Skye Trail

Skye Trail
Isle of Skye, Scotland
Start: Rubha Hunish
End: Broadford
Distance: 79 miles (127 km)
Time: 10 days
Difficulty: Moderate
Surface: Open Moorland and Ridges

Website: www.skyetrail.org.uk

Rubha Hunish is a wonderful spot to begin a long- distance walk. Tucked away on the northernmost part of the Isle of Skye, it even has its own trail, the Rubina Hunish Trail, which takes you along cliff tops and open moorlands to the ruins of remote, windswept Duntulm Castle and back. A three-and-a-half hour appetizer for the main event.

The Skye Trail begins at Rubha Hunish and passes over the astonishing geology of the Trotternish Ridge, which is a memorable experience in its own right. It then continues on down the coast to the scattered woodlands around Braes, the site of a mass protest by Skye crofters in 1882 and the last battle ever fought on British soil. A rough path along the shore of Loch Sligachan is next, as well as a visit to the Sligachan Inn, the cradle of Scottish mountaineering. You then descend to Loch Coruisk, most people’s choice as Scotland’s most atmospheric loch. with its shoreline of barren rocks at the base of the wonderfully jagged Black Cuillin, it was a sight that poet Lord Tennyson once described as “the wildest scene in the highlands.” A farther descent to Torrin is followed by a coastal walk to the deserted villages of Suisnish and Boreraig, on the northern shore of Loch Eishort, before your final approach to Broadford along an old disused railway line.

This is a wild trail-it is not waymarked, and some of its segments do not even have a trail. lt is strictly intended for the experienced hiker. There is accommodation at the end of every stage, and there are also opportunities to set up some once-in-a-lifetime campsites, particularly on the Trotternish Ridge. So don’t forget to bring your backpack.