UKC

All Things Cuillin

All Things Cuillin does exactly what it says on the tin.

I've set up a new Facebook group called All Things Cuillin to share photos, memories and info about Skye's Black and Red CUillin. There are already lots of info and a variety of photos, sketches and paintings and it is fast developing into a very useful resource which should appeal to a lot of people on this forum. I know there are a lot of people here with a lot of knowledge so it would be great if you could share it through ATC. Similarly, I know there are always lots of questions about the Cuillin here especially about the traverse, so hopefully this will help provide answers.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/165143940728168/
7 Like

In reply to atrendall:

We have over 500 members now....not bad for about 10 days active. Lots of really inspiring photos and information so please check it out if you enjoy the Cuillin, aspire to do the ridge, or want to share some photos or information.

In reply to atrendall:

As a fellow Skye dweller, Adrian, I can appreciate the quality of the photos which are excellent. But I'm a little nervous, and I think you should be wary, that the internet lies at the root of Skye's current problems with overcrowding at certain beauty spots.

You may be hoping to turn your website to commercial gain and I understand we all need to make a living but if this is more of a personal project then please beware unintended consequences.

On a more friendly note, I'd be delighted to tackle a Cuillin classic with you if you fancy a day out. I'm usually around for about 2 months spread throughout the year.

In reply to BnB:

Good points, BnB and Skye has been pretty rammed over the last few months although it might have been exaggerated by the BBC seeking to make a story in a quiet news period. Have to say that loving Skye and living on it does place one in a quandary. Who are we to deny others the right to come and enjoy what we love but the visiting hordes are definitely trashing the place; Fairy Pools is practically trashed with people ignoring the path and trampling down the grass which has become seriously eroded and it's now only going to get worse in a vicious circle. The road sides are absolutely trashed for a long way either side of the entrance to the Pools where people ignore the signs and park on the verge not only causing an eyesore but seriously eroding the grass and potentially undermining the road. Other must visit before you die destinations are becoming trashed and even lesser visited places such as Talker Bay have become noticeably worn and eroded at the parking places. Part of me thinks Skye might just be a bit of an internet fad and it will soon become replaced by another destination, part of me does worry about the damage being done to the environment and I often wonder what people who have travelled thousands of miles actually make of things like the Fairy Pools where there might only be a trickle of water barely visible through selfie stick toting tourists and surrounded by a quagmire of trampled grass to say nothing of the parking problems.

I think ATC is a bit different to the internet sources that have led to the influx of tick list tourists. For a start it only deals with the Cuillin and even on the busiest days (when I've ranted about the seething mass of camera toting inhumanity emerging from coaches at the Slig etc you only have to go less than a kilometre from the road and there is solitude. Secondly it is only really going to be used by people who have some interest in the Cuillin, be it climbing, scrambling or photography. The only way the Cuillin will be over run by internet travellers will be if extensive paths are built and people spoon fed how to get there. I do wonder if it was a mistake building the path to the Fairy Pools since if access was harder then people just wouldn't go to the same extent.

Happy to get out for a scramble/climb and if you're passing through Sconser get in touch and drop in for a coffee and a chat. Cheers. Adrian

In reply to atrendall:

Agreed re Fairy Pools being a complete nonsense. I remember being colossally underwhelmed by it/them; perhaps the least interesting thing I saw on the whole Isle of Skye in the whole time I was doing my Cuillin book. I think it's got a lot to do with the name, a bit like 'Golden Delicious' apples. You know, if you called the first little waterfall in Stickle Ghyll in Langdale something like 'Magic Grotto' it would probably have the same effect of being completely overrun by tourists.

In reply to Gordon Stainforth:

By coincidence, I was looking at your book at breakfast this morning, and I was wondering if the mountains are seeing much increase in traffic in the same way as some of the other parts of Skye. I suspect not, since the effort involved in getting up onto the ridge hasn't changed and is beyond the scope of many bus-trippers.

In reply to tony:

That's a fantastic summing up of the Fairy Pools, Gordon.
Tony, the mountains are usually pretty empty apart from maybe Coire Lagan and a few spots. I guess when there is a really good forecast then there will be a fair number of people high up but even then they are so spread out that it's only really noticeable in a few spots; In Pinn obviously but also Collie's Route on Cioch.

In reply to tony:


Yes, hopefully you're right, and this is mostly a tourist problem that has little or nothing to do with mountaineering popularity.

In reply to Gordon Stainforth:

I suspect so, since I started going in 2012 the Cuillin has always seemed relatively quiet to me beyond Coire Lagan/InPinn.

In reply to Gordon Stainforth:
Mountaineers.

Basically the people who invented tourism on Skye.

I love Skye, I even love the Fairy Pools, although its nice to catch them when it is quiet. I might walk and climb, but I don't live there so I am a tourist.

Let's not pretend mountaineers aren't tourists, let just try and be good tourists.

In reply to Gordon Stainforth:


It's skyes answer to janets foss.

In reply to summo:

Janets Foss is worth the walk.

In reply to Steve Perry:


I agree.

In reply to summo:

Got dropped off at the Fairy Pools yesterday and it was fairly rammed but have seen it much busier. Set off on the path to the Slig. then up NW ridge Bruach na Frithe, along to Am B and own to the Slig. Didn't see a soul once I left the track to FP... hardly surprising since it was pretty blustery and lagged in but still enjoyed the solitude as I looked back to the mass of cars and people at FP>