The Isle of Skye

September 30-October 4, 2019

I stayed in Inverness on Saturday to do laundry and to get caught up on work.  There was only one laundry mat in town and it was crowded.  The hotels and Airbnb’s send their sheets out to be laundered as well.  I loved this cool sheet ironing machine.  My mother needs one of these!  

I also wanted to scout out where the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Sunday services were held.  It was a 15 minute walk and I wanted to be sure I knew the way in case it was raining the next day.  It was located in a beautiful part of town along the river. 

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However, much to my frustration, the building was being renovated and the services had been moved to a neighboring town that I was unable to get to with public transportation on Sunday.  

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I was deeply disappointed.  I had specifically stayed in Inverness because there was an LDS congregation.  I am feeling such a loss of community and connection with my church family.  I am surprised how it has affected me.  My original plan was to stay close to the LDS congregation for accommodation and companionship, but that has not worked out at all.  Early in my trip, I felt uplifted and edified with all of our temple visits, but I am beginning to feel the drag of the world and the loss of my ward family.  I have a very deep faith and have other resources, but I will have to change my daily routines in order to begin each day with the Spirit as my companion.

However, I did find an amazing walk along the River Ness.  That path in front of the church led up and down the river and I walked for almost two hours enjoying the beautiful Fall day and the sounds of the water with small falls all along the way.  

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There are many electric car stations here in Scotland and often they are occupied.  There is such an emphasis on clean energy, recycling and reducing waste.  I am not exaggerating when I say that there is not a zip lock bag to be found here! Lol. Plastic bags are not provided at grocery stores – everyone brings their own cloth bags.  Some stores have a few but charge for them.  Paper towels and napkins are not used in homes or restaurants.  Cloth replaces both.  Homes do not have plastic wrap or sandwich bags.  Reusable containers are used instead or fabric sleeves to cover bowls in the refrigerator.  This way of thinking is such a difference from what I am used to!  It is causing me to rethink everything.  My plastic compression bags have split now after 7 weeks on the road, and the zip lock bags I brought for storage have already worn out and torn.  I am finding new solutions as I watch my Scotland friends do their part to reduce their footprint.

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On my last night in Inverness, I met a wonderful group of travelers in my hostel.  Two of the men were in their 30’s and were long-time friends on a fishing holiday.  One of the women was from Germany with an amazing voice and the fourth, a young woman from Italy attending the University.  All were musicians.  The men played piano, guitar and harmonica.  The women sang and used a Tamborine that we found at the hostel.  What a wonderful night! We stayed up late, playing and singing Billy Joel, The Beetles, Johnny Cash, John Denver and many more oldies.  The common language was English and interestingly, everyone knew all of the lyrics to many songs.  That night was the very reason I love to stay in hostels.  What fun we had together!

The next morning, I walked the hill to the clanging of Church bells ringing out over the city.  I returned to St. Stephen’s Church that Wendy and I had found earlier in the week, and once again, it was The Church of Scotland that welcomed me with a warm welcome and open arms.  The church had a beautiful pipe organ and the old pews reminded me of the pews in the original Kirkland temple.  I enjoyed the service so much and found comfort in the words of the unfamiliar hymns.

“Follow with reverent steps the great example of him whose holy work was doing good; So shall the wide earth seem our Father’s temple, each loving life a psalm of gratitude.”

Monday morning I boarded a bus for the long ride to the Isle of Skye on the very western coast of Scotland.  I had heard so much about the amazing landscape and beauty of this very remote location.  Well, it turned out to be remote indeed!

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My hostel was a basecamp for mountaineering. Yikes – was I ever out of place.  It was filled with 20 something, fit, strong young men from all over the world who were there with their gear to climb the highest mountains in Scotland, the Cullins.

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I found myself very isolated in the small town of Broadwater without regular bus service.  (That part wasn’t in the brochure either!). I traded the owner of the hostel photography services for the use of a pair of boots and a coat.  Yes, I can be resourceful when I have to.  Lol. It was freezing and I did not have the right clothing for the change in altitude.  

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I spend two days logging lots of hours at work and wandering the streets of this tiny town.  I did however, find some treasures.  The blackberries and raspberries (known to locals as “brambles) were fully ripe and were found along every road and pathway.  I stopped many times a day to enjoy these amazing fresh berries.  

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The flowers were in full bloom and being a coastal town, it was picturesque and beautiful.  However, I was very limited without any real access to busses and without a vehicle, I felt very isolated and somewhat stranded. 

I ended up leaving a day early (when I could catch a bus) and moved to the central city of Portree, which was much better for me with banks, grocery stores and transportation options. 

I had a great hostel here in Portree and enjoyed the amazing large kitchen and work spaces.  However, strong, reliable Wifi continues to be a major problem for me working remotely.  I cannot even describe how much time and energy I spend each day trying to secure a reliable line.

From Portree, I was able to book an all day tour around the island to all of the famous hikes and views.  THIS is what I had come to Scotland to see.  I enjoyed every minute of the 9 hour tour.  It took me to majestic waterfalls, beautiful vistas, isolated cliffs and long hikes through the mountains.  I was so glad that I didn’t miss this amazing day.  

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Hurricane Lorenzo was looming near Ireland and was threatening Skye.  All week I had been watching the weather and my tour day was the last beautiful day for quite a while.  I decided to leave the island before the remnant of the storm hit.  I took a bus to the ferry at Mallaig and found out that the scheduled ferry was cancelled due to high winds and waves.  After a 3 hour delay, the port authority brought in a heavy freighter ferry and moved us backpackers across the channel. 

It was quite a week of readjustments, and improvisations to say the least.  However, I learned a lot about pre-planning and will be very careful in the future, to check the exact location of my accommodations since being on foot with a 32 pound pack on my back, and a 15 pound pack on my front can be very challenging to walk the often many blocks to my accommodations for the night.