Our Scotland Tour, Part 4- Morvich

img_1386.jpg

Day 11

By now we were experiencing typical Scottish weather, it would go from rain and hail to sun and blue skies within minutes. This made some of the most spectacular rainbows we’ve ever seen! We were on the road again and couldn’t wait to get to our next stop- Morvich Caravan and Motorhome club site.

Nestled between mountains and close to the Isle of Skye, this site was in a great location for exploring the local areas, and very picturesque!

image-22.jpg

Not only was this a gorgeous campsite but it had fantastic facilities. Including a good disabled shower room, laundry facilities, a drying room to air out wet gear, and even a lounge with tv, pool table and a cupboard full of games and puzzles!

This would be our longest stop of the trip (4 nights) so we were looking forward to settling in.

After exploring the site it was time for dinner. We didn’t fancy making food in the caravan after our long day travelling, so we headed to Kintail Lodge. Sitting on the edge of Loch Duich this hotel had a cosy traditional pub on the ground floor. Everyone there was really friendly, including their resident dog- Bailey. We enjoyed our food and got chatting with a lovely couple on the table next to us. Coincidentally they were also caravaners and doing a similar tour of Scotland! We ended up talking for hours and they gave us some great recommendations for things to do in the area.

The evening passed us by and before we knew it, it was time to get some sleep ready for the very busy day ahead.

Day 12

Waking up to the tune of “Happy birthday” I was probably (definitely) more excitable than Stephen. It was his 25th birthday and it was going to be one to remember!

We set off mid morning and headed straight for Sconser on the Isle of Skye, where we caught the ferry to the Isle of Raasay. We had heard a lot about this tiny island from a certain caravan vlogger and we couldn’t wait to explore it.

image-24.jpg

After taking the 25 minute crossing we weren’t quite ready for lunch yet. So we parked up at the ferry port with a gorgeous view across the turquoise water- the perfect setting for opening birthday presents!

image-25.jpg

By now we were feeling a little peckish so we drove a short two minutes to the beautiful Raasay House. Stephen had wanted to visit this place for quite some time so he was particularly looking forward to it. And we weren’t disappointed! Sitting on the side of a hill overlooking the sea and back to the Isle of Skye, this hotel/restaurant gives you stunning views as you enjoy your delicious food. Stephen had the best battered cod and chips ever and I thoroughly enjoyed their soup of the day.

image-26.jpg

After our amazing lunch we took a scenic drive up the main road on the island- a single track lane full of twists and turns. It felt so rural, we barely passed a single car, but the views were beautiful.

Our journey took us to a place called “Calum’s Road” which we’ve been particularly interested in the history of- the road is almost 2 miles long and was built by one man with little more than a shovel, pickaxe and a wheelbarrow!

image-27.jpg

On our way back down we couldn’t resist stopping at Raasay House again for coffee and cake (which Stephen was really impressed with) before going to a local shop to pick up some supplies. It was lovely to meet some of the locals and they were all so welcoming.

Time was getting on now so we headed back to the ferry port, keen to not miss the last crossing of the day. As much as we loved Raasay, we didn’t fancy paying for a hotel room when we had our perfect adventure-mobile waiting for us on the mainland.

Stephen has never been much of a fan of birthdays, but I think after this one he might have just changed his mind.

Day 13

Waking up late to the pitter patter of rain on the roof we had a lovely relaxed morning in the caravan. We didn’t want the ever changing forecast to stop us doing what we wanted so after lunch we went for another fantastic scenic drive, this time up the Wester Ross coast trail to Applecross- specifically a place called Bealach na Ba viewpoint.

The journey there took about an hour but the scenery was so stunning it just flew by! Passing lochs and mountains with perfect little streams running down the side of them we couldn’t wait to get to the viewpoint to see it all from such a height.

As we approached the start of the road up the mountain there were warning signs stating that it was an unsuitable for learner drivers because of the narrow, steep incline and hairpin bends. This just made us more excited!

image-28.jpg

Ears popping as we started our rapid ascent, the view was getting better and better, until... we reached an altitude of over 2,000 feet and became engulfed by cloud! The temperature instantly dropped to 1c, it started raining ice and the car windscreen was freezing! I’ve heard of being on cloud nine but this was taking it a bit too literally!

image-29.jpg

Although the view was non existent we had an experience that we’ll remember for a very long time!

As we made our way back down the skies started to clear and we were greeted yet again by amazing views. We took the journey back slowly, stopping often for photo opportunities before heading back to Kintail Lodge for dinner and settling in for the night.

image-30.jpg

Day 14

So far we had only briefly driven through the Isle of Skye en route to Raasay, so we were keen to explore more of it. We could easily drive over the Skye bridge, but where’s the fun in that when you can take the worlds only remaining turntable ferry?!

We weren’t really sure what to expect but it was worth the £15 just for the experience. The tiny ferry only took a handful of vehicles and we narrowly squeezed our transporter on. As we set off the platform on top of the ferry started turning, giving spectacular panoramic views all around as otters swam alongside us.

image-31.jpg

It was another gloriously sunny day in Scotland and we were surrounded by more spectacular scenery. You’d think that by now we’d be used to it, that we would have seen it all, but we’d go around another corner and be in awe all over again!

Heading north up the Island we came across a mountain range called The Cullin and we just had to turn around and park up for a while.

image-32.jpg

After taking yet more photos we made our way to Trotternish Ridge- a dramatic landscape formed by a series of landslips.

The most well known cliff here is The Quiraing, it’s the only part of the landslip that is still moving, requiring repairs to the road below every year. The views here were breathtaking!

image-33.jpg

We slowly made our way back to the mainland, stopping at various beaches and lochs along the way. This was our last day in the highlands so we wanted to savour every bit of it!

We’d had an incredible time here and were sad to be leaving in the morning, but we still had one more stop to go before crossing back into England. This time we were heading to Glasgow.

Previous
Previous

Our Scotland Tour, Part 5- Strathclyde

Next
Next

Our Scotland Tour, Part 3- Dunnet Bay and Altnaharra