Thursday 2nd June 2022
Once again I woke to gorgeous views and sunshine, but this time there were no midges as I was in Portree, the largest town on the Isle of Skye, and before catching a bus I took the opportunity to briefly walk around the area. Straight out of the youth hostel I was confronted by tremendous views across Loch Portree towards the distant Cuillin Hills with the sharp peak of Sgurr nan Gillean arresting my attention. Turning left I followed the coastline on a narrow path around the Lump, Sròn a’ Mhill, that was a delicious treat before getting onto a bus that took me back to the Storr where I had left the Skye Trail the day before. Unfortunately I was not alone as the Old Man of Storr has become very popular in recent years so there is now a large car park and wide paths lead the tourists up the hillside. Initially I followed the crowds, but soon diverted off the direct path to approach the Old Man of Storr from the south and pass between the tall pinnacle of rock and the mountain. The Cuillin could still be seen in the distance, but my attention was centred on the awesome rock scenery all around me caused by ancient landslides that have produced a fabulous landscape and can be seen in many feature films. Tearing myself away I headed north below the escarpment following a level path that crosses the northern slopes of the Storr above Coire Scamadal.
When this path began to descend I decided it was time to come off it onto the north ridge to climb up to the top of the Storr. The route for the Skye Trail on my Harvey Map didn’t recommend visiting the summit, but I felt that it couldn’t be ignored even though I had actually been to the top before. In 2007 I tried to walk along the Trotternish Ridge direct from Portree, which is an alternative route for the Skye Trail, but it involved a long pathless ascent that took me many hours and I do not have fond memories of that walk, so I was looking forward to exorcising those memories. From the top of the Storr I had great views in all directions, but I was particularly sentimental about seeing the Outer Hebrides in the distance, though the best views were south down the Trotternish Ridge, above the Storr Lochs and with the Cuillin Hills lining the horizon. To the north was the bulk of the Trotternish Ridge and my route for the rest of the day, so I set off down the broad western slopes to Bealach a’ Chuirn before climbing steeply up to the top of Hartaval where little violets encouraged me to keep going, which they would do throughout the Trotternish Ridge.
I now had clear views along the ridge in the bright sunshine and the escarpment looked fabulous under the clear blue skies. However, I had heard many scare stories about this ridge including the bad weather that awaits the Skye Trail walker and with my own experience of the ridge in 2007 I had been fearful of this traverse, but instead I had hardly any wind, though it did pick up as the afternoon progressed, and the skies overhead remained clear all day, though rain would later be seen falling in other parts of Skye. The views were awe-inspiring in all directions, not just along the ridge, as to the east I could see all the way towards the mainland and west across the Little Minch was the Outer Hebrides. Another steep drop took me to Bealach Hartaval, but with the tops now beginning to diminish the next climb was less prolonged and brought me onto the level ridge of Sgùrr a’ Mhalaidh and on to Baca Ruadh. This was followed by a gradual descent to the promontory of Sgùrr a Mhadaidh Ruaidh, which my Harvey Map recommends exploring, presumably to take in the views of the Trotternish Ridge, but I ignored the promontory and bypassed it down a clear path and then up steep slopes to the top of Creag a’ Lain.
While dark clouds and rain could be seen to the west on the Waternish Peninsula, I continued to enjoy sunshine as I descended to the relatively shallow Bealach Leacaich before climbing up Flasvein. In 2007 the constant ups and downs completely wore me out while the hour became very late, the weather worsened and my accommodation in Uig was still many miles away. This time it was much earlier in the day and with the sight of the Hills of Harris before me I was able to keep going over Flasvein and down to Bealach Chaiplin where in 2007 I had turned west across the western ridge of Groba nan Each and into Corrie Amadal. This time I still had many more hills to traverse descending to Bealach Amadal, up to the fabulously rocky ridge of Beinn Mheadhonach and across to the trig point at the top of Beinn Edra. The view from this point was rather depressing as it revealed a long descent down to the lowest point on the ridge so far followed by a steep climb up the hill beyond. However, I was again thankful that I was doing the Skye Trail in a northerly direction even though it is usually done southerly, as I prefer my descents to be gradual and my ascents steep.
By this point in the afternoon the wind had picked up and was particularly strong through Bealach nan Coisichean where I started to tackle the frustratingly long ascent up the grassy slopes of Biodhe Buidhe. Eventually the gradient eased and led me all the way up to the summit where a gradual descent revealed the dramatic Quiraing and at Bealach Ollasgairte, on the only road that passes over the Trotternish Ridge, a packed car park. Since it was now gone five o’clock I decided that it would be best if I put my tent at this point despite hoping that I would reach the Flodigarry Hostel before the end of the day, but that was still several hours away and the Quiraing is too good to rush. Instead I erected my tent above the cliffs opposite the steep peak of Cleat and not far from Dùn Dubh, which was a stunning location to camp. This was a very tiring day, but through stunning scenery in fabulous weather even though it was raining on other parts of Skye. There are a lot of ups and downs on the Trotternish Ridge and it should never be underestimated as any walk along the top will take longer than expected as I found out in 2007 and again on this fabulous walk.
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