The Quiraing

Wednesday 29th June 2011 

Right up until I was on bus to the Quiraing I was going to visit the Old Man of Storr, a dramatic column of rock just north of Portree, to do a walk that I should have done in 2007. Instead I decided to stay on the bus and visit the Quiraing, equally stunning rock formations further north along the Trotternish range. I eventually got off the bus just before the village of Flodigarry and immediately started to climb towards the vast ancient landslides that make up the Quiraing. Gradually, I climbed past Loch Langaig and Loch Hasco until I reached the first major landslip, that of Leac nan Fionn. Slipping around the back I climbed up the steep embankment to the precipitous top and, after gazing at the views across the bizarre landscape of tall, narrow ridges under a dark, overcast sky, I headed across to the neighbouring ridges, exploring each of them. 

On reaching the foot of the main escarpment I re-joined the footpath, walking below the steep cliff face, past further shattered landslips and round a corner to the Prison, a ridge of pyramidal rock. However my eyes were directed towards the Needle on the other side of the path where a sharp pinnacle is set amongst further landslips below the escarpment. Resolutely I tried to climb the ridiculously steep, slippery, loose gravelly slope up to the foot of the Needle where I slipped around the back for a stunning sight looking past the Needle towards the countryside beyond. Behind the Needle is the Table, which is a flat, grassy area, but as I tried to get up to the Table it started to rain which made the already slippery terrain treacherous. Eventually I gave up and slowly made my way back down to the footpath. 

With the rain pouring down I continued past the Prison and along the wonderfully contoured footpath that clings to a narrow ledge below the towering escarpment. Eventually the rain stopped and I reached the vast grassland that lies behind the Quiraing. On reaching a road I turned around and climbed up to the top of Meall na Suiramach, the hill that the Quiraing has fallen away from. After gazing in awe at the land that had slipped away from the edge of the hill I crossed over to the summit trig point. At this point I looked at the time and realised that I had only forty-five minutes to get down to the road in order to catch a bus. So in a mad rush I dashed down the grassland to the northern edge of the Quiraing where I was able to drop down onto the footpath that runs below the escarpment. Further hurried walking brought me to the top of the outward path which I ran down all the way back to the road with enough time to spare to eat the sandwiches of my lunch before the bus arrived. 

This was a rather lightweight walk, but I think the main problem with the walk was the necessity to get back down to the road for the bus at 2.15, which is ridiculously early, but necessary due to the lack of a bus from Portree after 5.15. Despite this I really enjoyed exploring the various tops, which I was doing partly because I knew I wasn’t doing a particularly challenging walk. I was trying to make up for the lack of a proper walk by going up every top I saw, at least at first, but eventually rain and the time got the better of me. During the bus journey back I passed lots of high mountains and I wished I’d gone up one of them instead of the lower hills north of Portree. As fascinating as the Quiraing, or the Old Man of Storr, are they don’t really compete with mountains like the Cuillin, which is where my heart lies. After the rain of earlier in the day the afternoon proved to be gloriously sunny and made my yearning even greater to be walking atop the mountains that I could see while sitting on a bus going past them.

Loch Coruisk

Tuesday 28th June 2011 

Returning to the scene of my Sunday washout, Sligachan, I walked to a loch where those who know say is the greatest view in Britain. Sadly Loch Coruisk is not as well loved as the view of Wasdale Head in the Lake District because it is really difficult to get to Loch Coruisk as I found out on this walk. You can either take a boat from Elgol or do a long walk in from Sligachan as I did. I set off south from the hotel through Glen Sligachan on an excellent path past Marsco and the stunningly dramatic Sgurr nan Gillean. Wainwright (in his only book on Scotland) describes a walk down Glen Sligachan as being a worthwhile expedition, with average walkers going no further than Lochan Dubha. At this point I was surrounded by mountains of the most awesome proportions with the jagged spikes of Sgurr nan Gillean dominating my view throughout the walk while the steep slopes of Marsco and Ruadh Stac hemmed me in. 

Just after Lochan Dudha I veered right and climbed the low ridge of Druim Hain to near the low hill of Sgurr Hain. Wainwright said that strong walkers would reach a well-built obelisk that ‘commanded a sensational view of Loch Coruisk in a surround of wild mountains’. My Harvey Map describes this obelisk as Capt Maryon’s Monument but I had another target in mind: Loch Coruisk itself. Wainwright recommended continuing beyond the obelisk to the minor peak of Sgurr na Stri saying super walkers would gain a wonderful view of most of the Cuillin skyline. I remember standing at the top of the ridge trying to decide whether to drop down to the lake, or continue south to Sgurr na Stri where the view would have been improved by the higher vantage point. The lure of the lake itself proved too much and I descended the rock covered landscape all the way down to Loch Coruisk, where I beheld possibly the best view in the country, in the heart of the Cuillin Mountains. Boat trips take tourists to Loch Coruisk to take in the view but I was careful to pick a part of the shore some distance from the tourists where I could gaze on the stunning scenery in silence. Unfortunately, despite having possibly the best weather that I would have during my holiday on the Isle of Skye, the tops of the Cuillin were obstinately covered in cloud which gave the scene a grey, dull overtone. Nevertheless the views that I saw were inspiring and only improved the longer I stayed by the loch with the clouds constantly lifting. As I left the loch-side, the clouds lifted briefly from every top on the Cuillin including the slender Inaccessible Pinnacle that balances precariously atop the Cuillin ridge. After lunch I climbed back over the hill and down into Glen Sligachan. 

I crossed the valley and rejoined my outward path but rather than returning to Sligachan I continued south past Loch an Athain and through Strath na Crèitheach below the towering dark cliffs of Bla Bheinn towards the sea at Camasunary. Beside Loch Crèitheach I left the path and with dark clouds ruining the earlier sunshine I climbed steeply to the low col between Bla Bheinn and An t-Sròn. After descending a short, shallow gully I crossed the southern tip of Bla Bheinn and climbed over Am Màm to join the landrover track that comes up from Camasunary. I followed this all the way to the Elgol road where I had a half hour wait in warm sunshine for a bus that would take me back to Broadford. This was a fantastic walk in incredible surroundings. Once again the radical change in my plans caused by the rain on Sunday had worked in my favour. Originally I would have walked over the pass from Glen Brittle to Sligachan before commencing the walk described. If that had been the case I’m sure I would not have had the time to walk over the ridge and down to the shore of Loch Coruisk. I would have missed a highlight of my week on the Isle of Skye.