This range on the northernmost part of the Isle of Skye has been the site of numerous movies and if you take one look, you can understand why. Think of a small mountain range where half of it slips off, sliding towards the sea, creating a long cliff surrounded by the deep green landscape. If that weren't enough, it is dotted with beautiful purple heather and a healthy number of sheep grazing on the steep hills above the coast.
The list of movies filmed featuring The Quiraing is long and includes recent films such as The BFG (2016), MacBeth (2015), 47 Ronin (2013), and Snow White and the Huntsman (2012). The land has a prehistoric or ancient feel to it and is inherently dramatic.
I visited The Quiraing while staying at the renowned Three Chimneys House Over-by Bed and Breakfast sitting along Loch Dunvegan on the northwestern side of the Isle of Skye. If you plan to eat dinner there, get your reservations well ahead of your visit. It is very popular and rightly so.
Coming from that direction requires driving approximately 4 miles on a single track road winding through the fields on the northern end of the Isle. It's a tricky drive, especially if you meet a truck going the other direction, but the destination is well worth it. On Skye’s numerous single track roads, be prepared to share the narrow road not just with other oncoming drivers, but also with the island’s numerous sheep. They are everywhere and are not particularly bothered or intimidated by motor vehicles.
Because of the crowds, parking at The Quiraing parking area is often a challenge, but on the day we went we found a spot a short walk from the trailhead.
The trail runs parallel along the base of the cliff out past a rock formation called “The Prison”. You can see The Prison on right side of the picture above. After you pass The Prison, the trail follows closely along the base of the cliff until it loops and climbs up to the top of the cliff. The return route follows along the top of the cliff back to the parking area where you started.
Expect and prepare for rain, simply because you are in Scotland, and you should always be prepared for a downpour. The day we hiked, it had previously rained, but we luckily got a break for the time we were on the trail.
A short way down the trail, you will come to a rocky ravine, with a small stream coming down from the cliff above.
The rocks climbing down and back up the other side can be slippery, but it was manageable and we continued along the trail toward The Prison. Along the way, we even saw some mountain bikers who were attempting the trail.
When we got to The Prison, it looked like a downpour was approaching and we decided to head back the way we came rather than continuing on the trail up to the top of the cliff. The photo below is looking back at the climb up to The Prison and below that is a shot I got looking down towards the valley after climbing around the side of the formation.
Below is the view looking forward on the trail past The Prison where we decided to turn back.
I hope to come back at some point and do the entire trail. I would have loved to see the views from the top.
When we got back to the car, we thought we had missed the rain and continued down the road toward the village of Portree. Along the way is another popular hike up to the iconic Old Man of Stor. This pinnacle rock formation was featured in several movies as well, including the opening scenes of the sci-fi thriller Prometheus. It's not a very long hike, so we thought we’d stop and hike up before the next rain. We barely got parked when the sky opened up and we decided to continue down to Portree for lunch. We were able to get the photo below looking up at the “Old Man” standing to the right of the foggy cliff before the rain started.
Portree is a picturesque little port town on the east side of the island and the rain had passed through by the time we finished our lunch. Below are a few photos that we took as we wandered around town.
If you are a whisky aficionado, another place to visit While you are on the island is the Talisker Distillery, the oldest and maybe the only working distillery on the Isle of Skye. It was started in 1830 and although I am not a Scotch Whisky drinker, I am told by those that are that Talisker makes good whisky. It certainly was a pretty location, sitting on a stream near the northwest coast.
Before our time on the Isle of Skye was complete, we were also able to visit the village of Broadford, where there are several shops with crafts people selling their creations. While my wife was visiting the shops, I found this field of flowers overlooking a farmhouse along the coast. It was a picture perfect scene and a nice place to end our visit to the Isle of Skye.
You can find The Quiraing on the Steemit World Map at http://www.steemitworldmap.com. !steemitworldmap 57.628294 lat -6.290014 long The Quiraing Trailhead D3SCR