The journey…

 

Views from the A66

When you holiday in places that take a bit of travelling to get there - not long-haul flight type travel - the sort of thing with a lot of driving, an overnight stop, then a second day of more driving or whatever, you get used to considering the journey itself as part of the Holiday. We’ve been doing this for years with the Hebrides trips, and although the proper “ahhhh” moment of shoulder-dropping relaxation only really hits when we are on board the ferry to Uist, we both certainly feel we’re on holiday from leaving home. 

Callander hostel - highly recommended!

The Hebrides trip takes around 27 hours door to door with somewhere about 12 hours of that being actual driving. We factor in a stop overnight as far up into Scotland as we are confident will work - over the years we’ve stayed at Stirling, Falkirk, and the glorious hostel at Callander pictured above which has everything you could need for a very sensible price indeed. Then the following day it is an early start and a drive up either over the Skye Bridge or to Mallaig for a ferry from there. The route at that stage depends entirely on what timings work in relation to our ferry to Uist - if heading to South Uist with a drive up through Uist from there then that means straight to Mallaig and far more slack time during the day as the boat is later. If doing the shorter hop across to North Uist then that leaves from Uig on Skye and sometimes we can do that via the short crossing from Mallaig to Skye, a drive up through the island and then onto the bigger vessel to reach our final destination port of Lochmaddy.The alternative round the road and past that well known landmark of Eileen’s Doughnut….sorry, Eilean Donan Castle feels a bit more stressful somehow, plus, who wouldn’t want to shoehorn an extra ferry in there where they can? 

M V Coruisk - the Skye ferry

Our first couple of nights on the Island have almost exclusively for years been at the wonderful Moorcroft Holidays campsite at Carinish - just a 20 minute or so drive from Lochmaddy. We’ve been coming here for years, almost from when they opened I think, initially camping, then taking a room in their well appointed bunkhouse, and finally opting for the wonderful little “Hobbit House” glamping pods which are cosy and comfortable. We’ve visited enough times now that Catriona and Iain book us in to our favourite of the three pods, high up and looking out over the loch and across to Benbecula - it is enclosed by a beautiful stone wall and is just a glorious place to sit outside with a book, so long as there’s enough breeze to deter the midges! 

M.V.Hebrides departing Uig

The ferry crossings themselves are very much a highlight of the trip - indeed we have been known to book on a ferry crossing purely to enjoy being on the water and spotting the birds, marine wildlife etc. Even the short crossing to Skye might net sightings of gannets and Kittiwakes, and once on the bigger boat across to Uist the sea is alive with Guillemots, masses more Gannets, and depending on the time of year sometimes puffins. Skuas are a strong possibility, with the Great Skua seeming to make a bit of a recovery from the devastation Bird Flu wreaked on their population. A glimpse of a fin breaching the water sends up a cry of “Dolphins” from the first spotters- although it may just as well be porpoise or even one of the whale family.

Arrival at Lochmaddy on a calm day

The mindset of enjoying the journey is a bit hackneyed, but once you switch into it travel definitely becomes more enjoyable! 

Robyn