Wondering what to see in Isle of Skye? Well, our Amazing Scotland series brings you some of the unmissable sights from Scotland. This is the continuation of the last blog. You can catch it here. We checked out of the caravan in Portree, Isle of Skye and headed back to mainland UK. Our first stop was at Sligachan bridge, a 200 year old unused bridge. The bridge sits in a beautiful landscape with the Cuillin Mountains offering a majestic view.
History of Sligachan Bridge
Thomas Telford built the old bridge in the 1810s. It is not in use now – although it still serves as a foot bridge.
The legend
What is life without some stories and legends? Several myths and legends surround Sligachan. The legend tells us that long ago, the greatest warrior Scotland lived in the Isle of Skye. Her fame and courage was known everywhere, and soon the greatest warrior in Ireland also heard it. He decided to take on the warrior woman and show her that he was better. Accordingly, he reached Isle of Skye.
Soon, he challenged the warrior woman to take him on in a battle to prove who was the strongest. She agreed and they fought. The battle went on and shook the earth, leading to the formation of the mountains and valleys we see now. It was so terrifying that even the animals fled the place.
As the battle raged on, the daughter of the warrior women felt she couldn’t take it any longer. Terrified, she ran to the river and prayed for a solution to end the terrible war.
Help Arrives
Water is the gateway between fairy land and earth, some fairies took pity and decided to help her when they heard her cry for help. They asked her to wash her face in the waters of the river. She did as told and as she washed her face in the enchanted waters, she suddenly knew what to do to stop the war.
She ran back to her home. On the way, she gathered certain herbs and fruits. Upon reaching home, she put them in the fire and let the smoke fill the valley. As soon as the smell reached the battling warriors, they were overcome by hunger and tiredness. So, they decided to stop the war and eat. As they headed to the lodge, the daughter welcomed them and served them food. As the Irish warrior ate under the roof of the Scottish warrior, it made him their guest. A guest could not be attacked.
Also, when you accept the hospitality of another, you cannot do them any harm. So, the Irish warrior couldn’t attack the woman warrior too. So, the battle came to an end.
The Myth
The legend state that if you dunk your face in those waters by the old Sligachan bridge, you’ll be granted eternal beauty by the fairies. But why ‘beauty’ and not wisdom? Well, beauty need not be skin deep, right? What you will gain is beauty of mind and soul, which, you’ll agree is the better gift…
Now you might think it is easy to dip your face in the water. Well, easier said than done. Remember that you have to dip your face and not splash water. Dipping your face in the ice cold waters for seven seconds and not wiping off it from your face is not easy by any means.
Well, we think what the legend is saying is – things might seem easy. But, if you are prepared to go the extra mile and put in your best effort, you get the best results. No pain, no gain – isn’t it? Whether you want eternal beauty or not, if ever you visit Isle of Skye, don’t forget to visit Sligachan Bridge and enjoy the awesome view there.
Trekker’s Paradise
BTW, the area is good for trekking and hiking too. The Cuillin Mountains might be a good place to spot Golden Eagle, the national bird of Scotland. As for us, we didn’t have time on our side. So, we had to bid bye to the Bridge and head to our next destination. We were rewarded by a close up view of the Highland cows, amazing scenery of lakes, mountains and valleys, smooth drive across the Isle of Skye Bridge and awesome view of the bridge from Kyle of Localsh.
We bid bye to Isle of Skye and headed to our next destination of which you’ll hear more in the next blog. So stay tuned…
Click here to watch the vlog if you wish to see the bridge and the beautiful sights surrounding it.
If you haven’t watched the previous videos of the series, you can watch them here.
