Eilan Donan and Kyle of Lochalsh - on a budget - on the Great Scottish Adventure

Travelling is often not a straight line adventure.  

Ratagan Hostel

Booking accommodations that meet your budget can be very problematic if you don't book early enough.  For some places (the Isle of Skye is absolutely such a place)  even booking six months in advance can be a problem when you are on a tight budget. You may find you don't get all the dates you want, and what you do get forces you to adjust your route and itinerary.  Our goal,  to stay in hostels on  the Isle of Skye during the 'high season' (from June to October) created just such a problem.  Tip:  A good guide to budget accommodations on Skye

Sometimes, doubling back can be fun, even necessary when scheduling an itinerary that has tight accommodation time lines. If you have to rush through an area to get to tightly scheduled accommodations, some special places may not get your full attention. example: Going to the Isle of Skye involves passing through the Kyle of Lochalsh area twice:  once going onto Skye, and once leaving it.  Tip:  if, for such reasons, you need to pass through an area twice, save special places for the second time through. Eilan Donan was one such special place.  And so was Plockton, a village with some really picturesque view, charming people and some easy local  hikes.



What do you do when your day is spent doubling back to where you started?  We decided on filling in spots we bypassed and doing some mild hiking.
On Day 2, we briefly visited Eilean Donan without actually going inside, so this time, we did the inside bits, and got a much better view of the place.

Eilen Donan - a private home with tours

Eilean Donan
It is most important to point out that you are allowed to take pictures outside, but not inside this 'castle'.  Actually, it isn't a castle so much as a residence for a wealthy Scottish family.
 It was rebuilt in the early 20th Century after being knocked down during previous military engagements, so is more of a re-creation than anything else.  However, it has a marvellous history that is revealed by the displays throughout the building  It has a wonderful feel to it, but you have to like old furniture and stone walls. And the views are terrific. Tip:  The best time to visit is early in the day, or later in the afternoon when the tour buses from Glasgow and Edinburgh have come and gone. Tip:  Regardless of which Scottish venue you are visiting, always check to see if they have a 'concession' price, which is what they refer to when talking about Senior's discounts.  You can shave 10-20% off of just about all admission prices when you ask.  Eilean Donan is one of those places.  

Tip:  If you are looking for the best places to photograph this iconic building, there is a layby on  a bend in the road just east of the castle, or on  the shoreline just west. Early morning or later in the evening give you better photo opportunities too.

Plockton shoreline

Plockton is a beautiful little fishing village 15 minutes drive north, which just happened to be one of the filming locations for the popular TV cult series Hamish McBeth.  

It has a wonderful shoreline and lots of places to park yourself to relax and enjoy the view. It has a few good local  hikes through forest to lookout points overlooking Loch Carron.  Tip: wherever you travel, look for local events to stumble across.  In Plockton, we came across a weekend craft show that was small, but was extremely well represented by regional crafters.  We also visited one of the local gift shops and had a great chat with the owner, who produced some old memorabilia of the show Hamish McBethh

Tip:  It was raining off and on during our visit.  As you may probably have heard, it rains in Scotland, but during the summer, not nearly as much as you might suspect.  Even so, you have to dress for the weather.  You are most likely to only need something to ward off the rain, as the rest of your clothing will keep you warm.  And always understand that the rain is likely to stop shortly after it starts, so light rainwear is likely all you require:  something that can be stowed away in a bag should do nicely. 

beautiful moss enriched forest walk above Plockton

There are some great trails just above the village, which do not require poles or boots, and take you round the headland and across the top of the village. As a temperate rainforest, you will most likely see moss all  over the place, which makes these hikes particularly verdant, with lots of flowers.

During low tide, it is also possible to walk out to one of the offshore islands, but you had better time it right to beat the tide back in.  Otherwise you will be calling for local boaters to give you some help.  As so many of Scotland;s coastal villages are subject to tidal variations, it is really important to pay attention to tidal tables.  There are some beautiful shoreline walks which suddenly become impassable due to risen tides.  Tip:  check locally to find out when the tides come in.  Tide charts for the UK

Other places to check out in  the area:  Kyle of Lochalsh, the Balmacara Estate (easy shoreline hike), 

Glen Shiel to the east (which offers terrific hiking for all levels),   Tip: The SYHA hostel in Ratagan  is a great place to stay (dorms and private rooms too),and is the start of a great hike to the west along the shoreline to an iron age broch on a headland across the loch from Eilen Donan.