Today we're leaving mainland Scotland and heading for the Isle of Skye but first we're going in the opposite direction and taking a side-trip to Invermoriston (an old and familiar stamping ground of ours) and checking out a few sightseeing locations on the way, before eventually making for the Kyle of Lochalsh and the gateway to Skye.

After a wonderful vegetarian version of the full Scottish breakfast (minus only the Linda McCartney sausages) at Spean Lodge it was time to move on. It was a glorious morning; beautiful sunshine, clear skies and a light breeze as we departed Spean Bridge and made our first stop at Neptune's Staircase on the Caledonian Canel. Our luck was in and we saw a boat descending the locks, funnily enough a boat we had seen moored in Oban on our brief visit there. Once that boat had cleared the locks we watched a smaller, motor yacht going the opposite way up the locks. It's a fascinating process watching the sections fill with water and the boats rise up to the next level. I remember seeing locks in Yorkshire as a child that were operated by hand but these were all hydraulically operated from a control panel at each lock gate. We then walked the length of the "staircase" up one side and then back down the other before moving on to our next tourist spot.

Ben Nevis and Aonach Mohr were clearly visible and we captured a few photographs of the stunning scenery, and even caught a glimpse of the "Harry Potter" train - the Jacobite - as it made its way from Fort William to Mallaig, although in truth we heard more of it than we saw as, at the time, we were also trying to video boats navigating the locks! Unfortunately we couldn't manage to do both at once.

The Commando Memorial is about mile out of Spean Bridge. We had passed it many times on previous visits but today we actually stopped and spent a few minutes looking at the memorial statue and the tribute garden. Very sobering to see tributes to 22 year olds killed so very lately in Afghanistan but these were found alongside veterans of WWII who survived the conflict and only recently departed after making it to a ripe old age with a good many in their nineties.

The third and last stop before beginning our own version of the road to the isles was Invermoriston, and the Craft Shop there. Always popular the tiny shop had several visitors already inside when we arrived - which meant that essentially the shop was full! We spent a while there checking out the wares and Alex finally chose a leather bracelet. I admired some silk scarves, very heavy-weight and in a subtle tartan design but I decided in the end not to buy.

On our way once more we branched off the main A82 in the village, turning our backs on Loch Ness, and joined the A887 through Dundreggan and Moriston Bridge to finally join the A87 and straight through to the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Skye Bridge.

It was a beautiful drive; sunshine all the way, and we made the most of it given that the forecast for Sunday was rain - and more rain. For the moment, however, we enjoyed the near-perfect weather. To say the scenery was stunning is a complete understatement. Dwarfed by the rugged mountains to either side we wound our way through Glen Moriston and Glen Shiel to Lochalsh.

Once crossing the bridge to Skye we still had quite a drive ahead of us as Uig is in the far north of the island. It was quite a change to see Skye in the sun as on our previous visit it had been somewhat grey and miserable. Winding our way through Broadford we noticed that the Tourist Information Centre that we visited in 2009 was no longer there. (Obviously demand has outstripped the tiny shop it used to be housed in and it has now moved to dedicated premises in Portree). Continuing along the road to Portree we made a short detour to the Co-operative to pick up some groceries for the week ahead before leaving Portree behind and, at the next fork in the road, took the left-hand path to Uig.

We had previously only seen Uig from above and at a distance as we drove down the Staffin road and it had somehow seemed bigger than this little village we found ourselves driving into. Sea Loch View is on the outskirts of the village 500 metres from the village shop and right at the intersection where the road divides to go either into Uig and the ferry terminal or carry on to the northern tip of the island and then over to Staffin, eventually looping back to Portree.

Having found the gate leading up to Sea Loch View we followed the narrow driveway to the very modern construction set into the hillside, above street level and with - as you might guess - a clear view of the sea loch.

The house is glass-fronted and double-storeyed with the living areas on the top floor to take advantage of the amazing view, and the bedrooms on the ground floor. First impressions were favourable although this was tarnished slightly when I discovered the cupboards under the sink were quite grubby and toast crumbs and grime were embedded into the drawer where the garbage bin was housed. Before I had even unpacked I was cleaning! Coffee stains dribbled down the doors and in the cupboard and obviously not thoroughly cleaned after previous visitors had me hauling out cleaning cloths and Mr. Muscle. After making sure the kitchen was satisfactory I then turned my attention to the floor-to-ceiling glass panes which were smeared with finger and palm prints. It only took a few minutes to wipe them down and not have to peer through grubby windows to see the view. Happy after my little cleaning frenzy but bemoaning the missing touches we have become used to in our self-catering accommodation such as paper towels (four left on the roll and no replacement) and no laundry detergent, and minor details such as chipped plates and glasses, loose and/or missing door- and cupboard-handles and a blown light globe with no replacement available, I finally settled down. I won't mention the disappointing lack of internet access or mobile phone coverage. (I still don't know how that bit of information slipped by us when we were researching the accommodation). Needless to say that the prospect of being without the internet for an entire week sent us both into stunned shock! How would we cope?

Overall, Sea Loch View is a great spot but it could use a little TLC before it starts to become shabby. I'm not sure what some people do while they're staying in self-catering but in the case of Sea Loch View I think some believe that the place is also self-cleaning! This is one location where I can confidently say that not only have I left the place as I found it, but better than I found it! (Honestly, if I could find the other screw I'd put the cupboard handle back on as well). It also desperately needs a wi-fi connection - a fact mentioned several times in the guest book by previous visitors but obviously not considered by the owner to be a necessity.

After choosing bedrooms and unpacking, we took a walk down to the harbour while we could, knowing that the weather for the next few days was going to be a tad grim; Sunday's forecast was for rain and gale-force winds with the miserable weather set to continue until at least Tuesday.

A Calmac ferry was just approaching as we arrived at the harbour, so we walked out onto the pier to watch it dock and disgorge its passengers. It's all done with such precision and the whole process runs like clockwork; docking, cars and passengers off, cars and passengers on, then setting sail again, all completed in an amazingly short space of time. With the sun still quite high in the sky but with clouds rolling in from the Atlantic, we explored the village (making note of the cafes and restaurants with wi-fi) and then made our way back to Sea Loch View.

The rain started shortly after we got back, but it was lovely and cosy indoors with under-floor heating and finally, tucked up in bed after an evening of questionable TV, I fell asleep to the sound of rain steadily pattering on the roof.