Revisiting the Fairy Pools

It was true: The Fairy Pools were now a tourist magnet and there were literally hundreds of people attracted to the location like Midges to a human. There is a car park but you can’t get near it for the cars, Land Rovers, camper vans etc etc all parked along the sides of the road. It didn’t really help that the car park charge was £5 which most likely tended to discourage people from using it. Things will change very soon though because the car park is being massively extended, then fences will be installed to stop roadside parking. Perhaps the charges are to fund that but, in any case, Rob managed to park the car ... just about. However, it was the first sight of the Fairy Pools that was so disappointing. Even from the beginning of the path leading to the cascades you could see the whole area was infested with tourists so the possibility of getting photos up there was remote. Clearly, August is not such a good time to be visiting Skye.

All was not lost however because just like his visit to the Storr, if you left the main path there were quieter areas and in this case there was waterfall where hardly anyone went. This is where Rob spent his time until almost 7pm and visitors were still arriving as he left. In the end Rob was happy with the photographs he took here ... not the type of photos he expected to get on Skye, but it was enjoyable taking them all the same. Looks like ‘Impressive Landscapes of Skye’ isn’t going to be the theme for a calendar this year!

The evening meal was taken in a nearby pub which was, as everywhere seems to be, very busy. However, being only one Rob meant he was found a small table straight away and while eating he spent time chatting to one of the locals about the growing problems of what is now mass tourism on the island. The Internet has changed things so now it’s so easy to find out about the places to visit and what needs adding to everyone’s Bucket List. That was his view and he’s probably right.

So now the day draws to a close. The visit to Glen Brittle was a bit of a journey back in time as this is the place where Rob & Julie were rescued when the weather turned against them and the route back to the car park was cut off by swollen rivers. Hardly anyone was around then and there were only three cars parked when they started their walk. It was good to visit in better weather, even though there were still showers passing through, but Rob still didn’t get to photograph the Fairy Pools which means only one thing - he will need to return, but not in August!Read more