Eilean Donan Castle and our Journey to the Isle of Skye

The Isle of Skye is the largest island of the inner Hebrides island chain off the west coast of Scotland and about a 4 hour drive from Dundee. Since it was so far (how funny since it's about a ride to Tampa from Fort Myers), we decided to spend a few days here. This is the first of 4 Skye posts and covers our journey from Dundee to Skye with a stop at Eilean Donan castle along the way!

Let me tell you. The views on this drive were... AH-MAZING! You can ask Greg how I was practically hanging out the window of the car barreling down the highway to take pictures of these views. Let me also tell you, the pictures over the next 4 posts, do not do the views justice. The mountains tower above you, most being well over 3000ft high.

We passed so many different lochs on our way and each one served as the focal point for so many amazing photos. There were dams, real canal locks (the ones for boats), and epic whitewater rivers along the way. The weather was so cooperative during our trip, people were boating, jet skiing and enjoying the sunshine!

3 hours into our drive, we arrived at the iconic Eilean Donan castle. Owned by the McCrae family, the castle is located just a few miles away from the Isle of Skye. It sits at the confluence of three lochs, on it's own island, with gorgeous views of Skye looming in the background.

Notably one of the most photographed monuments in Scotland, it has been used as the backdrop for quite a number of films. Today, Eilean Donan is used as a special occasion residence for members of the McCrae family. We bought tickets and took a tour of the inside, you're not supposed to film but I did sneak a few photos in. We got there at the end of the day so we were the only ones inside except for staff. After touring the inside, you're allowed to walk around the grounds where we got some great photos of the castle and Skye. The site of Eilean Donan has had historical significance since the early 600's however the castle as it stands right now is entirely reconstructed.

Image Credit: https://adeotravel.com/

After leaving Eilean Donan, we drove the last hour of the day to our AirBNB in the islands largest town and capital, Portree. The Isle of Skye is only inhabited by about 10,000 people and 2500 of them live in Portree. The town of Portree is an adorable and colorful harbour and fishing village. Our AirBNB, set up on a hill, had fantastic views overlooking the mountains and city of Portree!