Fairy Pools — Attraction in Skye

I read in a review: "When you first disembark from your vehicle, take a few moments and soak in the view" :D We literally soaked up the view of heavy water curtains being thrown at our heads from the sky... which quickly turned into small icy pebbles bouncing amusingly off the concrete of the car park.

When I planned to visit this place I had some doubts... but yes, some nice pictures and travel vlogs, but otherwise it's just a long cascading waterfall with an endless path (I've seen many of those before and much nicer in Iceland)...

You can admire the individual platforms of the small cascades... whose amount of water also depends on the amount of precipitation (we were there in early June, it rained the whole week, so I expected there to be a lot of water which it did not.. but I can't compare)... This and other places like it depend a lot on the sun/moon/clear sky/clouds... while we visited it looked like the colours were off and washed out... even the water isn't as gorgeous blue as in some of the photos... definitely want to come back more times... the sky was overcast, no dramatic clouds, just overcast.

We walked patiently, got wet and dry (I'm not complaining, I'm just saying that you need to be prepared and carry something waterproof to wear and protect photo equipment)... and while walking I searched the internet for those wonderful shots... There were only 2 other couples and 3 dogs there. I also pulled up the AllTrails app to see how far we were from our destination, because I really couldn't find any poetic spots that would excite me enough to even pull out my camera gear. Eventually we got there, but it was so colourless, desolate, with strings of hanging rain. If nothing else, I pulled out my camera, after all, I didn't carry it for nothing...

We started walking back slowly when it came: Here come the UFOs!!!! the sun came out and brought beautiful colours to the landscape... I could see that it was a limited edition, if I hesitated the sun would disappear in a few minutes... So I quickly took pictures of the divine majesty... Finally I felt the excitement and euphoria in my veins and for the first time I felt that these were really the Fairy Pools... The sun went off and on 2 more times before it finally went to sleep.

In the photos you can see how it looks with the sun off and how it looks with the sun on - the orange parts :)

It's hard to rate this place. It is fine 3.. when colors or dramatic clouds it is 10 out of 5*.. Too bad there's no picnic area... To sit in peace, listen to the sound of the waterfall, look at the beautiful mountains...

3/4 of the way along the waterfall in great condition, crossing the river over beautiful bridges, repeated signs that the EU had contributed to the improvement... the last quarter is such a classic rocky trail ala Iceland, where you break your ankles crossing the river by wading or skipping... here we said to ourselves that Scotland had already left the EU thanks to England, so there was no money left for the rest of the trail...

By the way, the toilets... are only open during "office hours". We can only dream of the toilets that are open 24 hours a day at most of the tourist...

At the foot of the Black Cuillins near Glenbrittle you will find the Fairy Pools, with their absolutely crystal-clear pools on the River Brittle. These now-famous pools have welcomed people from all over the world. Plus, if you are feeling that way inclined, they make for some great ‘Wild Swimming’ ‘IF’ you are brave enough to enter the cold water. For those of us that are er . . . less adventurous the magical Fairy Pools offer the opportunity for some incredible photos. The walk up to the pools is the same route there and back. The complete return distance to the first main waterfall and pool is 2.4km, and it’ll take about 40 (ish) minutes to complete the walk (but that’s with no stops . . . . and you will stop !!). The last time we were there we spent most of the morning and into early lunch. After you hit the first waterfall, photos take over, ( or swimming . . . . brave souls !!) at all the different pools on the way. It has been upgraded since we visited, the path is easier to walk they’ve put in little bridges where you had to traverse burns ( streams) over big rocks and boulders, which in my opinion was far more exciting than just walking up a tourist attraction. However, there were some injuries doing it the “old way” so I suppose it’s safer now. So don’t let that dissuade you, regardless of how you get there, and whether you’re wild swimming or not, ( I did some ‘wild paddling’ and that was enough for me !!) it is definitely one of the places to check off your list on Skye. Yes, there is a charge for the car park, but that’s why you have toilets, the ‘better path’, the bridges, and there is talk of a café at some point. So you know your money is going to good use, and not just for parking your car !

The ‘walk’ itself is classed as short but with medium difficulty now, so go...

Lovely place to visit. We visited the Fairy Pools early season (April / May?) last year and the narrow roads leading to the location were terrible - full of potholes and crumbling sides. On the way back I had to help to push a car out of a bog after it slid off the road. To be fair most of the roads on Skye were atrocious and during our 4 day visit we saw at least 5 cars with blown tyres or broken suspension due to the potholes. After surviving the roads this time we visited the Fairy Pools there was a properly made car park which made the world of difference compared to the shambles of the 'parking' arrangements which were previously in place (and were non existent). I have seen some reviews complaining about the price to park and the long walk to get to the upper part of the valley where the pools are but consider the following: 1 - The car parks were constructed using local money and the proceeds go to developing more infrastructure for tourists. They were not funded by local or national government. Paying for parking directly helps the local community and funds projects to benefit tourists (of which there are many). The money paid to park is not being swallowed into the fecal black hole of 'government'. 2 - The walk to the head of the valley could be impossible for some with debilitating ailments or limited mobility but when has anything which is worthwhile visiting been 5 yards from a car park? When we visited the weather was perfect (see pictures) and even though the temperature was not exactly supporting the global warming narrative there were people swimming in the stream and they seemed to love it. This was truly one of the highlights of our most recent visit to Skye and it was a great way to spend...