An assortment from the Isle of Skye, Scotland.
Isle of Skye Scenes’
Isle of Skye
Armadale Garden
My favorite part of Armadale Castle, Gardens, Museum on Skye was the gardens. There were lots of birds there too. The fallen trees felled by a storm are covered with a myriad of species of moss and lichen. Spring bluebells are a favorite of mine.
Armadale Museum
The Museum of the Isles explores 1,500 years of Highland and Island history through the story of Clan Donald, from the medieval Lordship of the Isles and the Jacobite risings to crofting, clearance and emigration. Its galleries feature artefacts such as weapons, portraits, bagpipes, tools and household objects, alongside family-friendly trails, activities and exhibitions. Accredited by Museums Galleries Scotland and operated by the Clan Donald Lands Trust, the museum offers visitors an engaging look at the culture, struggles and global legacy of the Highlands and Islands. See this link: Visit the Museum of the Isles on Skye.
These illustrations of highlanders made me smile.
Bothy Birds
We saw these and many more that I did not photograph while staying at the Bothy on the Isle of Skye. We saw rabbits and deer on the island too.
Bothy
I booked a few days at Caberfeidh – MacKenzie’s Bothy Holiday Let, Bedford, Isle of Skye, Scotland. It was a once-in-a-lifetime treat. There was a pair of grass armchairs outside. We could birdwatch while sitting inside. I made many photographs of the changing skies.
Armadale Castle
Armadale Castle, once home to the Macdonalds of Sleat of Clan Donald, is now a dramatic ruin overlooking the Sound of Sleat and set within 40 acres of woodland gardens. The site has roots in Clan Donald’s 15th-century presence on Skye, with the current buildings developing from a late 18th-century mansion expanded into a castle in 1815 by architect James Gillespie Graham. After a major fire in 1855, parts were rebuilt by David Bryce, but the castle was abandoned in 1925 and later became derelict. It was bought by the Clan Donald Lands Trust in 1972, with unsafe sections demolished in 1981, and was purchased by Armadale Estate Ltd in 2026. Famous visitors and figures linked to the site include Flora Macdonald, Samuel Johnson, and James Boswell. Visit Armadale Castle on the Isle of Skye. Click on the link to view the dancing party on the lawn from 1930.
For Thursday Doors: Summer Standard – No Facilities
Storr
Gaelic is spoken on the Isle of Skye and is an important part of the culture. The Old Man of Storr translates to Bodach an Stòir in Gaelic. When the weather is clear, the iconic landmark: The Storr – Official Site.
The ridge that the Old Man of Storr is on began to form around 65 million years ago, during the Paleocene epoch, as the ancient continents split apart and the Atlantic Ocean began to form. Volcanic activity along the rift zone in the Earth‘s surface formed multiple layers of basalt rock.
These eruptions continued into the Eocene epoch until around 23 million years ago, building up the tabular mountains and sea cliffs that characterize much of Skye‘s dramatic scenery today. Some of the rocks 3 billion year old Precambrian rocks exposed on the Trotternish Peninsula are among the oldest in Scotland.
The Storr, a 719m (2,358 ft) peak that marks the highest point along the Trotternish Ridge, and the surrounding clan of rocky spires were created much more recently. At the end of the last Ice Age around 10,000 years ago, the immense weight of retreating glaciers caused the basalt lava to fracture and slip, creating cliffs and leaving behind the iconic pinnacles we see today. The name “Storr” itself comes from the Old Norse word “Stórr,” meaning “big” or “great.”
The Old Man of Storr and His Fairy Wife
Long ago, before the winds carved the cliffs and before travelers came to Skye, an old man lived high on the Trotternish ridge. He was gentle, quiet, and known for one extraordinary secret — his wife was a fairy from the Hidden Folk.
She had wandered into the human world on a moonlit night, shimmering like frost on heather. The old man found her lost and frightened, and instead of trapping her — as some humans foolishly tried — he offered her shelter, warmth, and kindness. She stayed for one night, then another, then a lifetime.
They lived happily for many years, but fairies do not age as humans do. One morning she woke with sorrow in her eyes. “My love,” she said, “my time in your world is ending. I must return to the realm beneath the hills.”
The old man begged her to stay, but fairy magic has rules older than stone. She promised him one gift: “I cannot remain, but I will make sure you never forget me.”
She touched his cheek, and the world shimmered. When the light faded, she was gone — and the old man stood alone on the ridge, his heart heavy as winter.
He climbed the hill every day, hoping to glimpse her again. One dawn, as he reached the summit, the earth trembled. The sky dimmed. And the old man felt himself turning still, rooted, rising, becoming part of the land itself.
The fairies had kept their promise.
Where he stood, a great stone pillar rose — tall, solemn, watching the horizon. Beside it, smaller stones clustered like the folds of a cloak. The people of Skye named it The Old Man of Storr, saying the fairy wife shaped the rock so her beloved would stand forever, guarding the island, waiting for the day she might return.
And on certain misty mornings, locals swear they see a second shape beside the Old Man — slender, shimmering, like a woman made of dawnlight.
Some say it’s the fairy wife visiting her husband. Others say it’s just the fog.
But Skye has a way of blurring the line between the two.
The second image is of a mural on a wall in Portree.
Uig
Sunset overlooking Uig. Uig: from Norse – Vik – or Ùige (Scottish Gaelic)- Meaning Bay. Set in a sheltered bay on the Isle of Skye’s north coast, Uig has a ferry port connecting Skye with the Western Isles.
