We recently returned from a whirlwind trip to my favorite place in the world: the Isle of Skye. We usually go in the autumn, but this time, we went in late November. The colors and mood of Skye in winter are so gorgeous. Lots of gold, burgundy, and plum, but you still get the bonus of green in certain locations.

Weather forecast: gale.
Temperature forecast: 1° celcius.

What couldn’t possibly go wrong?

FYI - If you’d like to know what it’s like to drive around Skye, hike in all weather, and experience some of the most beautiful locations on this island, please go watch my VLOG:

Today I want to share some of my favorite images of this trip, which was two solid days of exploring and hiking. We packed in as much as we could, given the short daylight hours (around 8:30am - 4pm). It meant we had to schedule our time carefully, factoring in travel time between hikes.

We had planned on housing with our friends, but due to the pandemic rules we had to get separate accommodation. We stayed in Broadford at the Moeraki Cottage, which was a beautiful and cozy spot on the water - perfect for rainbow sightings.

Our friends stayed in a little town called Torrin about 15 minutes away. When we visited them, I was blown away by their beautiful mountain view!

Their cute little cottage was tucked in this valley, between water and mountains. It was a great start to day 1!

From Torrin, we headed towards our first location - Elgol. Here are some shots along that winding road.

I had been wanting to visit Elgol for a very long time, ever since I was commissioned to paint a view looking over the water towards the Cuillins. For months I’ve had visions of walking along the Elgol beach, stopping to capture serene, soft, long-exposure images of the waves and clouds, featuring the Cuillins in the distance. Boy was I in for a surprise.

We had a lovely sunny drive, but the moment we parked in Elgol, the storm came in.

Within seconds we were pelted with rain, and the wind was so strong I could barely open the car door. We did eventually open the car doors, get out, and attempt to take a couple photos.

I quickly dove back into the car, feeling defeated. But just as we were about to leave, the sun replaced the storm as quickly as it had arrived. I was able to brace myself against the wind to capture a few more photos of the Cuillins from the shores of Elgol. In a way, this quick storm was a blessing in disguise, because the incredible moodiness of the atmosphere is breathtaking.

So, feeling inspired (and soaked), we jumped back into the car and made our way to our first hike, the Camasunary trail.

Here are a few images from the short drive over the hills:

The trail starts at a tiny car park on the B8083 in Kilmarie. The trail itself is just shy of 10 kilometers (around 6 miles), which we didn’t have time for, because we had plans to go to the Fairy Pools after. However, we were blessed with sun the entire time we hiked through the hills on this lovely trail, and I was able to capture some images:

Then it was time for the highlight of the day: the Fairy Pools near Glenbrittle. A place that stands out in my memory as pure magic. I went there in 2016 and it has been a huge inspiration to my work over the years. This time, it was even better.

Here are some images from the drive to the Fairy Pools:

Driving on Skye is a gift in itself. Every single road is breathtaking.

After about an hour, we were finally parking at the Fairy Pools carpark, and I was very surprised to see that it had been expanded since my last visit. There are even seasonal toilets!

Anways, we only had two hours until sunset (maybe less), so we quickly hit the trail. During our time there, we had glorious sun, intense rain, and even a tiny bit of snow. MOOD!

I will never forget the intensely beautiful light we experienced that day. I loved how the fields of honey were illuminated in that late day sun, it made the crystal blue and turquoise waters seem even more vibrant.

My heart!

But sadly, there is never enough time at the fairy pools, and it was time to move on to our last location of the day: Talisker Bay. I had always heard it was a lovely place, and I think that I true, but not so fun during a gale.

We had a tiny bit of sun, but it was mostly just so windy we could barely stand up!