Skye’s Scorrybreac, a hiking paradise near Portree

The Scorrybreac circuit is a wonderful short hike of about 3 km on well-trodden paths, just north of Portree, the largest town on the Isle of Skye. I had only been in Portree for a few days when Brandon decided it was time to take me around the circuit. After the rather exhausting climb up Ben Tianavaig, we needed a slow day of little activity, so the Scorrybreac circuit was perfect. After all, we didn’t want to entirely waste a day off!

Although the path was rather muddy, it proved to be a really easy hike with just a few steep but short ascends. The dirty shoes were worth it as the circuit offered incredible views throughout, southwards to Portree with Ben Tianavaig and the Cuillin Mountains in the backdrop and northwards to the famous Old Man of Storr. In the near distance to the east, we could see the island of Raasay, which we hope to explore very soon. The walk didn’t take us long, about an hour, which was enough for our tired legs.

We finished the day off with fries and Irn-Bru at the Cuillin Hills Hotel, where we lucked out and got the best table by the window. The hotel is located on a hill and thus has an incredible view over Portree and the Cuillin Mountains. A perfect place to watch the sunset!

We had another day off the next day and decided to spend it exploring the area further by hiking up the hill of Scorrybreac, the very hill that the circuit circles. The short ascend was nice and easy with a well-trodden path (yet muddy – as always) to follow all the way up, and the views were nothing less than spectacular. I could definitely see myself returning to this spot again and again!

Rain had been forecasted for the afternoon so we wanted to enjoy the calm weather for as long as possible. So for the descend, we decided to go a different way, to the village of Torvaig and then along the road back to Portree.

Torvaig is a tiny settlement with a few cottages and a caravan site. There is nothing much to see there, but the settlement itself is a nice break from Portree which – despite its small size – does get quite busy.

We weren’t the only ones who had the idea of walking to Torvaig that day as we met a fellow traveller along the way, Joel from Australia. As we shared travel stories, the three of us walked back to Portree, happy to have seen more of the beautiful nature surrounding the town. We got home just in time as the heavens opened shortly after.