Isle of Skye
The Isle of Skye is the largest and most visited of the Inner Hebrides, a dramatic and scenically extraordinary island off the northwest coast of Scotland whose combination of the Black Cuillin mountains, the Trotternish Peninsula's geological features, picturesque fishing harbours and a strong Gaelic cultural tradition have made it one of the most celebrated tourist destinations in Britain. The island is connected to the mainland by the Skye Bridge at Kyle of Lochalsh, making it accessible year-round, and the volume of visitors it receives has grown substantially in recent years as social media has circulated images of its most dramatic features worldwide.
The Black Cuillin, the dark gabbro mountain range in the south of the island, is the most technically demanding mountain terrain in Britain, its jagged ridgeline and sheer rock faces providing the only true alpine ridge scrambling available in the British Isles and attracting mountaineers from across the world. The traverse of the complete Cuillin Ridge, which has over thirty Munros and tops, is the most serious and committing multi-day mountain challenge in Britain and is completed in a single continuous traverse only by very experienced parties in settled weather. For the majority of visitors the mountains provide exceptional walking on their lower approaches and extraordinary visual drama from the roads, beaches and villages below.
The Trotternish Peninsula in the north of the island contains a series of geological features produced by the ongoing collapse and slipping of the great lava flows that cap the peninsula. The Old Man of Storr, the Quiraing and the Kilt Rock are among the most dramatic results of this process, their towers, pinnacles and tilted rock formations creating a landscape of surreal grandeur unlike anything elsewhere in Britain.
Portree, the island's capital, provides a charming harbour setting and a good range of restaurants and accommodation, and the Skye Bridge approach from the mainland through Glen Shiel and over the Ratagan Pass is one of the finest drives in Scotland.