Getting to The Outer Hebrides of Scotland with CalMac. Featuring a Drive Thru Skye & Some BAD NEWS!

The beauty of Scotland in one video. Join me as we head from a very famous castle, through the Isle of Skye, and onto a ferry bound for the Western Isles. Throw in some decent weather and it'll be a trip to remember. But things don't quite go to plan...

Filmed on Sunday 28th April 2024
Thumbnail designed using Canva
This video is not sponsored and all opinions are my own

I don’t pretend to be a travel expert, but I love what I do and would be honoured if you came along with me. My channel focusses on the wide-eyed wonder and excitement of finding somewhere new, and my genuine reaction to it. You may not get a history lesson in my videos, but who knows, you might pick up some useful travel tips along the way, add a few destinations to your bucket list and hopefully be entertained by what you see. Thanks for watching, it means a lot to me :)

I do ALL of this myself. Planning, filming, editing, promoting, all with a weekly upload schedule, so please understand not every video will be an epic adventure. But my pledge is to always do my best in any situation and KEEP THE CAMERA ROLLING :)

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FAQs:
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
I was born in Glasgow but have lived in Carnoustie, Dalgety Bay, Stonehaven, Edinburgh, Montrose, and further afield (Salamanca, Spain & Devonport, New Zealand)
WHEN DO YOU UPLOAD?
Saturdays at 10am Scottish time. Occasionally a bonus midweek video will pop up (in which case, likely to be Tuesday at 5pm)
WHY IS THERE A DELAY BETWEEN TRIP AND VIDEO APPEARING?
This is both my business model and a result of doing everything myself. Editing takes time and I also like to schedule videos a bit in advance in case of any problems/illness/cancellations etc. Keeping my uploads appearing every Saturday is important to me, so I don’t want anything to get in the way of it. Also, I occasionally need some time off to recover from trips! But more than anything else, it's about budgets. I generally need to film a number of videos on each trip to break even. And each one of these take a while to fall into place on a Saturday morning.
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU USE?
WHY DON'T YOU SPEND LONGER AT DESTINATIONS?
The usual suspects I'm afraid - time and money! Hotel prices especially these days make my eyes water like a true Scotsman. Also my weekly upload schedule means I need to keep on the move.
WHERE'S ALICJA?
Alicja will feature whenever possible, but she has her own life and a proper job so it can take a while for our schedules to match up. Trust me though, I prefer it when She is there too!
DO YOU PAY FOR YOUR OWN TRAVEL?
Yes I do. I've only ever accepted a complementary ticket as compensation for a previous problem. All my opinions are frank and honest reflections of travel as I experience it.
WHY THE ADS?
It's my income, I can't do this for free. Notice I don’t have mid-roll ads though!
CAN I CONTACT YOU?
I used to list my email address but felt bad not having the capacity to respond to everything so took it down (and I got a LOT of spam so missed many genuine messages along the way).
HOW CAN I SUPPORT THE CHANNEL?
Watching my videos is of course support enough, but if you'd like to support further, I'll pop links in here for Paypal and Patreon. All kind donations are super-appreciated and will go 100% towards future filming trips.
DO YOU ACCEPT SPONSORSHIPS?
I don't like to upset the flow of my videos, so I don't even include mid-roll ads anymore (at significant loss of income to myself), so I prefer not to include sponsorships either. I'm open to a small slide at the start/end of each video, but I don't want to get into talking about products, it's something I don't like as a viewer myself (especially as a viewer who pays for YouTube Premium). So it's probably a polite no, although all of this goes out the window if you offer me something which can give me the chance to make a video for my audience that would otherwise be impossible.

#SteveMarsh #CalMac #Scotland

[TheJohnscot]

You have never made a duff video yet, Steve. Your videos are gold-plated in my opinion. So natural and down to earth. I have seen many vids of Scotland that sound so pompous; but not the Steve Marsh Productions! May you have the enthusiasm and the will to carry on making these absolute gems. Thank you.

[KWfly]

Who in their right mind would skip the Skye journey montage?... Awesome looking trip to a wild and remote place - my idea of a great holiday. Pity about the bad news, but it still looks like a great place to spend some time!

[LauraMcLaughlin.]

I’d love you to read this Steve. I’m Laura McLaughlin Near Belfast. Back in the 1990’s before my lovely late husband took Parkinson’s we went in our lovely
XJ 8 Jaguar to Skye & the Hebredise When we arrived in Tarbet the sheep met us in the car park. The roads were winding & in places just the width of the car. We had a pic nic on a beach with sand that could have been put in an egg timer & Pavarotti was singing on the car radio. Pure magic. We also were on Scalpy. We went l Lewis & took the ferry back from Stornaway to Ullapool. Your video brought it all back to me - I’d love to go back - but it would be to sad without Victor - gone now 6 years. He was so lovely. Do all you can NOW Steve. One never knows what’s round the corner. ❤

[DazDaz]

All Scottish, Welsh and English should give thanks that they all live on such beautiful island (and surrounding islands). Yes it rains there a lot but the island of Great Britain is simply stunning.

