Tag: Sutherland

Round Britain: Scourie

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, birds & birdwatching, roads, Scotland, walksLeave a comment

There was a brief lull in the rain yesterday morning and a cuckoo was persistently calling as we left Kinlochbervie. The cloud was hanging over the mountain behind the harbour.

Back at Rhiconich we picked up the A838 again and headed south through pouring rain in a moorland landscape with many lochans on either side of the road.

We saw one guy with an incredibly long fishing rod near one. At Laxford Bridge during the continuing rain, we took the A894 past a working quarry and downhill into Scourie. We were a little early to check in to the campsite so had a walk on the beach.

I found some relatively small pieces of sea glass including a tiny rare blue piece. The community bird hide was closed but oystercatchers were feeding further down the beach. The beach had less waste on it than Kinlochbervie.

Scourie comes from a Norse word Skógarærgi which means shieling of the woods. There are quite a few trees round the end of the bay with some non-native species obviously planted within the last hundred years. It was the birthplace of General Hugh Mackay who was Commander in Chief of William and Mary’s Scottish Army in 1689-1690 during the conflict with James II. In the 2011 census, the population was 132. Most of the crofts around the village we established in the early 19th century. The island of Handa is just visible beyond the headland.

It was evacuated and the population emigrated to Nova Scotia, Canada after the famine of 1847. It is now owned by the Scourie Estate and is a nature reserve. Sitting in the van we have a great view through the back window; and have seen the fin of a porpoise or dolphin in the bay and the occasional seal head popping up. There are pied wagtails, house sparrows and a wheatear on the grass. The first half of the morning was dry, so we had a wander around the bay.

Scourie Lodge, built by the Duke of Sutherland in 1835 is now a hotel. We plan to eat there this evening.

The harbour end of the bay had only one boat moored there

and a net lying on the beach.

There is a small lochan on the other side of the road.

A signpost points the footpath to Tarbert: it continues the other way around the back of the beach. Where I had a wander among the rocks.

Oystercatchers and eider ducks were on one of the rocks.

Tomorrow morning, we will be up very early to drive back home. With various work to get done on the house over the next few months I am not sure when we will return to our coastal journey.

Round Britain: Kinlochbervie

On By Carol HenshawIn roads, ScotlandLeave a comment

Leaving Durness on a very wet grey day, we took the A838 southwards. Ordnance Survey maps show a lot of hut circles, cairns and old field systems on the land on each side of the road. There are also abandoned quarries and some patches of last years burnt moor for grouse shooting. The road passes Loch Caladail and then runs down to the shores of the Kyle. At the end of the Kyle, it follows the River Dionard for a while before passing Gualin House and Loch Tarbhajh. The A838 goes by the end of Loch Inchard at Riconcich where the junction of the B80 to Kinlochbervie, the most northwesterly port in Scotland is. The road winds along the lochside and through several small communities: Achriesgill, Inshegra and Badcall before heading down a 15% descent into Kinlochbervie. The roadside is littered with dead and decaying cars, lorries and tractors. Just as we passed the end of Loch Sheigra, the rain ceased for a while so I could take a photo.

Prior to the early 1960s Kinlochbervie was a crofting village. Some abandoned houses are still in the middle of the town

close to the Free Presbyterian Church, the only church in the community. There is a community fire station, coastguard, a medical practice, a filling station, a couple of stores, café, a hotel and several B&Bs. The old harbour at Loch Clash is now a motorhome stop-over which is where we are spending one night. If you arrive early, you can use one of the five electric hook-ups and there are ten off-grid places. Payment is made to the Spar shop just up the road.

The pebble beach at the head of Loch Clash is littered with plastic waste from the fishing industry.

In 1964, work began to convert the village into a major European fishing harbour. This took around twenty years and although the local fishing fleet is small; other ships bring in their catch and it is processed here. The new harbour is certainly busy with large buildings for processing the fish, housing the harbour master and others behind where many nets were laid out to dry. HGVs were getting ready to load up late afternoon.

While I was wandering around, the sun finally came out very briefly.

There are interesting rocks just past the end of the pier;

and a lot of native plants: gorse, speedwells, rowan and elder trees coming into leaf and buds on the heather. However, along one road someone must have planted bamboo and an arum-like large lily which I could not identify. They have now become very invasive over a large area. Elsewhere I saw Spanish bluebells escaping out of a garden.

