Ferried on to Skye early this morning to go trek around Dunscaith Castle and visit the Macdonald Museum. The more accurate name for the castle is Dun Sgathaich, the Dun of the Shadow and was the original Macdonald seat in Skye. Legend has it that the castle was built in one night by a witch. It is situated on an isolated rock on the south shore of Lake Eishort on the west side of the Sleat Peninsula. Originally, the fortress was in the possession of Norse Kings of Man and the savage warriors, the McAskills, secured the castle. As Lords of the Isles, the MacDonalds long coveted gaining a foothold on Skye and they set their sites on the noble fortress at Dunscaith. The MacDonalds descended upon the castle in the dead of night and fell upon the McAskills as they slept. By sunrise Dunscaith was in the hands of the MacDonalds and the hereditary keeper of Dunscaith, Black Donald, was dead. The ruins of the castle, as we saw today, are sensational and the views from the castle are awesome. You can see the stairs that led up to the castle and the bridge that they had to cross to gain entry. A little too treacherous to climb over so I did not go into the center of the castle.
Also went to the Museum of the Isles which mentioned the Lords of the Isles and related that the Clan Donald was at the heart of the history of Galedom. The kingdom, the Lordship of the Isles, which encompassed the western mainland and the Hebrides, flourished for over 400 years. My book is photographically following in the footsteps of the Lords of the Isles and so far the adventure has been amazing.
