Day 2, Part 2 – Skye Arrival

Our first outdoor activity on the Isle of Skye was a hike to the Fairy Pools at Glen Brittle, universally hailed as one of the top attractions on the island. After making our way down our first single-lane road of the trip, we arrived at the car park shortly after 5 p.m. While Gee Gee, Amanda, Noah, and I began the mile-plus hike, Grandma Mac gave Emmie an opportunity to rest.

Grandma Mac graciously let Emmie rest in the car during our Fairy Pools hike.

Immediately into the rocky path, we found spectacular views featuring lush greenery, quaint streams and numerous waterfalls. With a few minutes we were documenting the walk with photos, several thousand feet before the largest waterfalls and fairy pools.

We didn’t waste any time, posing in front of the first waterfall we encountered.

While we later determined (via postcards) we ultimately fell short of the largest waterfalls and ferry pools, the nearly two-hour hike was still tremendously enjoyable and made for an especially fun activity for Noah, who enjoyed every aspect of the hike, from jumping across streams to wading across a small river.

Amanda and Gee Gee pose in the Fairy Pools.

Gee Gee, Noah, and Amanda.

A hiking selfie with Noah.

Noah (surprisingly) loved taking photos during the hike.

Amanda maneuvers from one rock to another.

An evening stop at the Portree Co-Operative grocery store resulted in a plethora of food, drinks, and snacks to taste at our rental home. We’ve meticulously documented our unusual purchases, such as Walker’s pickled onion chips and Cadbury’s chocolate flake yogurt – and will dedicate a future post to our favorite snack food finds.

I love new grocery stores, especially those overseas.

With some help from locals at the community center, we found our Isle of Skye home a few minutes after 8 p.m. After Amanda documented each room through an initial set of photos, we unloaded the car and kids, prepared the most informal of suppers, and settled into Tigh Cilmartin, a former church parsonage built in 1828 which would be our home for the next three nights.

Our beautiful home in Staffin on the Isle of Skye.