In a country renowned for its world-class scenery, the Fairy Pools, Old Man of Storr and Quiraing on the Isle of Skye are among the most popular natural attractions Scotland has to offer.
With all three sites becoming must-see locations on tourists’ Scottish travel plans in recent years, there have been increasing fears that their fragile ecological beauty will be overwhelmed.
Now work to safeguard all three sites against the legions of tourists paying them a visit has been completed, in the hope that it will ensure that the reputation of Skye - the largest of the Inner Hebrides - is maintained or improved as a ‘bucket list’ visitor destination.
The work has been carried out as part of the Skye Iconic Sites Project (SISP), which is part of an almost £9 million Scottish programme of projects to invest in the Highlands and Islands to provide more and better-quality opportunities, for visitors to enjoy natural and cultural assets.
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The project came about as Skye began to attract numerous pieces of - unwelcome - publicity regarding it being ‘full’ and ‘closed to tourists’, due to the sense that it was beyond carrying capacity.
This came as a direct result of the exponential rise in visitor numbers to the island and its most iconic sites for a number of years.
The Fairy Pools recorded an already unsustainable 80,000 visitors in 2016/17, to more than 180,000 in 2019; while in the same year a massive 240,000 people flocked to the Old Man of Storr (up from 36,000 in 2012).
Managed by environmental charity Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland, the completion of SISP has seen the Fairy Pools, Quiraing and Old Man of Storr undergo crucial restoration.
All three sites now benefit from improved and more inclusive access, viewpoints, and better coordinated information to give high-quality visitor experiences.
Work at the Fairy Pools saw the creation of a new car park, improved paths and the restoration of the site’s most prominent viewpoints. Two new steel and timber clad bridges were airlifted in and placed across the burns which feed and flow from the pools, and the site underwent major habitat restoration to repair the damaged footpaths.
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Work to areas around the Old Man of Storr saw lightweight jute netting known as GeoJute installed in areas to help stabilise the land in places where the soil had been eroded by walkers. Other work involved deep gullies being dammed with rocks and turf to slow rainwater and trap the eroding soil.
Meanwhile, paths were upgraded and a new footpath system were created at Quiraing with the aim of making it safer and more accessible to tourists and locals in the area.
Speaking when the project was launched back in April 2021, Dougie Baird, Chief Executive Officer of the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland and Manager of SISP, said: “Skye’s Iconic Sites Project will help to address the chronic lack of tourist infrastructure and co-ordinated interpretation on the Isle of Skye, making improvements to the quality of the visitor experience for a wider and more inclusive range of people at three of its most iconic and busiest sites - the Old Man of Storr, the Quiraing and the Fairy Pools.
“This will be achieved through the development of access infrastructure - paths, bridges, and viewpoints; path and habitat restoration and rehabilitation; and a programme of co-ordinated interpretation through information points and signage, together with promotion, marketing and joined up thinking within the wider context of Skye as a visitor destination.
“Future proofing all three sites should not only encourage tourists to stay longer and explore other areas of the island, thus increasing the levels of spend; it should also ensure that the reputation of the island is maintained or improved as a ‘bucket list’ visitor destination.”
The project had total budget of just under £1 million, made up of £650,000 from the Natural and Cultural Heritage Fund, led by NatureScot and part-funded through the European Development Fund; with additional partnership funding from the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland - £98,000, Scottish Government Rural Payments Inspections Division - £150,000, the Minginish Community Hall Association - £20,000, and Highland Council - £10,000.
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