[terrytaylor]

Sir, you take us all to places we wish we could go. Thank you for that. Through your genuine nature, we feel like we are there as well. Take care.

[FrankC]

so glad we are back to classic Steve. A video with a ferry is a happy day.

[gedofgont]

Steve, your videos are the next best thing to actually being there.
I love how you always ensure a gentle pace, which allows us the sense of journeying with you, almost in real time.
Your camera work and editing are top notch too and I even enjoy your cheesy sense of humour!
Marvellous, Mr Marsh!❤

[TheMcmunro]

Hi Steve, I'm sorry but this is a sad comment. Whilst watching your video this morning along with my Golden Retriever, Ruby, ( I was telling her I was going to take her to Clachtoll beach), she suffered a stroke. By 1pm, the Vet had been and Ruby was gone.
I do apologise for the sad nature of the comment but the past few hours have been some of the worst.
You have inspired me to get back out and your videos continue to inspire. Today's trip would have been one she would have loved.
Please give Ruby a shout out sometime, especially on a beach somewhere xxxx RIP Ruby 29/04/12-25/05.24.

[gillianhibberd]

Thanks for the memories. My husband of 55 years passed away last December and this video brings back great memories of a great week my husband and I and our Springer Spaniel had on Harris back in the early 90's. We took the ferry from Uig to Tarbet and stayed in a cottage right by the water's edge just south of Tarbet. Sunshine every day albeit it April. Looking forward to the next video.

[karasaunty]

'Prefer to skip the Skye montage?' he asks. Am assuming that was a joke and people would have laughed if they hadn't been stunned into speechlessness by the very montage we were being offered to skip. Gorgeous scenery! So was Harris! Cracking wee hotel you're in. I seriously wish I could drive so I could go to places like this. Alas, too old and too anxious to learn now. Will just have to live vicariously through you, Steve x

[LureFishingRocksIreland]

You know, every Saturday I rush home from work, grab a bite then settle into the living room with my fiancée. Do we put on Britains got talent? Do we watch a movie? No, we’re straight on to youtube to see the latest Steve video.
You are without doubt one of the most inspiring people to grace our TV screens. I hope this continues for many more years. Thanks for the videos Steve, we all owe you a lot.

[kurtb]

Thank you for sharing Scotland with us. I've been wearing kilts and playing the bagpipes for 54 years, but I grew up in, and live in, California. Seeing Scotland with my own eyes may never happen, so I really do appreciate the time you take to show us this wonderful land.

[User]

Scottish scenery is breathtaking even on video!

[markhensel]

Thank you for sharing the trip. Enjoy your style of production – you bring us each along with you and don’t fill the video with fluff or glitz.

[robkilo]

Lovely to see Sligachan. I had a mate who rented a cottage there for a winter, so that he could play his enormous hifi properly loud without bothering anyone. I visited several times from Edinburgh - taking the long distance bus (I don't remember if I had to change in Glasgow, but I don't think I did). Spent Hogmanay at the hotel ceilidh - now that was a proper party. I remember the first time stepping off the bus - it stopped some distance from the hotel, on the other side of the bridge - and into the sleet and inky blackness, wondering how on earth I was going to be able to find my way to the cottage. But then I heard the mighty hifi from up the hill which led me, slipping and sliding on ice and slush, like a beacon in the night to warmth and safety and very loud music and whisky. It was ace.

[arronblack]

Said it before on the channel we are truely blessed with a beautiful country. Some lovely scenes mate and thankfully the weather held strong for you 🤟🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[madr]

I realized on second watching that "CalMac" is "Caledonian MacBrayne", and it reminded me of something I read in a history of Scotland, that you might appreciate, Steve. Apparently, in the early part of the last century, islanders had a satirical quatrain about the ferry company's monopoly on transportation in the Hebrides: "The earth belongs unto the Lord, and all that it contains. Except, of course for the Western Isles, for they are D. MacBrayne's."

[pmichaelson]

Another amazing video. I am getting seriously addicted to these videos of Scotland in particular

[SurreyHillsMole]

Another wonderful video showing a beautiful part of the British Isles.

[regifredwhite]

Steve much as I like your journeys around Europe you can't beat the Scottish Isles.I am so grateful for your vlogs you are becoming my favourite vlogger.
I would love it you could try and tick off all the populated Scottish Isles as I don't think I will ever be able to afford it myself.
Thanks for all your work 😊