We started the day with a morning chat with our parents, good to know they are doing well.
We took the slow road to Rodel, there were two ways to get there, the Google maps suggested way around the west coast and the slow way down the east coast.
Almost immediately, no make that immediately, we left Tarbert the road became a very narrow single lane with “passing stops” dotted along it. I went into full tourist mode and we did the trip at 20 to 25 mph all the way. Stopping in passing stops, on corners, on single lane bridges and in the middle of the road for photos. In the 1 1/4 hrs it took us to drive the 27km on The Golden Road, not because of its beauty (which would be appropriate) but because of the cost of it. The
We stopped for a few sheep photos, I loved the stops where the sheep were in a bus shelter ” waiting for the bus” and another where Deb wanted a sheep to look at her, so someone? ? called out “Hey, Baa Baa”, and the sheep looked up to see who the crazy person was! lol. Photo achieved.
There were so many great views along the drive, and NO people. I think we saw 4 cars pass us going the other way and a campervan following us a few km behind.
At Rodel we stopped and went into the St Clement’s Church, possibly the grandest Medieval building in the western Isles, built in late 1400’s/early 1500’s. It was a very basic church, little to no ornate stone work and very square. Historically it was interesting for the tombs within it, apparently paid for at the time of the churches construction. Talk about thinking ahead!
We had planned on having lunch at a cafe caravan in Rodel, but when we got there, there was a sign out the front saying “Gone Fishing”. ? So we drove up the west coast a bit and stopped at the Temple Cafe for lunch overlooking the Sound of Taransay with a patch of flowering thistle and other wild flowers in front of us, and green rolling hills on the far side of the inlet. The cafe is a quirky round stone building with a Stone Age feel.
We drove back to Tarbert along the west coast and called into a few beaches. Luskenture and Scarista Beaches are renowned as some of the most spectacular in Scotland . Both were very long wide stretches of white sand and under the blue sunny skies we had, they both had crystal clear turquoise waters, again calm seas means not much wave action.
The roads along the west coast had stretches of two lanes, but the vast majority was the one lane with passing bays, and I finally think I worked out the crazy drivers here, local delivery type drivers and mostly Europeans (who seem to have no concept that single lane roads should be treated differently to autobahns!).
The landscape is very different in the west of Harris, it reminds me of the Snowy high country in Australia, granite boulders and low grass strewn over rolling hills, just the “hills” here are about twice the height. I like the soft ruggedness of them, Deb, not so much. We really enjoyed our slow road day, the pace and scenery were very relaxing.
We got back to Tarbert mid afternoon and chilled for a while, another great day.
We head to the Isle of Skye tomorrow. Lucky for us the ferry departs just across the road from our hotel.
