite to eat, and Dani was feeling peckish, so she ordered another vegan burger and an espresso martini. I also had a cocktail, as well as a traditional Scottish pudding called cranachan. We then went for a wander around Kyleakin in the hopes of spotting puffins or otters. Unfortunately, we had no such luck, but the sights were wonderful.

It was getting pretty late, so we decided to head back. Opening the door to our room, our hopes of having the room to ourselves vanished into thin air. Two others had moved in while we were out and completely taken over the room. We tried to chat with them, but they were French, and as our French was pretty limited and so was their English, the conversation died quickly into a very awkward silence. Eventually, they left the room, and we got ourselves ready for bed. Cosy and comfy in our beds, we were just about to drift off when they came back into the room. Now, I understand that no one ever really gets a good night's sleep in a hostel room, but this was to be one of the worst nights we'd had the whole trip, and we'd been camping in Scotland in minus temperatures. The women burst into the room, laughing loudly. This laughter did not stop until about 2 a.m., during which time the light was left on. The night before, we'd decided to wake up early so we could walk up a nearby hill for sunrise. So, as you do, we made sure to make lots of noise getting ready that morning. Petty, I know.

Anyway... We were up bright and early for our stroll up the hill. On our way out, we popped into the kitchen and grabbed a coffee before beginning the Cnoc Trail. Unfortunately, it was cloudy, so we didn't get to see the sunrise, but we still enjoyed the feeling of the fresh morning breeze on our faces. We then went back to the hostel, had a hearty breakfast of Coco Pops, and walked back over to the train station.

We overestimated how long it would take to walk, and so, in typical Dani and I fashion, we headed into a coffee shop to wait. In this coffee shop, Dani then suggested the most spontaneous adventure of our trip. Even more spontaneous than this trip to the Isle of Skye had been. Find out about this in the final edition of our East Highland Way Saga...