Scorrybreac – Headland Walk and Supper with a View
About 3 miles on foot.
Scorrybreac is the green headland on the north side of Portree Bay, and the path round it makes a lovely evening walk, with the harbour's painted houses across the water and the hills beyond.
It ends a minute from the Cuillin Hills Hotel, where supper at its restaurant, the View, comes with the bay below the windows. It's a fine way to end a day on Skye, for anyone happy on a rough path for an hour or so.
- Time
- One to two hours for the 3 km round, with 164 metres of climb.
- The path
- The shore path to the memorial is good; beyond it the path is rough, stony and steep.
- Where to start
- On foot from Somerled Square, 12 minutes. By car, Bayfield car park in Portree, £3 for up to 3 hours (charged round the clock), and walk; a few free bays on the shore at the foot of Scorrybreck Road.
- Set off
- At least two hours before sunset, with a torch.
- When to go
- The path is open ground all year, best from April to September when the evenings are long; the View serves dinner from 5.30pm to 9pm.
- Dogs
- Popular with local dog walkers; on a lead where sheep graze.
- Children
- A short shore walk from town; the zigzags are steep for small legs.
- Toilets
- Portree's public toilets on the Green; the Cuillin Hills Hotel's for diners.
- Before you set out
- A well-made shore path at first; the second half is rough and stony, with a steep zigzag climb, and nothing is lit.
The walk
It's a 12-minute walk from Somerled Square, down past the harbour and along Scorrybreck Road, to the board at the foot of the road where the path starts, just below the Cuillin Hills Hotel. The path follows the wooded shore past the sailing club's boathouse and through a gate onto the headland, the old land of the Nicolsons, where a memorial cairn and a bench look back across the bay to Portree.
On past the stone seat at the point, a steep, stony zigzag climbs inland through the birches and brings you back down to the road by the hotel: 3 km in all, one to two hours. The second half is rough and unlit, so set off at least two hours before sunset, wear boots and carry a torch.
If it rains
In rain the headland path turns muddy and the zigzag slippery: walk only the level shore path out to the memorial and back, then go in to supper.
Afterwards
About 4 min on foot
The View Restaurant
Supper
Supper is at the View, in the Cuillin Hills Hotel, right by where the path comes down to the road, with big windows over the bay and the harbour's painted houses. The kitchen is built on island seafood, with scallops, langoustines and crab when the weather allows, and venison from Glen Varragill, and there's a children's menu. Dinner is served from 5.30pm to 9pm and must be booked, online or on 01478 612003. The grazing menu in the bar runs until 9pm, with no need to book. The restaurant takes no dogs.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
Book a table at the View in the Cuillin Hills Hotel online or on 01478 612003 for after the walk: dinner is served from 5.30pm to 9pm and must be booked, while the grazing menu in the bar runs until 9pm with no booking.
