Skye Day 2 Misty Mountains Part 2



 And now for some exercise!

The Quiraing

"This is an essential walk for any photographer as it passes though some of the most spectacular landscapes in Scotland.
As part of the Trotternish ridge it has been formed by a massive landslip which has created high cliffs, hidden plateaus and pinnacles of rock. Choose a clear day and bring your camera."

Ha ha!  When is it a 'clear day' on Skye?

It was still very 'misty and moisty' when I arrived up at the Quiraing carpark, but I set out along the path. It's a very long walk (about 3 hours) and I needed time to also do the 'Old Man of Storr' and given the mist I wasn't going to give amazing photos, so I decided that i would head out for part of the walk, then return the same way. It was a very narrow busy path with people coming both ways, and quite muddy and slippery so I had to concentrate on every step.







This site lets you do a virtual walk along the whole track on a clear day!

https://www.isleofskye.com/skye-guide/top-ten-skye-walks/the-quiraing


My next stop I nearly missed, but as I drove past a carpark full of buses, I realised and turned around.

The Kilt Falls is a waterfall that just comes straight of a cliff - reason enough for all the tour buses and random tourists such as myself to stop, take pictures and move on!


It is also well known for all the dinosaur footprints and fossils found in the area. I didn't have time to go to the museum.

n old factory 

In 2002, the world’s eye turned towards An Corran when a local woman, out walking her dog, found what looked like a set of footprints in a recently exposed block of rock. The prints were uncovered when a storm removed the top layer of ancient mud. Excitement grew when the prints were found to be those of a three-toed carnivorous Megalosaurus, a fierce predatory dinosaur of the Mid-Jurassic period that roamed the shallow lagoons over 168 million years ago.

Another falls further along the road was Lealt Falls, where there was a walk down to the beach, and remains of a salmon fishing settlement and an old factory which processed diatomite from a nearby mine.



And two sets of falls



Then on the The Old Man of Storr

Some geology first



It was quite misty when I arrived



The climb up was mostly steps, but the wind was ferocious, pushing me sideways at times.

Fortunately most of the time it was blowing behind me up the hill rather than in my face.

Once I got to the the top we could see that it was starting to clear, then ini cleared completely and we all rushed to take pictures.



And some views down into the valley


This is a reservoir which powers a hydro scheme


And a map of the walk



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