The best short hikes on the Isle of Skye

‘Shall we just go to Skye, then?’

Whenever we’re planning a trip, this is what we invariably end up saying say to each other. And that’s because this Scottish island is simply one of the most beautiful places on earth. The landscapes, the life and of course the hikes on the Isle of Skye are to us something bordering magical.

We’ve travelled to Skye – the biggest island of the Inner Hebrides – twice. Our first trip was years ago, and it’s attained almost mythical status in our minds. We stayed in an old cow byre, frolicked around fairy pools, walked the basalt cliffs, spotted seals off a coral beach. We always always wanted to return, to explore less in the car and more on foot.

So earlier in 2018 we went.

And over two weeks we walked all over Skye. Not long treks, but just really good short hikes. Walking really allows you to breathe in a place like Skye: the sea breeze whipping off a white sand beach, the fresh bread wafting from an old bakery. All good.

Because of all that, the Isle of Skye has gotten pretty popular in the last few years. But we visited in the middle of the Easter holidays and we had –if possible– a better time the second time we visited. No trouble with traffic or tourists. And we reckon that’s because we walked.

So here are our best short hikes on the Isle of Skye. They’re all less than 6km, all on little public paths and pretty easy, and we’ve given you some pointers about how to best tackle them too:

Getting up early to see Old Man Storr

Distance: 5km

Time: 3 hours

Of anywhere on the Isle of Skye, the precarious needle of rock called the Old Man of Storr might be the most incredible. It’s quite easy to get to as well, which means it can get busy!

From the road to the Old Man, it’s about a 45-minute walk. It’s firstly on zigzagging stony path, then you pick a route through mossy rock. Go in the day and steady streams of people in brightly coloured waterproofs make a giant train up the mountainside.

But as with lots of popular places the simple trick is to go early. We arrived at 6am and there was just us and a man flying a drone (guess we’re in loads of his footage – sorry).

When we got to mossy rock stage, we went a rough right up to get ‘the’ view of the Storr. The loch is behind, and the pink sunrise was to the left. It’s not difficult, although we got a bit out of breath doing it. Worth it for the views.

You can also continue up further and it gets wilder, windier, howlier. The Old Man of Storr is in front of the Trotternish Ridge, a giant rock ridge with a snowy and desolate beyond. Catching a glimpse of that wilderness is awesome, so worth a bit more of a walk to see.

Going the other way from the Quiraing car park

Distance: 2km

Time: 1 hour

Also part of the Trotternish Ridge is the lunar world of the Quiraing. The largest landslip in Europe (bit of a geography teacher comment but anyway) its huge dramatic rock ridges run as far as you can see, higher and sharper than a row of skyscrapers. It’s just a must-visit if you’re on Skye.

There’s a very clear path running along the Quiraing that is actually part of the 128km Skye Trail, a rugged path across the whole island. This part of it is visually stunning and takes you over some incredible gullies in the rock.

But a really interesting short walk we did as well is to simply walk up from the car park – not along to the right like everyone else does. It’s steep and bit peaty, but you get such weird, awesome views of the clouds, lakes, and cliff edges below.

Making the Point Neist Lighthouse walk even better

Distance: 3km

Time: 2 hours

Look, lighthouse walks are our jam. They’re often completely remote, hanging off the edge of cliffs, and lighthouses themselves are hopelessly romantic. This is one of those lighthouses.

The Neist Point lighthouse is on the most westerly headland of Skye, and is still working (remotely). It’s also one of the most beautifully-placed we’ve ever seen. (Close second is the Cape of St Vincent we walked to in Portugal.)

There are two walks to do here. Firstly, from the car park going down and exploring the headland of land where the lighthouse is placed. It’s about 25 minutes on a little concrete path with lots of steps. There’ll be sheep and other people, but it still feels pretty wild.

But to get the best view of the lighthouse you need to go off to the right from the car park, up the grass, and hop over a few boggy patches to find some rocky outcrops. This is honestly where you’ll find one of the best views in the world.

To turn this little walk into one of the best short hikes on the Isle of Skye, just keep strolling along the clifftop beyond the rocky outcrops. On a clear day, you can see most of the Outer Hebrides from here. Best place on Skye for sunset.

