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Top 10 Amazing Facts about the Isle of Skye

The Isle of Skye is amazing.  Rugged landscapes, medieval castles, picturesque fishing villages, its history and outstanding scenery define the Isle of Skye.

Skye, is the largest and most northerly of the Inner Hebrides islands of Scotland. Skye is Norse word, ski meaning 鈥榗loud鈥� and ey, 鈥榠sland鈥�.

It is the nearest of these islands to the mainland, which lies only a few hundred yards away at Kyleakin, where the Skye Bridge provides access to the mainland by road.

Administratively, it lies within the Highland council area, and it is part of the historic county of Inverness-shire.

Skye was occupied in prehistoric times and settled by Gaelic-speaking Scots from Ireland during the first centuries BCE.

Norsemen ruled the island from the 9th to the 12th century. Thereafter, while the kingdom of Scotland claimed the island, the Lords of the Isles maintained independent control of the Hebrides until the 15th century.

Skye is connected to Scotland’s northwest coast by both the Skye Bridge and the Mallaig 鈥� Armadale ferry and is the largest island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.

Here are the top 10 amazing facts about the Isle of Skye

1.  The Settlement at Portree has been around since the early Bronze Age

Portree Harbour by Donald McDonald from

Portree is the largest town on, and capital of, the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.

It is the location for the only secondary school on the island, Portree High School. Portree has a harbour, fringed by cliffs, with a pier designed by Thomas Telford.

 Portree has been a settlement since the early Bronze Age (2500 BC). Stone tools uncovered date as far back as the latter part of the Stone Age (4000 BC).

Historians don鈥檛 know what those earliest settlers called their home, but they do know that it was called Cill Targhlain from the time of the Vikings up to the 16th century.

The current name is believed to drive from the Gaelic 鈥楶ort Ruighe鈥� which translates to 鈥楰ing鈥檚 Port鈥�, possibly in reference to a visit by King James V in 1540.

2. There are more Sheep than People

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Just off Scotland’s northwest coast, Skye is the country’s second-biggest island (it takes about two hours to drive it from south to north).

Since the Highland Clearances in the 1800s, the island has more sheep than locals. 

There are around 100,000 sheep from a variety of breeds. People? About 10,000. Sheep wander the roads along with the unfenced fields of Skye, with no fear of oncoming cars.

There are sheep of a variety of breeds inhabiting this island, the most common is the blackface sheep of Asian origin.

Skye is arguably the most magnificent of the dozens of Scottish islands.

You鈥檒l often cross sheep on the streets, roaming freely. But don鈥檛 forget about all the highland cattle a.k.a. hairy coos wandering around Skye, too.

3. The Isle of Skye is the 2^nd Largest Island in Scotland

Nautical chart of the northern part of the Isle of Skye. Image by F J Evans from Wikimedia

As the second-largest island in Scotland (Harris and Lewis are the biggest), the Isle of Skye has plenty of space for tourists to roam around, but most visitors fail to realize just how big this west-coast island actually is.

Skye is around 50 miles (80 km) long and 25 miles (40 km) at its widest points, which means it has a total area of 639 square miles (1,656 square km) 鈥� 5 times bigger than Malta, 4 times bigger than Barbados, and 3 times bigger than Ibiza.

4.  The Most Inked Person was from the Isle of Skye

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The world鈥檚 most tattooed person is Tom Leppard from Skye 鈥� 99.9 per cent of his body is covered with a leopard-skin design.

Tom Leppard, born as Tom Wooldridge, also known as Leopard Man or the Leopard Isle of Skye, was an English-born soldier previously considered by Guinness World Records to be the world’s most tattooed man and later recognised as the most tattooed senior citizen.

London-born former Special Forces soldier Tom Leppard lived in a remote bothy on Skye for 20 years until 2008.

His self-made shelter, on a stretch of shoreline near Kyleakin in the south-east of the island, had no electricity or furniture. Mr. Leppard would canoe three miles (4.8km) for his weekly shopping.

A former soldier who was once the world’s most tattooed man has died in a care home at the age of 80 in 2016.

5. The Isle of Skye is a Prehistoric Playground

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Jurassic lover? Skye is home to a handful of dinosaur prints on its softest sedimentary rocks.

If you鈥檙e fascinated by dinosaurs and prehistoric beasts, you鈥檒l love that you can easily find prints of dinos from millennia past here.

Dinosaurs once roamed Skye 165 million years ago and anyone can lay witness to that by visiting Staffin among other locations.

Though covered at high tides, once the tides are low, the prints are visible on the beaches of Staffin.

The dinosaur prints you鈥檒l see at Staffin are from Ornithopods, herbivorous creatures who walked on two legs.

