Isle of Skye Part III

Old Man of Storr

For those who love to walk and hike, Skye is the place for you.  Driving will only get you so far.  Quite literally.  (The great thing about driving on Skye is that if you miss your turn, just keep going...you eventually will return to the same point by just going forward).  


About 7 miles outside of town stands the Old Man of Storr.  Deriving it's name from Old Norse for 'Great Man', the protrusions seemingly form the outline of a sleeping man.  The hiking trails are beautiful, if not a bit strenuous.  

View near the Old Man of Storr

But this is no country for old men.  Rather, it is a place for young men who like to dress like women and hide in caves.  Yes, I speak of the Young Pretender, or Bonnie Prince Charlie.  

Grave of Flora MacDonald

The intrepid Jacobite heroine Flora MacDonald helped the Young Pretender escape from Uist to Skye.  Following the disastrous battle of Culloden in 1746, Bonnie Prince Charlie evaded capture by the English, and was assisted by MacDonald.  Disguised as her maid, Betty Burke, MacDonald and Prince Charlie rowed to the Isle of Skye (a journey which took over 15 hours).  Ultimately, the Prince escaped to France; MacDonald, however, was imprisoned for a brief time.  She was released and settled in North Carolina, although she eventually returned to her native Scotland.  


No trip to Scotland would be complete without a tour of Skye's only distillery: Talisker.  Although the process of making spirits is quite intricate, I can tell you that the vats used for the overall fermentation and stirring processes (how technical...anyone aficionados reading this please forgive me) are mostly made from Oregon Pine, and the majority of the casks used for storage are American white oak.  My favourite story pertaining to whisky, though, is the bit about the 'Angel's Share'.  A quite charming term, it refers to the amount of alcohol lost to natural evaporation during the aging process.  Scotland has a lot of very...happy Seraphim.


And so we enter our final week here in Scotland.  It has been quite an eventful and productive trip, and we look forward to returning.  So, here's to the last seven days!

Skipping stones on Claigain Coral Beach

View of Coral Beach near Dunvegan Castle