Loch Coruisk Boat Trip from Elgol

Loch Coruisk sits in a glacial basin inside the Cuillin ridge on the Isle of Skye. A sea-water loch, Loch Scavaig, meets it at the mouth through a short stretch of river that spills over solidified lava flows from tens of millions of years ago. The loch is surrounded by the main Cuillin peaks on three sides, and there is no road in. You arrive by foot over the ‘Bad Step’ along the path from Sligachan, by kayak across the sea loch, or by boat from Elgol pier, which is how most people do it.

A Loch Coruisk boat trip from Elgol is the one thing almost every Skye visitor to the south of the island ends up doing. This piece covers the three operators, the timings, what you actually see on a trip, and the things that catch people out if they have not read anything before they turn up at the pier.

The three operators from Elgol pier

Three boats work out of Elgol for trips into Loch Coruisk and the surrounding sea lochs.

Misty Isle. Run by the MacKinnon family, who have skippered boats out of Elgol since 1969. The family have lived in the area since the 1300s, given land by Robert the Bruce. Seumas MacKinnon is the current owner. His wife Anne, and their sons and grandchildren, work the boats. A 3-hour Loch Coruisk trip, including an hour and a half ashore, is the usual offer. Boats run regularly April to October, with occasional winter sailings. Booking ahead is strongly advised.

Bella Jane. A larger passenger boat, also from Elgol pier, running Coruisk trips with choices of 1½, 3, or 4½ hours ashore. They also offer shorter non-landing cruises and one-way trips for walkers who want to come out on foot. The seal colony is part of the outbound leg, and wildlife is not guaranteed but commonly includes grey seals, sometimes porpoises, occasionally white-tailed eagles. The boat sails April to October with some November-to-March operation on request.

AquaXplore. Same operator as Bella Jane, with a different boat: a fast RIB (rigid inflatable) that runs wildlife and island-hop trips to Canna (for puffins), Rum, and Soay. A Loch Coruisk stop is included in some of these routes. The RIB is colder, faster and wetter than the passenger boats, which is part of the appeal. April to October, seven days a week, 8.30am to 5.30pm.

Visitors planning a first Loch Coruisk visit usually picks either the Misty Isle standard trip or the Bella Jane with 1½ or 3 hours ashore. Both collect you from the pier to the loch in about thirty minutes.

What the crossing looks like

Leaving Elgol, the boat heads south-west across Loch Scavaig. The Cuillin can be seen ahead for the whole trip. From the sea, the dramatic ridge looks different than from any land-based view: a solid wall of gabbro and basalt standing straight out of the water, with their profile as unmistakably Skye as it gets.

About halfway across, there is a small island group called the An Garbh-Eilean (the Rough Islet) and some offshore skerries where grey seals haul out. Most skippers will swing past if the weather allows. You will see ten to forty seals on a typical day, depending on tide and they are well used to the boats ferrying people back and forth.

The boat drops you onto a small jetty via metal steps at the south side of Loch Coruisk, above the river comes down from Loch Coruisk into the sea. A short clamber over the slabs brings you to the first view of Loch Coruisk itself, framed by the main Cuillin.

The landing is not difficult, but it is not a pontoon. If the tide and swell are up, the crew will help. Reasonable footwear makes a significant difference. There is some short walking over boulders and slabs to be done, that as well as getting in and out of the boat do mean this visit could be tricky if you are unstable on your feet.

What you do with your time ashore

The standard three-hour Misty Isle trip gives you around ninety minutes on land. Here is what most people do.

Walk round the south-east end of the loch. Ten minutes from the jetty, the path skirts the first bay and brings you to the best vantage point for the classic Coruisk view with Sgùrr Alasdair, the Inaccessible Pinnacle, and Sgùrr na Banachdich in the frame. A flat-bottomed oval of peat-dark water sitting inside a ring of serrated peaks. The light changes constantly.

Walk further round, to about the halfway point. Another fifteen to twenty minutes gets you to a stretch of slabs on the loch’s north shore where the water is close at your feet and the peaks are above you. This is the photograph people come for. For those tempted to go in for a swim, the water is cold year round.

Or go up onto the shoulder of Sgùrr na Stri, a 494-metre summit that guards the south-east end of Loch Coruisk and is on many lists as the best viewpoint in Britain. From the jetty it is 45 minutes of steep walking up a rough path to a top that looks down on Coruisk, out over Loch Scavaig to Rum and Canna, and along the whole northern Cuillin ridge. You would need to arrange a longer stay at Coruisk for this as it is too much to do in 90 minutes.

The path around the loch can be boggy and the moss on the slabs near the water’s edge is slick, so a few walkers each year go into the waist. Boots, not sandals are almost essential, trail trainers are also suitable for most people.

What to pack

From the top down.

Waterproof jacket, always. Skye weather can go from calm to rain and back inside an hour. Mid-layer, even in July, because at sea the wind is colder than you expect. Long trousers, because there is no such thing as a warm leg on a Cuillin boat trip. Waterproof overtrousers are sensible if rain is forecast.

Boots, prefferably. The clamber off the jetty is on rough, often wet rock.

Small rucksack with: water (no taps), a sandwich (no café at the loch, the Misty Isle crew will sometimes sell tea and biscuits on the boat), a hat, gloves if it is cool, sun cream even on an overcast day because the reflection off water burns faster than you think.

A camera, and if you are using a phone, a wrist strap. Phones have fallen into Loch Coruisk before and have not come back. A dry bag is sensible if you are taking anything valuable.

In summer, midge repellent. The loch can be still in warm weather and the midges will be there with you.

What the day actually costs

Roughly: £35 to £45 per adult for a standard three-hour Misty Isle round trip, with 1.5 hours ashore, at time of writing. Bella Jane slightly higher with the longer ashore options. AquaXplore RIBs run higher because fuel burn is much greater. Children half or slightly less.

Weather cancellation, and what to do about it

Every operator cancels in bad weather. A northerly force 5 or more and the trip is off. Rain may not cancel it; high wind does. Cancellation can happen an hour before the sailing. Most operators will offer a refund or a place on a later sailing, check the weather or phone ahead if unsure.

The practical advice is to pick a flexible day. If you are on Skye for three nights and want Coruisk in the middle one, book the first possible day. That gives you two back-up days if the weather closes in.

Who it suits, and who it doesn’t

Boat trips to Coruisk suit anybody who wants to see Loch Coruisk without the ten-mile walk over the Bad Step. Photographers, families with walking children, people for whom the idea of a short boat trip followed by a walk on flat ground is a good morning. Visitors who are staying in Elgol can walk from Coruisk House to the pier in just a few minutes.

Boat Trips don’t not suit: visitors with serious seasickness, though in settled weather Loch Scavaig is glassy, visitors who can only do the trip on a fixed day and will not be able to rebook if the weather cancels. Visitors who were expecting a café, a loo on shore at Loch Courisk, or a guided tour. The loch is a wild place and there is nothing there except the loch.

Coruisk House is at the end of the same pier road

A common stay: two nights, boat trip in the middle morning, dinner that evening. The langoustines and sometimes the squat lobsters on the menu are creel-caught in the same Loch Scavaig water you crossed that morning.

Book rooms, read about An Nead. Phone +44 (0)1471 866 330. Email info@coruiskhouse.com.