Hiking to the Fairy Pools through the Cuillin Mountains

The Fairy Pools on the Isle of Skye. Ah, how magical does that sound?

The Fairy Pools are one of Skye’s most popular tourist destinations, known for their crystal clear blue and green waters and fairy legends. The majority of visitors walk to the Fairy Pools from the car park, a mere 1,2 kilometer walk, but Brandon and I wanted to have an adventure so we chose to hike a route that he’d done several months back, an 8,8 km hike from Sligachan through the Cuillin Mountains to the Fairy Pools.

We set off from Portree in the early morning and walked out to the Aros Centre, our chosen hitchhiking spot. We were expecting to wait a while as hitchhiking on Skye in January had proven quite difficult, but we got lucky and were picked up by a lovely local woman shortly after arriving. She took us to Sligachan where our adventure began.

Before finding the hiking trail, we walked to the picturesque old bridge in Sligachan, built during the 1820s. This bridge was once an important thoroughfare on the island, but it has since been replaced by a modern bridge and can now only be crossed on foot.

We found the hiking path just left of the main road and followed it past a small bridge and past a beautifully located house. The hike to the Fairy Pools was incredibly beautiful. It was an easy hike with a gradual ascend into the Cuillin Mountains, passing by waterfall after waterfall, constantly making me question whether or not we’d already reached the Fairy Pools. But the hike continued, taking two hours and forty minutes in all.

The weather turned as we approached our destination. What had been a blue sky with a few clouds when we’d left Portree was now full of grey clouds spitting on us with fog coming in over the mountains. But it didn’t make the hike any less beautiful.

When we were almost at the Fairy Pools, we met an injured sheep with what looked like a broken leg. We didn’t know what to do, but decided to call the Scottish SPCA, who promised to call the landowner. We just had to hope that they could figure out who it was so the poor darling could get some help.

Unable to do anything else to help the sheep, we hoped for the best and continued our hike. A short while later, we were met by many other tourists. Not hoards like you’d get during the summer, but enough to ruin the tranquility that I’d enjoyed so much during our hike through the mountains. With 50+ people roaming the Fairy Pools even on a rainy January day, it was easy to imagine what it would be like during the summer. That is not something I want to experience – I’m so glad that we chose to come to Skye during the quieter winter months.

To be honest, I personally think the Fairy Pools are overrated. They ARE beautiful, especially with the backdrop of the Black Cuillin ridge, but don’t get fooled by the pictures you see online (looking at you, Instagram!). The water is not as blue or green as photoshopped pictures will have you believe, and the waterfalls are tiny. To be honest, I think it’s the name of the place that drives tourists in. Go to the Fairy Pools knowing that it won’t blow you away, but will be a nice day out. If you only have a short time on the Isle of Skye, skip it and visit the places that truly are unique to the island, such as the Storr, the Quiraing and the Fairy Glen. That being said, I’m sure there are days when the colours of the pools are more vibrant, such as during the summer.

A popular activity during the high season is wild swimming in the pools, but Brandon didn’t need warm weather to do this. He didn’t care that it was January, he was going in! I’m not a water person, so I stayed dry and took photos of him while he swam in the cold pools.

After his swim, we walked up to the highest pool with a mesmerizing view over the area. The weather cleared up for a short while, revealing the majestic Black Cuillin ridge, before heavy fog rolled in once again.

We followed the typical tourist trail to the car park, where we intended to hitchhike further. But first, we had to cross a river which was incredibly strong and wide. We ended up walking halfway up a hill before finally crossing the river. It was no use as I ended up soaked anyways as I gave up jumping from stone to stone and just stepped in the water and walked through it…

Drenched, we got to the car park and started looking around for people to ask for a ride to Carbost, a nearby village. Two car park staff came up to us and asked if we had called the Scottish SPCA. The owner of the injured sheep had already showed up and wanted us to point out on a map where we’d encountered the sheep. Lucky timing! I was so happy to see how quickly everyone had acted so the poor sheep could be helped!

The two car park staff gave us a ride to Carbost, where we visited the famous Talisker Distillery. We didn’t do a tour as I’m not one bit interested in alcohol, but Brandon did have a whisky before continuing to the Oyster Shed, where he enjoyed some oysters and fancy cheese. He was definitely having a moment there!

We stopped by a small café for hot chocolate before hitchhiking back to Portree with a local lady who we’d met earlier at the laundrette in Portree. Skye truly is a small island!