May 24, 2008 – We caught the first ferry to Armdale at 8:10 in the morning, and it was just a 20-minute, seven mile trip across the water. Our error with the GPS ended up being a blessing, because if we had decided to avoid the ferry and drive around, it would be an approximately 2 ½ hour drive instead. I was more than happy to pay the ferry fee, because if you think gas prices in America are bad at $4 a gallon, diesel in Scotland costs an astonishing $10 per gallon!

As we drove the Isle of Skye, the scenery was truly breathtaking. The Isle is a huge treeless mountain, with many white spots. At first I took those spots to be rocks or mountain formations, but those rocks could move! I figured out that they were sheep, and there were many! There were hundreds of lambs, spring babies born just months ago. The roads here are much smaller than on the mainland, just one lane to serve cars coming both ways. If a car is coming on the opposite side, I need to pull over and let the car pass before continuing on.

The Isle has many beautiful sights and natural landmarks. The Old Man of Storr and Kilt rock are built of volcanic rock. Huge long cliffs line the seaside, with water splashing against the jagged rock. The one thing breaking up the poetic scene was a British pay phone booth out in the center of nowhere, a phone booth that is probably not so profitable. It’s a good thing I didn’t need to stop by the booth (which had no TTY), because I can ping anyone with my Blackberry pager, which still had coverage on the island!

The Skye Museum of Island Life was a snapshot of life on the islands in the old days. They lived in Crofts, round huts that conserved heat and warmth using fire in its own unique way inside the croft. With limited resources, they used peat for fuel, which gave off a distinct smell, and a unique but somewhat pleasurable one when burned.

Driving through the countryside on our way to Dunvegan Castle, we saw the Eilan Donan Castle. It was one that I felt I saw in movies or read about in books, built with stone and complete with moats and drawbridges! I can’t wait for our visit to Loch Ness tomorrow, the home of the famous Loch Ness Monster, Nessie! Unfortunately the castles will not allow video or pictures inside, but hopefully we’ll be able to catch some exciting footage of Nessie tomorrow! Do you think we will see her? I hope so! Until tomorrow, cheers!