Highland Explorer Isle of Skye & Outer Herbrides Tour Day 5 and 6

Day 5 began with a visit to the most impressive-looking medieval castle I've seen, Eilean Donan. It sits in a stunning location on a small island overlooking the Isle of Skye where three sea lochs meet. The original castle was built in the early 13th century to protect the surrounding area from Viking raids and blown up in 1719 during the Jacobite uprisings. It exists today thanks to the dedication of Lt. Colonel John Macrae-Gilstrap who bought the island in 1911 and dedicated the next 20 years of his life to restoring it.

The castle was a filming location for "Highlander" and "The World is not Enough", and it is said to be the most photographed castle in the country. It also appears frequently in calendars and on shortbread tins.

The skies were clearing and the temperature was rising. We stopped for lunch in Portree where we had a delicious sandwich at a bakery and then Rich drove the bus on to Kilmuir.

The group headed up to the Kilmuir cemetery where the grave of Flora MacDonald, a heroine of the Jacobite uprising can be found, but we weren't really interested so we hung around the bus and enjoyed the view.

Then everyone walked down to the Skye Museum of Island Life where we had a close encounter with a delightful Highland cow. It's actually not easy to find these animals. Most farmers do not raise them because they don't produce much milk.

We drove on to one of the island's scenic spots and climbed a small rise to enjoy the view.

Then we drove on to Kilt Rock and Mealt Falls. I can't really see it, but the cliff pictured below supposedly looks like a pleated kilt. Some people even say the colors resemble a tartan plaid.

The water in Mealt Falls cascades about 180 feet from Loch Mealt to the Sound of Raasay.

Here are some other pictures taken from that lookout.

At the final stop of the day the kids went running merrily off for a 1 hour hike, while most of us returned to the hotel to prepare for a special dinner.

The meal, albeit expensive, turned out to be surprisingly delicious.

On the final day of our tour, Rich drove us to the Sligachan River. He had a story to tell us, and he had enlisted the aid of the kids to act it out.

According to the legend, an Irish warrior decided to go to Skye to fight a fierce female warrior who lived there. After several weeks, the Scottish warrior's daughter got tired of all the fighting and sought help from the fairies who lived in the river. They told her that if she stuck her face in the water for 7 seconds, she would know what to do. When she emerged from the water, she gathered all the delicious ingredients she could find and prepared the perfect meal. The smell was so delicious, the two warriors stopped fighting and feasted. By local tradition, if you are ever a guest in someone's home, you can never do them harm so a truce was called. The daughter cried tears of love into the river in gratitude, and ever since that day, the fairies will grant anyone who sticks their face into the chilly depths for 7 seconds eternal beauty. If you decide to do this, you must also let the water dry off naturally.

Several of the kids and even a few of the older folks dipped their heads in the water.

This is a view of the Cuillin Mountains from near the bridge.

A cute little bird sat on the bridge watching the craziness and hoping for crumbs.

We took a ferry to Mallaig, where most of the group had booked tickets on the steam train featured in the Harry Potter movies. The train travels from Fort William to Mallaig in the morning and returns in the afternoon.

Unfortunately, the train was not what we had expected. The windows were very dirty, and there is no narration so you don't know which sights you are passing. When you go over the much-touted viaduct with the 21 arches, you can look down and see a large group of people taking pictures of the train. One of our fellow travelers lamented, "They're getting much better pictures of the train than we're getting."

On the long drive back to Edinburgh, we stopped at Cairngorms National Park, the largest national park in the UK. It is twice the size of England's Lake District National Park, and bigger than the whole of Luxembourg. It was a lovely place to end our tour.

It was about 8 PM when we finally pulled into the bus station where our tour had begun, and we sadly bid Rich and the Wild and Sexy bus good-bye.