Exploring Scotland 1 Castle at a Time, Part 28, Dunvegan Seal Trip, The Isle of Skye, and Minard Castle

(The Boat House at Dunvegan)

I didn’t want to leave Skye without sharing some of the pictures I took of our seal boat trip we took at Dunvegan Castle and of the surrounding area of Skye.  First the seal boat trip.

(The shoreline, remember this is a sea inlet.)

                                                 (This gull wasn't at all interested in us)

               (These are common seals and we learned there only about 2000 of them left IN THE WORLD)

                                                               (Mom and Baby)

                                       (How could anyone hurt anything with a face like that?)

                                   (This one looked as though he was waving bye to us as we left)

Skye  is the largest and most northen island of the inner Hebrides.   The areas on water are mostly  dominated by the fishing industry, distilleries, and tourism. The inner parts of the island are mostly sheep ranching areas. The wide open spaces there are unimaginable.

These pictures will show you Skye in all her many moods.  The light changed every few minutes and even the color of things would change.

I guess you can tell I went over the top photographing the area.  I was picture crazy everywhere we went.   

We left Skye and drove straight through  to the Inveraray area in Argyll. Not a good idea. The distances in Scotland are deceptive. Some things appear closer and others are actually farther away. So, if you go, look closely at the map and pay attention to what your GPS tells you. It took us nearly 5 hours to get to our B and B.

                       We arrived too late to see Inveraray Castle. This is the borrowed photo of it.

And we didn't get to see Kilchurn Castle either.  I will always-- always  regret not getting to see them. So, if you get to go to Scotland be sure to go to those two castles. And I’d appreciate an email of the pictures you take. The Campbell strongholds throughout history reside along Loch Awe. And there’s a Loch Awe hotel there that looks very much like a castle at which you can stay.

We stayed at Minard Castle on Loch Fyne.

 The Castle isn’t a real Castle but a Scottish Manor house the past owners built onto to make it look like a castle. That's what the current owner told us. Which was interesting in itself because we got to see what a manor house would have looked like inside. And we were allowed to take pictures of the interior which was great.

                           This is the entrance. I loved the room that was positioned over this. 

 We enjoyed being there and were very comfortable there.

I loved the upstairs ceiling.  It was gorgeous.

And the surrounding area is very picturesque and quiet.

I’d have loved to have stayed a few days there and explored the area.

And Loch Fyne was gorgeous. The light on the water was glorious.

Tomorrow we'll be going to Ireland on the Ferry. 

Write on,

Teresa R.