I was lucky to get a chat with the main players in Misty Isle Boat Trips – it’s a busy time of year.
But on this particular day, Sandy (the skipper and older son) is free to speak because Seumas, Sean and Calum (some of the grandsons) are running the show.
And that arrangement sums up how intrinsically Misty Isle is linked to the MacKinnon family from Elgol.
Since Sandy’s grandfather’s days, when crofters lined up their boats and shared out the tourists, the family have had a stake in the area’s history.
In fact, scratch that: the MacKinnons had a pretty important role at the time of the Jacobites too.
So the family are very much part of the local history that they share with tourists on their boat trips centred on Loch Coruisk.
I spoke to just a small sample of them to talk about how three generations ranging in ages from 11 to 75 make Misty Isle what it is today.
Oh, and also about how Loch Coruisk could have been used for a Hitchcock film – if it hadn’t been for a tricky set of ladders…
Misty Isle: A schoolboy’s ambition
Probably one of the most complicated things about the Misty Isle Boat Trips is the family tree.
Even Sandy – the skipper – had to take a breath before he went through them all. And he had to double-check some ages with his mum.
He had one bit off-pat, though – presumably a bit that is part of the the tour history itself.
Misty Isle Boat Trips started in 1969, sparked originally by a schoolboy’s trips to Loch Coruisk with his dad.
Seumas MacKinnon was pretty small when he accompanied his father on trips to Loch Coruisk.
Lachlan MacKinnon was working on the Loch Coruisk Memorial Hut, built in 1959 in memory of two young climbers who lost their lives on Ben Nevis in 1953.
But young Seumas got the bug for what is considered one of the most picturesque areas in the UK.
Sandy, 48, explained: “Dad made the decision to get over as soon as he could – he started saving up for a boat.”
The boat, called the Apollo, came in 1969 – and the rest is history.
Meet the MacKinnons
The current roster of the business features the surname MacKinnon fairly often.
Sandy gave us the rundown of names, ages and pack drills.
Seumas, now 75, is the OG, along with wife Anne, 71.
Sandy said: “Dad helps with the maintenance and bits and pieces that need done on land. He’s pretty handy with a paintbrush.
“Mum takes all the bookings and chats to the tourists.”
Sandy himself is the older of Seumas and Anne’s two “boys” – Stuart is 46.
And just like their dad before them, they were introduced to the family business in childhood, in what sounds like an idyllic way.
Sandy remembers: “We used to go over when we were young lads, we might even go for a scramble for the day.”
Sandy is married to Roxy, who teaches the fiddle in local schools (but could probably turn her hand to something boat-related, if required).
They have Seumas, 25, and Shaun, 18.
Along with their cousin Calum (21 and Stuart’s eldest), they were the three keeping shop on the day I spoke to Sandy and Anne.
Everyone still keeping up? Good, because there is more….
Stuart and his wife Glenda have four children: Calum; Heather, 19; Calvin, 14; and 11-year-old Abi.
Stuart has his own business called Skye Local Tours – land-based – but there is a definite feel of everyone pitching in.
From lobsters to tourists
These days, having started off with the Apollo in 1969, which did plenty lobster fishing alongside the tourist work, Misty Isle Boat Trips runs three boats.
Sandy is the skipper of the Misty Isle itself, which takes 63 visitors and two crew.
Seumas jr looks after the Maid of Coruisk, which carries 28 and two.
And (just to prove other surnames are available), Duncan Henderson skippers the Eilean a Cheo, which goes to Canna with a capacity boat of 12 tourists.
Sandy reckons they can show 140 people the delights of the area on a busy day.
But what’s the pull that makes visitors explore Skye beyond the Fairy Pools and Dunvegan Castle?
Sandy says it’s a hidden gem that is worth the visit.
He said: “Not many people get to see Loch Coruisk, because it’s so isolated.
“The only way to do it is by boat. It’s considered one of the best views in the UK.”
He also explained how, over the years, what was more of an as-and-when boat taxi service has evolved into what they have today.
“We do talks on the trips now, the visitors get hot chocolate and shortbread – but they also get mythology, history, geology and geography thrown in.
“We get people from all over the world. We feature in foreign travel programmes quite a lot.”
The tours set visitors down, give them advice on some good walks and leave them to explore on their own.
They also take them to a grey seal colony en route.
From the Jacobites to Hitchcock
There have been some famous visitors come to Loch Coruisk – and one in particular was a film director at the height of his success.
Sandy tells a tale of how Seumas senior took Alfred Hitchcock out in the 1970s.
“He was scouting for locations at the time, apparently.”
In those days, there was a tricky set of steps to navigate – long since replaced by something more easily climbed.
“Mr Hitchcock took one look at the stairs and said ‘no way’.”
Instead, Hitchcock passed Seumas his camera and the skipper went out and got some shots.
But no offence to Seumas’s presumably decent camerawork – who knows what could have been if the great man had actually made it up the steps himself?
As far as the Jacobites go, the MacKinnon clan and boats play a big part in Bonnie Prince Charlie’s story.
They helped him escape after Culloden – and apparently were given the secret recipe for Drambuie as a thank you.
The future of Misty Isle Boat Trips
With the MacKinnon family so tied up in the business, what does the future hold? Will the next generation keep it going?
All the signs are there to say Misty Isle will be there for a while.
Sandy said: “I really hope we can keep handing it down.
“They all seem really keen to keep going.
“I’d be really happy to see it handed down from generation to generation.”
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