An early start from Lord of the Glens brought us twenty minutes later to the incredibly photogenic castle called Eilean Donan. This name is in the Gaelic language and means “the little island of St Donan” (a 6th century Celtic Christian monk). The castle that stands there today originates from the 12th century and had undergone many additions and changes over the centuries. It was only in the late 20th century that it was finally restored and is now home to members of the Macrae clan. It is one of Scotland’s most visited tourist sites and thanks to good planning on the part of the Lindblad/National Geographic expedition team, we arrived before the crowds and enjoyed a private tour of the interior before the swarms of tourists and tourist coaches arrived in mid morning.
Another short drive took us through scenic and wild areas to the charming fishing village of Plockton. This small and tidy little community is spread along a gentle bay, dotted with small islands, and is a perfect beauty spot with carefully tended gardens, colourful and tidy houses and an “old world” air pervading.
Then back to the ship for lunch and as we enjoyed our meal the ship cast off from Kyle of Lochalsh and our cruise was finally underway. We sailed during the early afternoon with the massive Isle of Skye to starboard and the Scottish mainland to port. David, out National Geographic photo instructor, gave a presentation called “An Introduction to Digital Photography” aimed at the beginner with the point-and-shoot camera as well as the semi-professional with one of the bigger beasties.
Armadale was our afternoon port of call, where we made the short trip to the Clan Donald Centre. The Clan MacDonald there boasts an excellent museum which tells the story of the powerful Lord of the Isles, a union of several large clans that in the early medieval times controlled a very large sea kingdom stretching from northern Scotland to the north of Ireland. Surrounding the museum are extensive, lush gardens littered with bits and pieces of the early ruined buildings that once stood there. Konia led a good nature walk through these gardens and really revealed her extensive knowledge of and passion for plants and flowers of all kinds.
Our final port of call was back on the Scottish mainland, across the Sound of Sleat from Skye, in the remote community of Inverie. This tiny community-owned village stretches lazily along the shores of Loch Nevis and boasts the most remote pub in the United Kingdom, “The Old Forge Inn.” After dinner some of us made the very short walk from the ship to the pub only to find it was closed for the day! But fortunately Inverie has its own silent beauty and a stroll in the fading evening light more than made up for the loss of a pint.
It is safe to say that this was an excellent first day on our Scottish Highlands and Islands odyssey.
