Setting sail
I do see the irony in writing a post about photography and my love of editing, only for this post to be full of straight-out-of-camera pictures. So apologies for that. But there are a lot of them and we’ve been very busy.
If you use Instagram (and follow me) you may know that we’re leaving Skye. When I posted the news, I got a fair few surprised comments and that’s understandable as I haven’t made any mention of it on social media until very recently.
We made the decision a while ago, but even so we weren’t one hundred percent sure. We considered staying, and buying a house close to Portree (not a specific house - I mean, we thought about finding one). We also thought about moving to the outskirts of Inverness where we could buy a newly-built house in a really nice development; one of those ‘planned villages’ where it’s all about community and sustainability, with traditionally-designed buildings. Jay could have transferred to Head Office and we could have just picked up our lives and carried on.
But they were just distractions really, because we’re coming back home again.
Almost.
Jay wants a new adventure and I’m pining a bit, so the (happy) compromise is West Yorkshire. Just a skip and a jump across the Pennines from friends and family. Familiar enough to feel like home, but new enough for us to explore and discover new places. Those who know me know I’ve always loved Hebden Bridge, so we’re relocating there. Just a mile or two outside, actually. It’s a very popular place to live (despite the flooding) and finding a rental house was hard. As soon as a decent property becomes available it’s snapped up. So securing a house from 450 miles away was no mean feat. But secure one we did.
I’ve managed to get Joe a place in a lovely little village primary school (important as he’s used to smaller, rural schools); Jay finished work last week and we make our first journey down in a few days with a load of furniture.
Obviously, Covid guidelines allow house moves but we’ll be taking extra precautions. Skye is a little world of it’s own and I have a bit of trepidation about moving to somewhere more populated. It’s going to be strange moving so close to our friends and family again - we haven’t seen some of them in over a year - yet only being able to wave at them over the border. But we’re all in the same boat. And it will get better.
In the meantime I’ll continue to homeschool and live with the limitations just like everyone else.
So why didn’t I mention our plans sooner?
Well, it’s been such a process. Deciding where to move to (it was a relief to make that decision - it gave us something to work towards). Selling the house, with all the complications that involved. Having to get a temporary rental here on Skye because the house sale delays and uncertainty meant we couldn’t move to Yorkshire in the autumn as we’d planned. By the time the sale finally went through, we had to pack up and move out at very short notice; Christmas was coming and another lockdown was on the horizon. So we were kindly offered this flat for a few months and we took it.
We had to keep our plans quiet because Jay wanted to make sure his job was secure until he was in a position to hand in his notice. Even most of our friends up here were in the dark about the whole thing. Covid has resulted in furloughing staff and some redundancies, so we had to make sure we had an income still coming in while I was at home being Joe’s teacher.
Word gets around very quickly up here. And yes, if people don’t know the facts they’ll quite happily make something up.
Of course, our family and friends are happy we’re coming back home. As normality slowly returns - and it will, eventually - Joe will be able to spend more time with his cousins and grandparents. I’ll see my brother and I’m looking forward to playing more of a part in my nieces’ lives (their mum died unexpectedly when one was five and the other was a baby, and the eldest starts high school in September).
And my friends. I’ve missed them so much. Yes, we made some good friends here but it’s not the same. Phone calls and emails and texts aren’t the same. I miss seeing their kids and us getting together. In all honesty, it’s my friends I miss the most.
You’re probably wondering why we decided to leave Skye after three years. Well, other than friends and family, there are lots of reasons. I’ve been putting a book together but that’s been shelved - temporarily - thanks to Joe being out of school. That will go into much more detail. There are lots of things we’ll miss, lots we won’t… it’s been a huge adventure. We’ve learned lessons along the way, become braver, but we’ve also come to realise what’s really important.
Some people think we’re mad to go. Some people back home thought we were mad to come here in the first place.
Yes. it’s beautiful and remote and many would love to move to the island. But visiting as a tourist, or only seeing it through photographs, is just a fraction of the full picture. My blog gives you the edited version of life in the Hebrides. In reality it’s a place of extremes, opposites, contradictions. Skye can be the best place on Earth to live but it can be incredibly harsh and isolating, too. Some people are wonderfully welcoming, others are extremely resentful of incomers. You’re a very long way from many things, and for some that’s the appeal. But it can be tough when you have to drive 130 miles in the snow to the hospital in Fort William because the local one has the facilities but not the staff. (With no childcare options other than one of you taking time off work or Joe taking time off school to accompany you). Or to do that 130 mile drive, this time to Inverness, to buy school shoes. Both journeys are cross-country through the wilds with no motorways to speed things up.
So we’ll be trading in tranquillity for more hustle and bustle (although we’re staying rural). But it’s always swings and roundabouts; more traffic but fewer tyre-wrecking potholes. Higher property prices but more access to transport and therefore many new places. I’m looking forward to going on the train and to revisiting places I’ve been (York, Harrogate, the Dales, Haworth) and discovering those I haven’t (Leeds, the Yorkshire coast). Here, a three-hour drive gets us to Inverness or Fort William. There, we’ll be able to go off in any direction. Joe will be able to go to museums and galleries, aquariums and zoos.
Eventually.
I’ll miss the feeling of safety up here; there’s very little opportunistic or violent crime. I like the fact that you always bump into people you know, no matter where you go. Having huge views of the sea and mountains each time you look out of the window or take a walk. But we’ll be back to visit friends, with the promise of somewhere to stay. And some will visit us, too.
I will not miss the midges.
It was important that we chose the right place to put down proper roots. We wanted to make the move while Joe was still in primary school, so he could establish friendships before progressing to high school. We’ll be leaving Skye with friendships of our own, lots of memories, and even a few additional skills (reading the weather; deciphering tidal charts; driving along single track roads; getting a good fire going).
And so very many photographs. What you’ve seen in this blog is just the tip of the iceberg.
I know that some people will be disappointed that we’re leaving the island, and that many come to Frond & Feather to enjoy the pictures of Skye. But I hope some of you will join us on the next adventure as we set sail for home.