Have the Fairy Pools walk to yourself

Distance: 3km

Time: 90 minutes

The Fairy Pools on Skye: a set of crystal clear blue pools, set at the foot of the Black Cuillin mountains. They’re beautiful, mystical – and really, really popular.

We travelled past the Fairy Pools at sunset to find the car park completely overrun. But then we returned at sunrise to find the car park literally empty, save for two trail runners.

The path to the fairy pools is really the beginning of the trail up into the Black Cuillin mountains. It’s a simple route through the heathland directly by the Pools.

We climbed right down to the water, and apparently you can swim if you want to (we did not want to. Are you crazy, it was APRIL).

Into the Cuillin

Distance: min. 6km

Time: 3 hours

This is a perfect evening walk from the (very cool) Glenbrittle campsite. The camp itself has got a café with a Napoli coffee machine serving up the local Cuillin Coffee Co. beans. (Honestly one of the best flat whites we’d had outside of New Zealand.)

Anyway the walk starts right at the campsite, beyond the café on the obvious stone path after the kissing gate. Simply follow the path towards the mountains. It’s a gradual climb and the pure Scotland of your dreams.

At one point after about 1km you’ll see a small path leading off to the right, across a small stream – ignore this and continue on. And when close to the mountains, and within clear sight of the cascading water, you’ll see a large stone cairn (piled up rocks). This was the point at which we stopped, sat and then make our way back.

The only company we had up there was a small group of red deer, sharing the huge view of the cove. For tranquillity any time of the day, this walk will probably be the best.

From Elgol, one of the best out and back walks

Distance: min. 5km

Time: 3 hours

On our first trip to Skye five years ago we didn’t manage to visit the isolated area of Elgol, way way down south. So we had no idea what we’d find.

Firstly, what a drive to Elgol it is. Views of the Cuillin Hills the whole way, it reminded us of New Zealand, dramatic and remote.

Before starting the walk, we drove down to the pretty harbour for a wee stroll. There’s a dark green walking path sign point to the right halfway down – that’s where we started from.

It’s a full day walk here to Lock Coruisk, a good 13km and a truly stunning adventure. If you want just a taste though do it as an out and back. And trust us, do it in the late afternoon.

We walked out along the coastal path for 90 minutes or so, all of it hugging the side of the cliff. It’s a bit narrow in places but fairly flat, with the sea loch directly below, and clear views of both the mountains and the nearby island of Rùm. We walked back when we liked and caught the sun as it disappeared beyond the horizon.

We’ve walked a lot of coast paths in our time. And this little section is honestly up there with the best of them.

Beyond the distillery there’s a beach

Distance: 4km

Time: 2 hours

Most people have heard of Talisker Bay for the whisky. But there’s an actual Talisker Bay, on the wild west coast. We did a little walk there that we think you (and literally, anyone) would like.

It would be a good walk to do in the evening as it’s on the west coast, so you’d get a good sunset, especially in spring and autumn.

Look up Google Maps and type in Talisker Bay. It’ll take you to the road end, where you can park.

From there walk down a fine-looking avenue of trees. Go through a little gate. Pass through the yard of a large white house (which, by the way, famous Dr Johnson and James Boswell stayed in during their tour of the Highlands). Over the bridge and through another gate to continue on a track all the way to the bay.

And the sweep of the bay is gorgeous. There’s an impressive-looking waterfall at the far end, but what’s really special about this beach is its mix of black and white sand. Get down there and see the whirling patterns for yourself.

It’s an out and back, so when you’re done just follow the route you already know back to the car. It’s the easiest walk of this ‘best short hikes on the Isle of Skye’ list.

Another thing to do when you’re down in the Carbost area, is to have a coffee from Caora Dhubh. It’s a sublime little coffeehouse (outdoor seating only!) straight from the streets of Shoreditch. Useful as a post whisky pick-me-up, or as a replacement if you don’t actually like whisky (ie like us).

It’s amazing to think that all these places are on the same 80km (50 miles) long island. And while we think they’re the best short hikes on the Isle of Skye, we’ve really only skimmed the surface. We also walked to bothies, down to caves, cruised the waters on a sea ferry. But maybe that’s another blog post…

Please let us know in our comments what you think of these short hikes on the Isle of Skye– and if you use them when you visit Skye!

Pin it:

Follow our footsteps: