We’re finally picking up writing Daleks Great Scotland Camping Trip again, but not from where we left off. Dalek is still going to write his day-by-day ramblings but as many travelers are already planning their summer trips, we’ve decided to first write all the practical information for each region visited (with campsite reviews) in the next 2 weeks.
Note: We already have a popular post on Isle of Skye, this post will add to our old trip by describing the 3 days spent in Skye during the camping trip.
Top reason to visit Skye: Its the most beautiful place in Scotland. So many dramatic landscapes to see! (The movie Prometheus was shot here). We’ve been known to ask first-time visitors to reduce their stay in Edinburgh / Glasgow to fit in a trip to Skye, any first visit to this country is incomplete without visiting the Isle of Mist.
Places visited
Sligachan
We first laid our eyes on the Sligachan Campsite on our first trip while on a bus to Portree and remember being dumbstruck seeing how amazing the sweeping views were. So it was only fitting to finally be able to camp here on my 1st camping trip. The views from this camping are some of the best in Scotland, the smooth Red Cuillins on one side with the flowing Sligachan river for company (the view I chose) and the jagged Black Cuillins on the other side. Just camping here is an experience worth visiting for.
A Black Cuillin from another side of the Sligachan campsite
The stone towers symbolize the hill backdrop
Hiking in the area: The first thing I did after pitching my tent in the afternoon was do the Glamaig hike to get a view of the Cuillins like I hadn’t before. This is one of the easiest hikes in the area for people like me with little hillwalking experience and moderate fitness. It was one of the best hikes of my life (despite the extremely boggy start). Apart from the stunning views, I got to see sheep & a big herd of deer at a high altitude. Absolutely recommend this hike if you’re a beginner hillwalker (my top nature related experience of 2016), advanced hillwalkers should try one of these other hikes in the area.
Red Cuillin panorama from the top
High-altitude sheep
As a bonus, saw the sky set on fire on the way down. Damn Scotland’s beautiful.
Old Man of Storr
The most popular walk on the whole island is the Old Man of Storr (this is where parts of Prometheus were shot). It is not a big climb (an hour up probably) but we couldn’t do it on our Skye day trip on our 1st trip. The distinct look of the quartz rocks at the top make the “old man” (but you need some imagination to see it).
Tip: If visiting by public transport, make sure you check the bus timetables before the climb or else you’ll have to either wait for a long time or take a longer journey back.
The classic view at Old Man of Storr
Isle of Raasay
I had a few hours to kill before going to Uig and the best way to spend them was to take a quick trip to the Isle of Raasay. The Sconser ferry terminal is a 10 min bus ride from the Sligachan campsite and the bus timings worked out well for me. The Isle of Raasay is a nice wee island to take a walk around on, it has fantastic views towards Isle of Skye. There is a great circular walk from the ferry terminal where I took the pics below.
The Raasay House
The cliff is shaped this way due to the way sheep eat the grass
Uig
The final place I visited on Skye (and even stayed overnight) is the port town on Uig on the NW coast of Skye. I had an early morning ferry to catch from Uig so it made sense to camp there overnight. Luckily, I had the best weather of my 3 days on Skye in Uig so I spent most of the time chilling out in the sunshine with a Uig-made Isle of Skye Brewery beer in my hand. The campsite is really nice!
Coastline watching
Tip: I had a really delicious and fresh salad at The Shieling in Uig, highly recommended.
Public transport logistics
Getting in: Two ways, either take a Citylink bus from the mainland that starts at Glasgow via Kyle of Lochalsh (a rail terminal with trains to Inverness). Or take a CalMac ferry from the port of Mallaig (a rail terminal with trains to Glasgow) and then take a bus to Broadford onto Portree or Uig.
Getting around: If you have a Spirit of Scotland travel pass, all CityLink & Stagecoach buses on the Isle of Skye are free. Stagecoach Highlands runs services on the Isle of Skye, you should buy return tickets for a return journey or a day ticket for £8.50. Buses are not very frequent on the island so be sure to study the timetable (available freely in Portree).
Campsite Reviews
Sligachan campsite (open 1st Apr to 15th Oct)
Cost: £7.5o per person per night for a backpacker
UK campsite reviews: 7/10
Distance from public transport: Right in front of a bus stop, very convenient.
Toilets & showers: Very basic. The showers weren’t very clean so didn’t really use them.
Notes: On 1 night, there was a very loud group that multiple people had to ask to quiet down. Ultimately, I was too tired from hiking to be bothered & still slept.
The view: Unbelievable, this pic was taken at 5 AM, it looked surreal
Uig Bay Campsite (Open all year)
Cost: £7.5o per person per night for a backpacker
UK campsite reviews: 8/10
Distance from public transport: A 10 minute walk from the bus stop / ferry terminal.
Toilets & showers: Clean and excellent toilet block
The view: The campsite itself does not have much of a view, however the B&B run by the same owners and accessible to campers has great coastal views (the ones in the Uig description)
© 2017 Beyond Our Horizons
This sounds and looks like an amazing trip! Thank you for sharing, it was such a good read and the pics are amazing! 🙂
Lisa | http://www.fromdreamtoplan.net/
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Thanks Lisa 🙂
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Wow! What an amazing trip! You’re very lucky! I’ve heard the Isle of Raasay is a must see and from your pictures, I agree.
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Thanks, we do consider ourselves quite lucky 🙂 Raasay is a good day trip but that area has such an embarrassment of natural riches that you cant spend too long at 1 place. 😀
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Great post – I’m visiting Skye for the first time soon and was looking for ideas – your photos are beautiful!
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Thank you for your appreciation. I have visited Skye once a year for the past 4 years! I highly encourage you going through this blogpost to see what our perfect daytrip itinerary looks like (and one could spend 2-3 hours at each stop easily): https://beyondourhorizons.com/2018/02/25/perfect-isle-of-skye-daytrip-scotland/
Do let us know if you have any specific questions, will be happy to help. Have a great Skye trip!
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Hey, thank-you for this suggestion – that’s great! That’s really kind – I’ll ask if I come up with any more questions. Good to know there is so much to see and do!
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No problem, my pleasure. I have spent 3 full months sightseeing around Scotland and I still have things to check off. Scotland is truly one of the most beautiful countries in the world, I can say so with confidence and (shaky) authority.
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