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The Cuillins (or Coolins) are, geologically speaking, comparative stumps. Although the volcanic eruptions which produced them were among the most vigorous in Britain. They were linked to the super-violent activity that created Iceland, and repeated glacial action whittled down their original 15,000 feet to the toothy ridge of today. Although diminutive by world standards - the 18 highest peaks stand between 2,850 and 3,251 feet high - the Cuillins comprise the UK's greatest mountain range. Their name will remain a mystery. Cuillins may relate to the heroic Irish giant Cuchullin or, as some have even surmised, the shape of sea holly, cuilionn-mara. The area's population varies from a few hundred in the low season, to that many alone on the slopes, faces and ridges during the high season. It's not surprising, because people come for all kinds of reasons.
The Glen Shiel area includes some of the most remote areas of Lochalsh. In the east it extends to the shores of Loch Cluanie with its hydro-electric dam, and to the lonely Loch Loyne hidden just to the south. In the west it takes in the northern tip of beautiful Knoydart, and most of the shores of Loch Hourn. At the head of the Glen, the modern road plunges down from Cluanie past the Five Sisters of Kintail. In mediaeval times, tiny settlements were dotted around the area. They were no more than groups of sheilings and are long gone. Their successors would have witnessed the 'Battle of Glen Shiel' in 1719. It was the last action to be waged against foreign forces on British soil. This was between the Hanoverians, and a combined force of Jacobites and 300 Spanish troops. The latter had been stranded at Eilean Donan Castle. Adverse weather had scuppered an attempt to co-ordinate with their Scottish counter parts. The upshot of the three-hour engagement, amid dramatic terrain, was that the Jacobites vanished and the surviving Spaniards surrendered.
Duirinish comprises two distinct areas. The first lies between Loch Bay and Dunvegan. Here, to the north of Dunvegan Castle, is a stretch of road which winds through gorse thickets and scattered woodland. Along here you'll find Skye's 'coral' beach, in reality a mass of tiny shell fragments. There's also an easily accessible example of the souterrain, prehistoric underground chambers that are an enduring archaeological enigma. Then there's the wild expanse forming the westernmost limb of Skye. But for a twist of geological fate, this wilder facet of Duirinish might have been an island in its own right. Only a low isthmus of land between the head of Loch Dunvegan, and Heribost, links it to the rest of Skye. As you negotiate the road from the Lonmore turn, the sense of near-separateness intensifies. Traffic drops off noticeably as the single-track road settles into its uneven rise and fall rhythm. There are no buses, only the post bus once a day.
Minginish is an intriguing part of Skye. It encompasses the southern shores of the capacious, and scenic, Loch Bracadale along with basalt sea cliffs that soar to almost 1,000 feet south of Talisker. Minginish also takes in the north western limits of the Cuillins. Land lower than 100 feet above sea level is scarce, but what there is has been put to good use.