It’s hard to explain how much I love Skye.
This weekend we visited our friends on their annual trip to Skye, and it was absolutely magical.
That’s the thing - Skye IS magic.
It is known for it’s moody weather and jaw-dropping views, but it’s also a place of great power. Ancient druids were drawn to this island for a reason (and it’s many surrounding islands known as the Outer Hebrides).
Throughout Skye are remnants of these ancient cultures, hints of the past, hints of the magic.
And not just in the old castle ruins dotted throughout the landscape.
Dunscaith Castle Ruins
You can feel these hints as you walk through the mossy forests. As you stand atop a high hill, windy rain whipping your hair back as the sun strikes the hills in the distance.
Of course there are the more obvious places, such as the standing stones of Calanais (in Callanish) of the Outer Hebrides. Every year thousands of people flock there, drawn by some unseen force, and mystified by the majesty of this monuments - and not purely for the logistical prowess it took to assemble the site in ancient times. They are pulled by something deeper.
Image by https://www.historicenvironment.scot
A desire to be part of something which runs through all of us. The energy that holds us together, binds our humanity and the Earth on which we live. History, legend, myth - it’s all the same to the energy. The thing which remains unseen, but can be felt deeply by those who reach for it.
Skye has that effect on people. You don’t even have to believe in magic to feel it. You don’t have to walk among these ancient stones to witness it.
Merely driving through the long, winding single-track roads can bring you closer to something you may have thought long-gone. Or something you have yet to discover.
So yea, this weekend was magic. I always cry when I leave Skye, but at the same time I am so thankful for the beauty it has shared with me, however brief my stay was.
See you again soon.