Just back from the Scottish Islands

[slobbo]

Just back from a trip to Harris, Lewis, Skye, Scalpay (the one off Harris not Skye) and Raasay. Must have done 800ish miles in the van (with the new TDI in). A lot of that was towing a trailer packed to the gunnels. It was fantastic. Visited some amazing places. Even got a shot in a helicopter around Raasay. The midges stayed away. The weather was a bit changeable but mostly dry. It was too windy most days for fishing so I didn't get much of that done. I really wanted to bag a Hebridian Brown trout. Oh well next time.

We visited quite a few relatives (Ceinwens - my wife) and were stuffed full of tea and cakes at every one. Between these trips we visited the Blackhouses at Gearrannan, the Calannish Standing Stones (wasn't atmospheric at all - too many bloody tourists), some of the most amazing beaches I've seen, numerous castle ruins and a at least one still lived in at Dunvegan. Walked in some amazing places, visited a fairy glen on Skye (near Uig). The Fairy Glen was brilliant. The glen is a collection of small hills that look like something out of a fairy tale. A definite must see if you have young kids. Worth a look for the amazing scenery. We went out on a small boat from Dunvegan castle and visited the seals. That is a great trip and cheap as well compared to some of the more specialist companies. The boats are attached to the castle and only costs about £4pp for adults. The restaurant sucks at Dunvegan castle so we went into Dunvegan itself and had an amazing meal at The Old Schoolhouse.

On Raasay we went up to the north of the island were an old fella, named Callum, bult his own road. This was after being told to sod off by the council. Over the period of 20 years (I think) this old bloke used to take his wheelbarrow and pick out everyday to build this road. Eventually the council put some tarmac down for him but it was an amazing feat. Apparently the old fellow died of a heart attack and was found in his barrow. This island has a number of cottages in the north were you need to walk in or take a quad bike to get to them. A small community built a number of houses during the clearances on a little island just off Raasay. These houses are reached by a causeway in low tide. Before you even get to the causeway you need to walk quite a distance. The Island of Raasay is an amazing place probably my favourite of the trip. It is often overlooked I think because it is so close to Skye and so small but if your ever up that way take a detour to Raasay.

The van went pretty well considering I took the van before the Syncronutz guys had tested it properly. I only had two issues. The oil feed to the turbo was leaking slightly and one of the injectors started blowing. The first was sorted by tightening the nut the second turned into a nightmare because I over tightened the bolt and snapped it in the block. Thought I was going to get hung up to dry by my wife. Luckily though Britannia Rescue came to the rescue and sent 2 chaps that knew what they were about. They had the broken bolt out the injector cleaned up and sealed and a new bolt in in about 15 minutes. Only charged me a tenner for the repair as well despite it being 6 in the evening. Top blokes.

The van performs brilliantly. Much better than when I had the AAZ in it. Loads of torque and climbs hills really well. It was happily trundling along the mountainous roads of the north west and islands without the constant gear changes I used to have to do.

All in all I am very happy with the van and had a brilliant holiday.

http://gallery.me.com/kombiman#100128 for some pics

[callanish]

Glad you had a good time ......them islands are awesome aint they?


Andrew

[Fritz]

Rob, you lucky sod what a fantastic trip,,,,,,the newish looking cottage with the trailer parked out side reminds me of a place a friend of ours recently bought on Scalpay , through E-bay of all places.( he must be crazy, as it is a seven hour drive from here to get to the ferry),,,:shock:



Could you highlight the Fairy Glen on the photos, as this sounds like the sort of place we would enjoy seeing...


Regards

Fritz,,,,,,,,,

[slobbo]

Fairy Glen pictures are the 2nd picture till about the 8th. The glen isn't sign posted but is easy to find. It is a right hand turn just before a pub as you approach Uig. There is a folly on the left opposite the hotel.

[mikey9]

You just did what we did inOct last year and May this - Western Isles was great but Raasay is something else.

Two of us (1 syncro and us) freecamped (there is nothing else!) on Callums road - with the best views over to Applecross - and spent two nights on the old pier down by the Outdoor Centre (where they do a fine meal if you book) - the old pier sleepy spot now unfortunately being redeveloped into the new ferry terminal.
Did the same walk up to the top end of the island but he tide was in. Totally un touristy - but has great walks - including the one up to Dun Can (duncan) the highest point.

Don't tell everyone....oh...I just have

[Nicola&Tony]

Thanks for the info and photos. I'm collecting Western Isles posts in me bookmarks. Hoping to get there in the next year or two. How much are the ferry crossings? I know the fares will vary according to duration etc, so just looking for a rough idea.

Tony

[slobbo]

Ferry costs were about £200 for the van and a trailer plus 2 adults and 2 kids. That was return from Uig to Tarbet and then Sconser to Raasay.

[Donald360]

we're heading up to Harris on Monday, really looking forward to it - our first proper expedition in the van!

Your pictures have really whetted my appetite.
Donald.

[jpee]

We had a fantastic time done barra, vatersay, eriskay, south uist, benbecula, north uist, skye then down the west coast and home.

If you pop into tourist info they will give you a leaflet showing where toilets, showers, water and chemical toilet disposals are. The islanders are very friendly and helpful when it comes to asking for good camping spots. There is only 1 official site on benbecula so islanders are used to wild campers. In fact the advice u get from tourist info is that camping is wild with consideration.

I have pics that i still need to put up but haven't quite figured it out yet, i will probably put them on flickr or something and post a link.

Regards Jpee

[jpee]

Sorry

P.S. That cost 202 for two adults and van, dog was free that was for 3 ferries Oban-Barra, Barra-Eriskay and Uist-Skye. But i believe fares are to come down from October. Some kind of govt. guidelines that says ferry crossings shouldn't cost more than the equivalent of a bridge crossing in distance or something like that.

[Nicola&Tony]

Thanks for the ferry price info guys.

Tony

[mikey9]

Jpee is right about the "Road Equivalent Tariff" - this should halve the cost of the longer ferries (Barra - Oban and Ullapool - Stornoway) from october time ish.
Another excellent Scottish Government proposal (they do have bad ones too but praise where it is due!)

Can't wait as Ullapool is only an hour away from us here

[robbon44]

looks superb...

we did exactly the same last year..sailed uig to tarbet then toured harris then lewis and sailed back to skye.

Superb. weather can change in a minute.... ferry to lewis was spectacular and free camping on harris was easy... i think we paid about £15 on campsite fees over the 10 nights we were there...free camped everywhere we could..

get a good map and just turn off the main road and follow your nose to the coast..

[robbon44]

looks superb...

we did exactly the same last year..sailed uig to tarbet then toured harris then lewis and sailed back to skye.

Superb. weather can change in a minute.... ferry to lewis was spectacular and free camping on harris was easy... i think we paid about £15 on campsite fees over the 10 nights we were there...free camped everywhere we could..

get a good map and just turn off the main road and follow your nose to the coast..

[mikey9]

NEW CHEAPER fares now out.

Hopscotch Oban -- Barra -- Uists- -Harris - Skye
Now £140 for van plus two adults (down from £202 this year)

Oban -- Barra -- Uists -- Harris -- Lewis -- Ullapool
Now £170 is for the same (down from £275 I think we paid earlier this year)

Now don't all make it too crowded as we are prob going back again next year