I is for Isle of Skye & the Inglis River

/ Pamela J

Welcome to the A to Z challenge, a blog post everyday of April apart from Sundays, covering every letter of the alphabet. My theme is travel, that thing that we haven’t been able to do over the last 12 months, so it seemed appropriate to reminisce about past travels we’ve taken, looking forward to when we can travel freely again.

Today we’re visiting a beautiful Scottish Island and a river in Tasmania – I had a bit of trouble with the letter I.

The Isle of Skye is the largest island of the Inner Hebrides on Scotland’s west coast. The first time we stayed on Skye was in 2005 – my beloved picked me up after a night shift and we started our 650 mile journey with me mainly sleeping for the first few hours. When we arrived at the cottage we’d booked the hours of travel just fell away faced with our fairy-tale home away from home. For that reason when we visited again 12 years later we booked the same cottage – in the intervening years it had barely changed apart from now having a TV (we didn’t watch it) and Wi-Fi which was useful as I was in the middle of the 2017 A to Z challenge.

An important part of being in a strange place is finding the best places to have coffee and cake, and my beloved and I take this very seriously. On our most recent holiday to Skye we found the delightful Café Lephin in Glendale and we stopped there more than once because the atmosphere, staff, and food were all fabulous.

The main town on the island is Portree, below, and there are some fabulous old graveyards to explore whilst enjoying the incredible scenery.

The most famous person buried on the Isle of Skye Is Flora MacDonald who helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape the Hanoverian forces after the battle of Culloden in 1746. On her grave it reads; Her name will be mentioned in history and if courage and fidelity be virtues, mentioned with honour.

Flora had an incredible life including being imprisoned in the Tower of London for a while after her assistance of the prince. Once released she went on to marry, have 5 children, move to America where her husband fought in the battle of independence, move back to Skye, and she died in 1790 at the age of 68.

A more recent burial is that of Lee Alexander McQueen, the amazing fashion designer. His gravestone fits right in with the rugged landscape of the island around him which was the birthplace of his father and a place he loved to visit.

The quote on top is from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

We did some fabulous walks on the Isle of Skye, including one to the coral beach which is pristine white due to crushed white coral. We took a picnic with us and had a wonderful day exploring the area.

Last two pictures from Skye show things we love, cuddling together in front of a fire, and finding wonderful cake to eat in lovely cafes.

The Inglis River is 61km long and enters the sea at Wynyard on the northwest coast of Tasmania. Through high school I knew the river well as the the track alongside it made up part of our yearly cross country run. As it widens to reach the sea it forms a small harbour where people love to fish and there is a fabulous fish and chip shop.

Beside the river are the beautiful Gutteridge Gardens where we had some of our wedding photos taken.

These two photos are taken 18 years apart – a little bit older but even more crazy in love.

Every time we go home to Tassie for a holiday, my beloved and I regularly walk the river track from the last bridge before the sea, down to the harbour – it’s such a peaceful spot with lots of nature to see, including pelicans, and if we’re lucky we sometimes spot a sleeping possum.

It’s beautiful in any season, and the bonus is that we know that on the way home we will walk past one of the many lovely cafe’s in the town’s main street. Well technically, we don’t walk past, we enter, replenish our energy, and then continue on our way.

Thanks for stopping by and make sure you visit other bloggers who are crazy enough to be doing the challenge with me – Click Here to visit the master list of participants.

Stay safe and have a lovely day.

Previous A to Z posts:

2018 – I is for Intimacy

2017 – I is for Inverness

2016 – I is for Indalo Man

17 thoughts on “I is for Isle of Skye & the Inglis River”

  5. I enjoyed your post spanning two islands on opposite sides of the world! If I were to travel to Scotland, I’d head for the Isle of Islay … not because it fits your I challenge but for a wee dram or three of their peaty smoky whisky!

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      • Good on you for at least giving it another go, I understand how it’s not for everyone. The Islay malts have their own unique over the top “punch in your face” style and even divide scotch drinkers in reviews!

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  7. What is Ken wearing on his head? It looks like a clay pot?
    I equally liked both destinations as presented by you, and you know what? I think I know why. Both included fantastic views and yummy cake!

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