Cuillins coast and Prison

Spend a lot of time in the Black Cuillins - I have never been able to get interested in the red ones with the black so close.
See the sights of northern Skye including the Prison.
Go from Elgol to Loch Coruisk by boat.
See the high cliffs of the southern coast.
Quick Tips:
The Magic of Skye by W.A. POucher may be a bit dated but there are still terrific photos there and it gives a lot of ideas on what may be worth seeing.

Best Way To Get Around:
The train from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh is one of Europe's scenic railways and from Kyle there is now a bridge to the island so a bus can complete the journey. The train from Fort William to Mallaig is equally scenic and from there you can get a ferry, surely still the best way of getting to an island. Lastly, on the boat scene there is a ferry from Uig in North-west Skye to Tarbert in Harris. On the island itself buses provide the only public transport but they are only the means of access to the fabulous walks.

Loch Coruisk is only a small height above sea level and can be accessed by boat [regular service in reasonable weather] from Elgol, itself accessed by bus from Broadford. Alternately it can be reached on foot, from Elgol via Camasunary with a bit of a scramble on the 'bad step', or by a fine walk through the Black Cuillins from Sligachan. This warning will appear on any page concerned with walking in the Cuillins - compasses are not reliable here and mist can fall quickly.

The Loch itself is magical. Except for its short outlet to the sea, it is practically surrounded by the steep, shapely, volcanic gabbro peaks of the Black Cuillins. I cannot recommend it too highly.

The Black Cuillin include the only mountains in the UK which require climbing ability and it is no walk for novices. The above dangers must be treated seriously but, having said that, for those who can do it safely it is possibly the best walk in the UK. The views are spectacular most of the time, both of the ridge itself with its marvellouly pointed peaks and of the coast and other islands.

Some scramblers and climbers like to do the whole Cuillin Ridge and Blaven, which is a Cuillin Peak but not part of the ridge, in one go. I have little time for what I do not find naturally appealing routes and anyway there is nothing wrong with treating Blaven as a day out in its own right. Beginners can reach its easier summit but there should be at least one person of intermediate standard while the traverse of both peaks is expert. This is a terrific walk for views.

This is probably the easiest place for a beginner to get onto the Cuillin Ridge and get a look along it. It presents no technical difficulty and does not particularly require a more experienced member of the party as long as walkers are fit and sensible. The Ordnance Survey Outdoor Leisure map of the Cuillins shows the route from the Sligachan Hotel clearly enough.

This is one of my favourite walks - I suppose I have to put that in the past tense but never mind.

This goes to one end of the ridge and it is all laid out before you but scarcely an inkling is revealed until the very end of the ascent. There is only about one place in the middle of the walk where it is easy to go wrong and it is a bit hairy getting back again so it pays to keep a close eye on the map!

On the way back there is a stream which will possibly summon you in. It is wonderful but the midges up there have a terrific bush telegraph and it pays to get your clothes on and move again very fast when you leave the water.

You do not need to reach a top to experience the magic of the Cuillins and I far prefer the scenery from this Corrie to going up any number of peaks that i can think of. It is truly magnificent, but this wonder has its own cost. Glenbrittle is the main camping place for the Cuillin and this route not only appeals for its own sake but is an obvious way to start the ridge and the erosion is almost unbelievable. That is why you are most unlikely to get lost and the usual warning about the unreliability of compasses on this rock, while true, is scarcely relevant here.

This is one of the two mountain walks which I can recommend in North Skye if you can get yourself to leave the Cuillins for a short time. Any distant view of this looks pretty boring but it is well the effort and the struggle up steep grass slopes for the amazing shapes of the rock structures which are hidden from distant views. The Prison is an area on the way up with formidable overhangs all around it and the Needle visible from it. Still higher is the Table, an area of grass as short as on the green of a golf course surrounded by some of the weirdest rock scenery in the UK.

The other walk of the two mentioned is a bit further South to the mighty pinnacle called the 'Old Man of Storr' not to be confused with the seastack in the Orkneys called the 'Old Man of Stoer' which is relatively often shown on climbing programmes.

Goodness knows how many people go to Skye without being aware that its coastal scenery in the area further West than Dunvegan Castle is among the finest in the UK. I am very much a public transport person these days but I have to admit that I could not advocate coming to this area without a car. An Ordnance Survey map will show you clearly enough the nearest car access to the cliffs leading to Waterstein Head and all around here are high and scenic cliffs.

Skye is more than just mountains, magnificent as they are but it was only by reading the mountain-based book, 'The Magic of Skye', by that wonderful black and white photographer of the mountains, W. A. Poucher, that I discovered this part.

Talisker Beach is immensely picturesque and surprisingly uncrowded. I hope it stays that way and will say no more. The really popular visit in this area is to the Talisker distillery of one of one of the finest whiskies available anywhere. Needless to say tours of the distillery, which are very interesting in themselves lead to a free drop at the end. It seems a shame to say so but this is not the cheapest place if you are looking for a good bottle of Talisker. For those who have not tried it, be prepared for a definite taste of peat. I love it but it quite a bit diffrent from Glenfiddich and other Eastern ones. Talisker and some of the whiskies of the Isle of Islay are my favourites.