Day 188, 8 January 2013, Knott to Broadford, over the Skye Bridge, to the Kyle of Lochalsh. And back again. Just for a look and a birthday drive - Quick. Out of bed. Into shower. Into jeans. Wait. Minor delay whilst chase jeans around the studio (need a wash). OK. Into jeans. Jumpers. Hat. Raincoat. The Sun - She Shines! Out the door at the incredibly respectable time of 11.30 am. Whoa! What was that? Jets! This is the neighbourhood where a fishing boat on the loch means mild excitement and the production of a telescope or binoculars to see who it is and what they're up to. Could be anything. Might even be fishing. Right. Jets! Wow. Two of them. We investigated later in the day and discovered an airbase is nearby (mainland?) and they fly over Skye occasionally. Safely ensconced in car and off for some scenery. When we arrived on Skye on New Year's Eve we completely missed the entire scenic aspect because it was dark with a howling gale and snow - so it was fantastic to see the trip to the Skye Bridge (pictured) in actual daylight. And sunshine. Must have been incredible for the people of Skye when the bridge was built - incredibly good on the one hand that they could visit the mainland on a whim instead of on a rocking, rolling ferry. Incredibly bad in summer perhaps when hordes descend upon the isle. (Seriously - imagine a convoy of camper-vans numbering more than 30 and staying in strict numerical order clogging up the excellent though minimal roads, bringing in all their food and booze and not spending a cracker locally). Bridge was super - drove over to the mainland and back again it was that good. Stopped at a fascinating junkyard/brocante/second-hand dealer on the return journey just prior to Broadford. The outside was a conundrum - it looked like a small localised earthquake had broken 20% of the stock and another 30% had been ruined because of heavy rain - teacups full of rainwater, cassette tapes in muddy piles, lace and linens underfoot. James went and talked to the owner whilst I went treasure hunting for at least 30 minutes. Turns out all the good stuff is safe and dry inside - but the outside was a bargain hunter's paradise - surely, Faberge hiding in the bottom of a box? Sadly none that I found however - but the dream is always there. We visited our new favourite supermarket on the way back to Knott. Actually since the only supermarkets on Skye are the Co-op, "favourite" is not a hard standard to achieve - stocked up on dark ales and cider and cheese for birthday eats in the evening. Excellent stuff - can not recommend a visit to Skye highly enough, especially in the low season. OK. So the castles and gardens are shut. The ferries run even less than I do and there's no one about - but the peace, tranquillity and money-saving opportunities are endless. We are rejuvenated and a little sad that tomorrow is packing day. Another adventure is just around the corner (skiing in Bulgaria! Honestly the Wombles of my childhood have a lot to answer for). Until tomorrow.