Teaser Post: Skye run - 6/8/2006

Since I am so tardy updating all of the recent adventures, I'll give you a short teaser adventure. We spent a long weekend in Skye with my evil twin and her boyfriend. I'm marathonning again, so I did my 10 miler there instead of in Edinburgh. It was well worthwhile. Skye is beautiful.

Lucas was kind enough to drive me the requisite 10 miles for my run so I wouldn't have to do an out-and-back course. We left just before 8am while Nikki and Chris continued counting sheep.

I started at the base of Glen Brittle, with the Cuillin Hills on one side



and River Brittle on the other. A sheep audience watched me with some curiosity as I hopped out of the car and began my run. The Cuillin Hills are not the tallest of the Munros but they are among the most challenging. Ropes are suggested for even the "tourist route." I had about a half mile warmup on the flats before the climb out of the glen began. It was a long climb, more than a mile, but the view beside and then behind me was amazing. Each time the steep leveled out, I snuck a glance behind.



Occasional nips from midges kept me from slowing too much.

After the big climb, the terrain eased to more gently rolling hills. I was above the tree line, so as the fog lifted, I could see quite far. Sheep and cows chomped happily as I ran past.

The second half of my run was along Loch Harport, which really was just a narrow bay.



The route dropped into the village of Carbost and took me past the Talisker Distillery. The smell of Scotch Whisky was less attractive at mile 7 than it was on the tour the day before. The steepest climb of the day out of Carbost. Eau de whisky chased me up the hill past the signpost for the village of Fernilea. The Puff the Magic Dragon song lodged itself in my brain for the final two miles of the run. On the home stretch, I had a jogging partner for about a hundred yards. A cow ran along its pasture with me, slowing if I slowed, speeding up if I sped up. He got shy when I offered to pet him. When I continued on, he chased again along with the rest of his cow friends. Silly puppies.

On the drive back with everyone else that afternoon, we discovered that one group of cows were not ordinary cows but Highland Cows (pronounced Heilan Coo if you're Scottish). They remind me a bit of oversized sheepdogs with horns. My evil twin and I took a few pictures with them. I pet this one, but he wasn't interested -- he shoved my hand away with his horn!



I had introduced myself much like you would introduce yourself to a dog. I mistook the subsequent grunt for approval to pet when in reality the grunt meant, "You're not food." I'll remember that for next time.

The weather summary for the run included two downpours, two sunny intervals, overcast, light rain and wind. They say all four seasons in one day. I enjoyed three of the four in the space of two hours.