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The Storr and the Old Man of Storr (rocky pinnacle on the right) seen across Loch Leathan from the A855 road, approx 6 miles north of Portree. |
Leisure WHAT is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare. No time to stand beneath the boughs And stare as long as sheep or cows. No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass. No time to see, in broad daylight, Streams full of stars, like skies at night. No time to turn at Beauty's glance, And watch her feet, how they can dance. No time to wait till her mouth can Enrich that smile her eyes began. A poor life this if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare. W.H. Davies 1871 - 1940. |
03 Sept. 2007. With the weather looking promising for the day, a visit to the Old Man of Storr was a must. It's a very popular spot. The climb up to it was not difficult and was rewarded with close ups of the strange shaped volcanic rocks plus good views over the Sound of Raasay. There is a roadside car park. |
This photograpgh was taken next to the A855 road. Someone obviously has been cutting peat for their fire. |
Before seeing the rest of the photos you can get into holiday mood by downloading and listening to a very pleasant version of The Skye Boat Song. It's a Scottish folk song about the escape of Bonnie Prince Charlie, over the sea to Skye, after his defeat at Culloden in 1746. The author of this song, often used as a lullaby, is unknown. Follow this link to see the words of the song. Ooops, got a bit side-tracked there so back to the walk.................... |
Leaving the car park we walk up a good path through a wooded area.This view of The Storr taken just as we are about to leave the wooded area. |
You've been warned so watch where you're putting your feet |
On the left the Old Man of Durham (me!) prepares to meet the Old Man of Storr. Meanwhile the two other 'old men' on the trip, Michael and Robin look for good spots to take photos. |
Looking across to Raasay. |
The Old Man of Storr on the right. Can you make out one or two specks of people around it's base? It puts its size into perspective. It is in fact 160 feet high (48 metres) and the first recorded climbing to the top of it was in 1955. |
A view from the base of the Old Man. You can see from the light and cloud formations between each photograph how quickly the weather conditions can change on Skye. |
Tucking into the bottom of the base I get a close up of where this volcanic rock was gouged out during the last Ice Age. |
'Smith in Silhouette' - and no you're not the first one to mention that I look much better when blacked out :-) |
Further north there is another similar area called The Quiraing.....(follow link for location) |
Looking towards The Quiraing from above the steep and winding Uig road. |
Looking south from the footpath leading to the Quiraing. |
Views of the Quiraing may well have featured in the film 'The Land That Time Forgot (1975), but more importantly my stomach now felt that it had certainly been forgotten, so after a fleeting visit to the Brewery shop of the Isle of Skye Brewery at Uig, we headed to the oldest Inn on Skye for a meal and hopefully afterwards some nice sunset photographs. On the way passing.................. |
...a highland cooo (as they say around these parts) |
A varied bar meal menu and real ale on tap, this was to prove to be a good choice. Michael, apparantly no stranger to the tin opener and the take-away menu when feeding himself at home, is adventurous when ordering in restaurants and so orders........ |
.....locally caught Langoustines. |
This area it seems is noted for great sunsets, however it failed to live up to expectations tonight. That said it was still a very pleasant place to be on this warm evening. Useless information: which is probably only of interest to aging hippies. I was told that Donovan the folk singer from the 1960's is (or was) a resident in this area. It interested me because I was a fan of his earlier work and have some of his recordings. Though it does give away my age and my folky type musical tastes. Which does nothing to enhance my image as a 'roughy toughy' walker :-) |
Final shot and end of a good day. |
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