You can also visit Score Bay to see prints from sauropods, which are from the same family as brontosaurus and diplodocus.

6.   Castles in the Skye!

Dunvegan Castle at The Isle of Skye. Image by from

Scotland is well-known for its castles, of course, but Dunvegan is one with a bit of a record behind it. It鈥檚 currently home to the clan MacLeod and it鈥檚 the oldest castle in Scotland that鈥檚 still habited.

Dunvegan, home to the Macleod Clan, is the oldest inhabited castle in Scotland.

This stunning castle is part of a 42,000-acre estate that encompasses mountains and low-lying grasslands in an area that has been classed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Dunvegan has an unlikely (though admittedly a somewhat tenuous) link to Donald Trump.

The former US President is the son of Scotswoman 鈥� Mary Anne MacLeod 鈥� who was from the Island of Lewis.

In the 14th Century, the MacLeod clan had split into two branches, those who lived on Lewis and the MacLeods of Dunvegan and Harris.

The castle itself is one of Skye鈥檚 top tourist attractions having served as the home of the MacLeods for over 800 years.

7. The Isle of Skye holds the Secret to Eternal Beauty

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Legend has it that if you stick your face in the water under the Old Sligachan Bridge for 7 seconds and let it dry off naturally, you鈥檒l be granted eternal beauty.

The story is that Skye once had a fierce female warrior named Sc谩thach who was the world鈥檚 greatest warrior.  C煤 Chulainn, Ireland鈥檚 favourite warrior got a whiff of her talents.

C煤 Chulainn travelled over to Skye to fight Sc谩thach. Sc谩thach was fearless, despite his Hercules-like strength. The battle raged on for weeks and Sc谩thach鈥檚 daughter grew tired of all the fighting.

She ran down to the Sligachan River with her eyes filled with tears. She begged for the fighting to stop, and she was in luck.

What she did not know is that the water is a gateway between the faerie world and ours, and as such the faeries heard her plead.

They instructed her to stick her face in the water for 7 seconds and she鈥檒l have her solution. Over time the legend turned to water might give you a new lease on life!

8. The Isle of Skye receives Thousands of Tourists

Natural wonders like the In Pin and fairy pools attract hundreds of thousands of tourists every year and current numbers average 650,000 annual visitors 鈥� although that鈥檚 far behind Edinburgh鈥檚 eye-popping 5 million sightseers.

It is known as a place of history and mystery, and each year attracts tourists who come to explore its dramatic mountain peaks and stunning island vistas.

Skye is second only to Edinburgh in the number of visitors that it draws in each year.

The number of permanent residents on Skye is a fraction of the number of tourists who come to the island throughout the year, with tourists outnumbering locals by an astonishing 55 to 1!

It鈥檚 a sad fact that tourism on Skye is starting to become unsustainable, as can be seen at the Fairy Pools which attracted 180,000 visitors in 2019 which is a 14x increase from the 13,000 visitors the pools welcomed in 2006.

Tourism generated 拢211 million for Skye in the months before lockdown and supported thousands of jobs, according to a year-long study.

9. The Whiskey from the Isle of Skye  is well Regarded

The only distiller on Skye. Image by Malcolm Manners from

The Isle of Skye is famous for its whiskey. You鈥檒l be able to take tours of Talisker, for example, which is one of Scotland鈥檚 most popular distilleries and whiskey brands.

The rocky, rugged landscape of pinnacles and high cliffs here is reflected in the intense flavour profile of the island’s one whisky, Talisker.

Similar to Islay in its full body and peaty profile, Talisker has a slight spiciness not found in the malts from the more southerly islands.

According to their site the Isle of Skye 12 鈥渃ontains an exceptionally high proportion of distinctive island and mellow Speyside malts.鈥�

10. The White-tailed Sea Eagle is making a comeback 

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While exploring the Cuillin mountains you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of a rare bird that is making a comeback in Scotland 鈥� the white-tailed sea eagle.

This majestic animal is Britain鈥檚 largest bird and has an 8-foot wingspan that has led to its nickname 鈥榯he flying barn door鈥�.

They were sadly driven to extinction in Scotland by farmers and gamekeepers during the Victorian era.

A successful reintroduction programme has seen their numbers hold steady in places like Skye which has tall cliffs with lots of crevices where they can build their nests.

There are currently 16 pairs of sea eagles on Skye along with 29 pairs of their cousins, the golden eagle.

Skye is full of unique landscapes, friendly locals and a peaceful way of life.

It鈥檚 arguably one of the most beautiful places to witness in Scotland and an excellent retreat from the hustle and bustle of city life.