Here’s a wide view of the Quiraing, a strange, spectacular landscape of pinnacles, rock walls and scree formed by volcanic activity and erosion. You can see the trail we took. It leads up and over the gap in the distant rocks. To get a sense of scale, look for the hiker wearing a red jacket, in the left center of the photo.

When the wind blows and the clouds swirl overhead, the Quiraing can be an ominous place. The first time John and I visited in October 1999, a gale was actually blowing waterfalls up the side of this cliff. Even better, at the gap in the rocks, the wind was so strong that it held us up as we “fell” backward into it.