Day 20 – Isle of Skye to Fort Williams

Cataorina started our day off again with a delicious breakfast. We had such a nice stay at her home. It was sad to leave. She even told us that from the moment we met her, she felt like we were friends. We enjoyed visiting with her over breakfast. Upon check out, Matt had to run out and do a bank run since she only accepted Cash payment (I assumed she took CC because I had to email her my MC to hold the room). While Matt was at the ATM, Cataorina and I had a nice visit in her formal sitting room. I showed her our wedding photos. She thought Matt looked “Regal.” She shared some stories with me about her family along with some nutty stories about some of her past guests. When Matt returned, she gave us both big hugs goodbye. She runs the B&B all on her own, 7 days a week from May through mid-October, than she will close for the winter. We told her if she ever made it to SF, she could stay in our ensuite as our guest. I really enjoyed getting to know her and I’m thankful to have found her B&B.

The drive to Fort Williams took longer than Google thought it would, but at least it was not raining and we were able to enjoy some of the views while driving through the highlands.

Once in Fort Williams, we checked into our B&B. It’s a very old Victorian Home. Matt thinks it “kinda creepy” but I like our sea loch view and the high ceilings (ok, there is a slight sense of “The Shining” here). Ken, our host, greeted us. When we asked him for a map of the area, he seemed confused, as if he had never been asked for a map before. He was a little off, just like the Old Victorian House.

We walked to downtown for some lunch. The little pedestrian area was trying so hard to be cool, but it seemed sad and depressed since there were many little store fronts that had gone out of business. During lunch we discussed the 2 things we wanted to do. I wanted to hike up Ben Nevis and Matt wanted to drive to Glen Etive. Glen Etive is the canyon where the James Bond film, SkyFall, was filmed. It was the location of Bond’s family home. 

We left Fort Williams for Glen Etive. It was 45 minutes south of Fort Williams. The canyons were dramatic and the tiny narrow 1-track road  twisted along the river. Matt kept trying to match the terrain to the movie and set location. I enjoyed the vastness of the area. However, this was not on the itinerary and going here was sacrificing the plan I had for our afternoon hike on Ben Nevis

We returned to Fort Williams, making one stop along the way at an old church. The lupines were blooming among the tombstones. Our lakeside walk among the tombstones was very peaceful. 

By the time we arrived at the Ben Nevis visitors center it was 6:00. The center was closed and my hopes for doing a 4 hour return hike up Ben Nevis was not going to happen. There were some hikers just beginning the accent who most likely were planning to camp half way up and do a full accent the following day. Summiting Ben Nevis is much like Half Dome, however, there is a mid-way point that many hikers go to for a day hike. I went up a ways past 2 sheep ladders along the rocky trail. Matt stayed below sitting on a little mound surrounded by sheep. The views were great, the weather was perfect, I hope to come back here and hike this trail.