Burning Man ideas traffic was badScotland's previously secluded Fairy Pools are now horribly crowded, with tourists waiting in traffic jams for up to four hours to get in, according to local tour companies.
“People who work at the Fairy Pools car park have told visitors it feels like it's a war zone to drive through,” Gordon Pearson, who runs tour company WOW Scotland, told the South West News Service. “It's absolutely horrible, and I don't think enough attention is paid to how bad the road really is.”
Located in Glen Brittle on the Isle of Skye, this attraction features a series of picturesque ponds and waterfalls that look as if they were plucked straight from a “Lord of the Rings” movie.
Although this sapphire oasis was once a hidden gem, according to local sources, there has been a dramatic increase in traffic in the last decade, reportedly due to poor infrastructure.
Over the past few weeks, traveling there has become “absolute chaos,” with more than 400 vehicles stranded on the road, Pearson said. While only about 200,000 tourists visit each year, the one-lane road leading out of Glen Brittle is poorly maintained, leading to a lot of punctured tires and hours-long traffic jams, like something out of a disaster thriller.
“Some people are stuck on that road for four hours,” lamented Pearson, who often has to get out and help ease traffic.
Now a literal tourist trap, the condition of this place has worsened further due to the recent wet weather.
This has led to vehicles being stranded on the side of the road, where rescue vehicles are unable to reach them due to the obstructions.
“If one of my clients needs emergency assistance, there's no way to get help to them right away,” Pearson said.
Conditions have become so “hazardous” that the guide is considering removing this spectacular mecca from his tours.
“We have always worked at Skye since 2012,” he said. “It’s our unique selling point, and we always want people to get the most out of this place, but we can’t do that in the current situation.
“We might skip the Fairy Pools and maybe even Skye on our way,” he said.
There are also bureaucratic hurdles in this.
The Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland (OATS) charity, which commissioned the building of a car park and toilets to ease congestion on the route six years ago, has been blamed for the traffic by the local council.
OATS has also been asked to provide funds to repair the dangerous access road — something it cannot do by law, according to a representative for the organization.
A Highland Council spokesperson said: “Council officers are working on potential visitor management solutions and exploring sources of funding to help alleviate the pressures currently being experienced in the Skye area.”
