Kylesku by Boat – Seals, Eagles and a Waterfall
A few hours.
The route
A small red boat leaves the old ferry harbour at Kylesku for the sheltered sea lochs of Glencoul and Glendhu, past seals on the rocks to Eas a' Chual Aluinn, a waterfall that drops 200 metres down the cliffs.
Lunch is a few steps up from the harbour at the Kylesku Hotel, looking out over the loch. Children and dogs are welcome on the boat.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
Book North West Sea Tours' Kylesku boat trip online for the 10.30am or noon sailing, from April (no last date is published, so after September ring 07821 441090 first), and ring that number for a trip within 24 hours; cancellation is free up to 24 hours before, and under-5s go free.
Book lunch at the Kylesku Hotel Restaurant
Book a table for lunch at the Kylesku Hotel Restaurant on 01971 910047 or online for after the boat (lunch is served noon to 5pm, last seating 4.45pm), and say if a dog is coming, as dogs eat in the bar.
The day
Kylesku
An hour or so on the water among the seals, out to a waterfall that drops 200 metres down the rock, then a long lunch by the window over the loch.
About three hours
North West Sea Tours
An attraction
North West Sea Tours sails from the little harbour at Kylesku, a few yards in front of the Kylesku Hotel, just off the A894 below the bridge. Park at the hotel, where you'll be having lunch, and be at the harbour 15 minutes before your sailing. Stephen, the skipper, has 35 years on these waters, and his red boat runs into the sheltered sea lochs of Glencoul and Glendhu. Look for seals and their pups on the rocks, seabirds, and golden eagles and sea eagles over the ridges. The turn of the trip is Eas a' Chual Aluinn, which falls a sheer 200 metres and is, by the operator's measure, Britain's highest waterfall. The operator lists sailings at 10.30am, noon and 2pm, and the hotel adds a 4pm boat; the booking page shows what runs on your day. A trip lasts an hour to an hour and a quarter. Children and dogs are welcome, and under-5s go free. Bring warm waterproofs and binoculars. Sailings start in April and no last date is published, so after September ring 07821 441090 before you set out.
Kylesku Hotel Restaurant
Lunch
Lunch is a few steps up from the harbour at the Kylesku Hotel, in a dining room with big windows over Loch Glendhu. Lunch is served every day from noon to 5pm, with the last seating at 4.45pm: seafood from the loch and nearby coast, and pork and beef from the crofts round about, with gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan dishes too. Walk-ins are taken as space allows, but booking is recommended, on 01971 910047 or online. Dogs are welcome in the bar but not the restaurant, so say when you book. The toilets are step-free from the restaurant, with three steps from the bar, and there's no wheelchair-accessible toilet.
If it rains
Bring waterproofs for the boat; in a downpour, keep to the long lunch and watch the loch from the dining room's windows.
Worth a detour
- Kylesku Bridge
The Kylesku Bridge sweeps across the loch in one long curve just west of the hotel. Its north car park, beside the memorials, shows the whole of it with the mountains behind. It adds about 2 minutes by car, and twenty minutes there is plenty.