Uig Bay, Isle of Skye
And a fine day dawned indeed - the festival event I'd most looked forward to, Caledonian MacBrayne's ferry ride from Uig to Lochmaddy.
The Hebridean Isles
 Tom, Donna, David and I shot straight up the Isle of Skye to the village of Uig. There, gracing Uig Bay, was our ship, the Hebridean Isle. It is... enormous!
Facts about the Hebridean Isles
Backbone of Interisland Commerce
Cal-Mac operates a variety of services all throughout the western isles, and they range greatly in size depending on the route. This particular route, the lifeline from Skye to the isle of North Uist, is a massive commerce conduit.
 Coming from Hawai'i where everything is delivered out of sight in featureless containers, I had never really thought deeply about the forces brought to bear in supplying an island. The first thing I noticed here was a huge, huge line of trucks, vans, buses, cars, every manner of vehicle stretching out in Cal-Mac's Uig station, waiting to board our ferry.
 I was profoundly fascinated by the numbers and variety of these vehicles, and wandered up and down the lines, wide eyed. Of course there were many freight trucks, but they were themselves quite interesting, being often brightly coloured, and given names - for example, the beauteous Highlands Laddie. There were also vans for every imaginable service and product - bread trucks, florist vans, plumbing vans, money trucks, you name it.
 In addition to the commercial vehicles, there were holiday seekers. One group turned me desolate with envy, travelling the isles in a converted container they haul about on a flatbed. There they were waiting in the line in the comfort of their "salon", drinking wine and partying. They also had an adorable "Wee Jock" who I'm sure greatly enjoyed the island hopping.
When the line started to move, it was some sort of magic trick. Where did all those vehicles go? How could they possibly all fit into the hold, no matter how big our ship was? But, like the clown car at the circus, they somehow all managed to pile in.
And our trip began.
Room with a View
Start to end, we were amazed at the quantity and variety of wildlife. Even coming from Hawai'i, I'd never seen so many porpoises at one time. Schools and schools of them, cavorting before our eyes. And incredible numbers of seabirds everywhere we looked -- cormorants, grebes, terns. What a sight.
Lochmaddy, North Uist Island
 Eventually we approached the coast of Loch Maddy. Ho-hum, another paradise. Lochmaddy is the North Uist village where the ferry goes from Uig, and it's a lovely place. We had been booked for a circle route, theoretically not leaving the ship, but I was able to jump off for a second to film the reverse of the clown car process. There on the pier was a family, two little children clutching their little suitcases in anticipation, ready to go to Skye. I remember as a child how exciting I thought it would be, to leave my island and go somewhere.
The Caledonian MacBrayne Experience
Gourmet at Sea
 Back aboard, we noticed our special table being set up. It turned out we were the only passengers who had booked today's festival event so, there amidst all the plain tables, they set us a window table with linens and silver and wine glasses. People peeped at us wondering Who We Were. Mr. E. Nicholson, the catering manager, had chosen a lovely menu:
- Scotch broth with roll and butter
- Fresh Skye rack of lamb with mustard and rosemary
- Roasted Skye lamb gigot with mint sauce
- Pan fried fresh haddock
- Seafood platter
- Fresh fruit salad
- Ice cream
 Mr. Nicholson told us that this was only the second year for this event, but it will be on the programme every year going forward. I sure hope so - the staff was great, and so was the food. Most incredible was the vista gliding past our windows while we ate. Surely there was no one else in the world having such a view while eating lunch.
Life Long Commitments
Having slaughtered many huge and gorgeous prawns, it was time for lolling about on the deck. There I was joined by Chief Steward Roderick Ferguson, who has been with Cal-Mac for 24 years. He and the staff were very interested in whether we'd enjoyed the event, and we also talked about what a backbone of the islands the ferries are. They even have special events such as weddings on board.
Shortly after, I was joined by Second Steward Roderick John MacDonald, who has been with Cal-Mac for 26 years. He told of the night before when they were moving up from Lochmaddy to Tarbert without passengers and had a beautiful sunset, and could see the otters on the rocks. What a life! I felt I never wanted to leave.
Steward MacDonald will by now have received his gold watch for service - he says that it seems like yesterday that he began his life of the sea. Ceremonies were held at the Gourock headquarters. And would that I could have been there to toast him a wee dram.
Return to Skye
Debark? No, No!
I thought they'd have to call the bobbies to get me off the ship. In fact, had not the Faerie Glen been calling to me, they probably would have.
- Our ship was built in 1985 by Cochrane Shipbuilders of Selby.
- It weighs 3040 gross tons
- and measures 85.15 X 15.80 meters.
- Its draught is 3.11 meters
- and its speed is 15kts.
- It carries
- 507 passengers
- 24 crew
- and 68 cars.
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