Since the construction of the Kyle Bridge, the village of Kyle of Lochalsh, which had lost a lot of its tourist traffic and some importance as a main ferry crossing point to Skye, has somewhat reinvented itself as a bit of a destination in its…Read More

Since the construction of the Kyle Bridge, the village of Kyle of Lochalsh, which had lost a lot of its tourist traffic and some importance as a main ferry crossing point to Skye, has somewhat reinvented itself as a bit of a destination in its own right, with several shops selling gifts and souvenirs as well as basic (and not so basic) provisions, a few eating places, a choice of accommodation and a few visitors' attractions.

Many tour buses make a stop in Kyle, and if you are travelling by public transport to the area you might need to change here as it's the terminus for the trains and some coaches. If you are driving it's still worth at least a brief stop, especially on a sunny day when views to Skye are rather good.

If you are planning on self-catering in southern Skye (especially in Sleat area), Kyle is your last supermarket stop – a big co-op is located on the hill and has a variety of provisions.

But the best practical shop in Kyle is called Marine Stores, and although nominally a chandler's, is in fact a universal ironmonger/DIY/household store that sells everything from camping chairs, blow-up mattresses and gas cylinders to household items, power tools, paint and minor electricals. Essentially, if you need anything practical of a non-food nature in the Kyle/southern Skye area, Marine stores is your best bet.

Marine Stores are located near the obvious village centre, by the small car park between the souvenir shop that offers bookings for the Atlantis semi-sub (the chief Kyle attraction) and the woollens shop (which has some nice knitting).

Kyle pharmacy opposite has, quite surprisingly, a good selection of local books and maps as well as all kinds of Skye gifts including excellent (if expensive) cosmetics and candles.

In the same area is Hector's cafe, which offers standard cafe type food in a sit-down setting, while across the main road, Hector's 2 Go is a chip shop that in addition to fish suppers (good fish, not so good chips) sells a vast selection of other fast food items from pizza to sandwiches, kebabs and burgers.

The more civilised eating options in Kyle include the Waverley restaurant up the main street past two banks and a seafood place on the train station platform, while both hotels (Kyle and Lochalsh) have eating places too. Recently, a small fish deli which also sells good ice-cream opened in a portacabin near the slipway and pontoons.

In addition to the Atlantis semi-sub, Kyle attractions include a small museum of the Kyle railway line as well as, from the bridge, access to Eilean Ban islet with a lighthouse (possibly the one from Virginia Woolf's novel) and museum of Gavin Maxwell of the ''Ring of Bright Water'' otter novel fame. You can also have a peek in the Lifeboat Station and take a fishing trip on the Spirit of Adventure.

Kyle also boasts the Leisure centre, which, although serving mostly the locals, might be a lifesaver on cold, rainy days especially if you have young 'uns with you.

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Glenelg is a small village and an eponymous peninsula on the west coast of Scotland, located on the mainland side of the Sound of Sleat. It is approached by a steep, 9 miles' long, picturesque and largely single-track road that diverts from A87 in Shiel…Read More

Glenelg is a small village and an eponymous peninsula on the west coast of Scotland, located on the mainland side of the Sound of Sleat. It is approached by a steep, 9 miles' long, picturesque and largely single-track road that diverts from A87 in Shiel Bridge at the head of Loch Duich and is best known for its community-run ferry across Kylerhea to Skye.

Glenelg has other attractions though, and not the least of them the three well-preserved remains of prehistoric brochs which are approximately two thousand years old.

Brochs are fortified, stone-built round tower-houses that were inhabited some time in the early first millennium. They are considered to be Pictish, but in fact very little is known about them as there is no historical records from that time in the area and the archaeological finds only tell us so much.

Similar structures are dotted around the Highlands of Scotland, and the ones in Glenelg are among the best preserved (they were in fact partially restored and certainly cleared in Victorian times).

Whatever is the speculation around their original inhabitants – it is now thought that they were high-status dwellings similar to castles later – the structures themselves are very impressive.

Built of stone using the dry stane wall technology (i.e. without mortar) and constructed in a circular, slightly tapering form with a double wall, these structures erected by ''primitive'' and ''uncivilised'' people that inhabited this wilderness thousands of years ago survived until now. The height was, apparently, easier to achieve with a lighter structure accomplished by building two walls concentrically, and the single entrance suggests a defensive objective rather than just protection from the animals and weather.

There are three brochs in Gleann Beag, a narrow valley just past Glenelg village. You need to drive (or walk) a couple of miles up the twisting, very narrow single track road to reach Dun Telve (Upper Broch), the first and the most impressive of the brochs. This is in fact the best preserved on on the mainland and it still boasts parts of the wall that are 10 metres high!

The second one (Dun Troddan, or Lower Broch) is lower, but the gap between the walls retains some of the original staircase that led to upper levels. The sophistication and resilience of the structure is remarkable: to build a tower house that lasted at least partially for two thousand years in the climate of the West Coast is a feat indeed.

We visit on a rainy, misty, cold day, the day when the weather appeared to have turned from the unseasonably hot and dry summer to the normal conditions for this part of the world: a driving, semi-horizontal rain, mist and wind blowing the hats off the heads.

The road is deserted, and we can easily just park by each of the brochs (there is a third one but much less impressive) and trot off to explore each as they are only a few yards from the road.

The advantage is that we have the brochs to ourselves, and can see the weather protection they still provide, hiding in the surprisingly dry and wind-sheltered wall chambers. Large swathes of the double wall are clearly visible, as are chambers within the wall.

You can imagine an extended family – and early clan perhaps – living quite comfortably in one of these, with the animals and maybe cooking fire at the ground level, and stores and living quarters at higher floors, secure from nature and yet being able to utilise what land and sea provided here.

On the way back to Glenelg we stop by a gate. Across the field, on the other side of the river that flows fast down the glen, is a waterfall, a huge curtain of water tumbling down a rocky side of the glen. This isn't mentioned in any tourist material, so either a temporary even following the rain, or just not significant enough to note, but we love it.

After the ruins and the wet and windy glen, the comforts of Glenelg Inn appear as a height of civilisation.

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If you have time to spare in Kyle, one of the nicest little walks you can do is the Plock of Kyle, a hill raising above the village near the old golf course. The best way to do it is to park in the main…Read More

If you have time to spare in Kyle, one of the nicest little walks you can do is the Plock of Kyle, a hill raising above the village near the old golf course. The best way to do it is to park in the main village car park by the leisure centre and then walk up, as there is no parking spaces at the end of the street. On a good day the views towards the bridge, Skye and the north-west coast are spectacular, and you can walk further to a nice little cove.Close