If you have more time and good weather, you can go to Oldshoremore along the minor road from Kinlochbervie and from there; do an eight-mile return walk to Sandwood Bay which is part of the Sandwood Estate run by the John Muir Trust. Unfortunately, heavy rain is forecast for tomorrow so that and the possibility of a boat trip from Tarbert to Handa Island are probably not going to happen.

Round Britain: Sango Sands and Balnakiel

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, ScotlandLeave a comment

Our campsite in Durness sits above Sango Sands beach with great views from the back of the van.

There is a viewpoint giving wider views over the bay.

Much of the rock around Durness is limestone but down on the beach is some Lewisian gneiss.

Durness parish was cleared by Lord Reay over a 30 year period preceding his sale to the Sutherland estate in 1829. More clearances to enable sheep farming continued afterwards, some involving disputes and resistance from the locals. You can still see the remains of croft buildings among the 19th century and more recent buildings. This morning we walked the mile down to Balnakiel.

Most of the land is sheep and some cattle farming. The road passes Loch Croispol

and then the Craft Village. The buildings here were constructed in the mid 1950s as a Ministry of Defence Early Warning Station during the Cold War. It was never commissioned and in 1964 the County Council acquired it and the Craft Village was born. It is now owned by the residents and there is also the Cocoa Mountain Coffee Shop. A little further on are the ruins of an old church.

Balnakiel has been a centre of Christianity since the 8th century when St Maelrubha founded a monastery. The current church dates from 1617 and was rebuilt in 1690. In 1843 it was abandoned. Balnakiel House across the road was built in 1744 and has been the home of the chiefs of the Clan Mackay and may incorporate part of a bishop’s summer residence. We then wandered down to the beach.

The dunes are an SSI and in summer rangers offer guided walks to see the wildlife. In 1991, shifting sands revealed the grave and skeleton of a 12-year-old Viking Warrior, with a helmet and shield. You can walk four miles along the old military road to and around Faraid Head but the tip is an inaccessible MOD area. Had it not been raining we might have done the walk but instead had to return to Durness.

Round Britain: Cape Wrath

On By Carol HenshawIn roads, ScotlandLeave a comment

Cape Wrath has been described as the last true wilderness in the British Isles. The tip is the most north-westerly point of the UK mainland and is closer to the Arctic Circle than it is to London. It is further north than Moscow and Vladivostock. A large part of the Cape is a Ministry of Defence Bombardment Range which is still active and used at times, often at short notice. One way of visiting when the forces are not operating is via the ferry and minibus which does a three-hour tour. We woke early and set off to walk the 2.5 miles down the road to the Keoldale ferry to cross and pick up the Cape Wrath minibus on the other side. The A838 south of Durness was not built until 1832.

Down at the Kyle of Durness is a standing stone erected in 2000 as a memorial to ancient and Celtic peoples.

A little further along we reached the pier where what has been described as the smallest passenger ferry service in Great Britain operates from. While waiting for it, we saw someone take a small tank of diesel over to the other side to top up a minibus.

The ferry arrived just before 9.30am and we embarked for the short journey across the Kyle to the pier on Cape Wrath.

Our minibus was waiting and took us slowly along the single-track unmade road. The only road to cross the peninsula was built to service the lighthouse in 1833 and is 11 miles long.

There are abandoned houses which used to belong to the shepherds who lived and worked here and the peat banks that supplied their fuel. There were views over to Kearvaig where there is a bothy and two stacks which are known as ‘The Cathedral’.

We saw several walkers and cyclists during our time on the Cape, some of whom were wild camping. At one point we spotted a few red deer in the distance. They are numerous on the Cape and are one reason why there are no trees. Just before you reach the lighthouse there are views south towards Sandwood Bay which is only accessible on foot. Apparently there have been reports in the past of mermaids being spotted from there.

 The lighthouse itself was built in 1828 by Robert Stevenson and was automated in 1998. It is now run by solar panels with a generator as reserve. There is a café there so after refuelling and we still had some time to wander around before the return trip. There are views from the surrounding cliffs.

The old foghorn is still there.

You can sometimes see porpoises and dolphins from here but we only saw a few grey seals at a distance on the sandbanks before we reached the pier on our way back.

Round Britain: Kyle of Tongue to Durness

On By Carol HenshawIn Art & Architecture, Beaches, roads, ScotlandLeave a comment

When the rain stopped early evening yesterday, I watched the sun go down behind the hills across the Kyle of Tongue.

We woke to a still quiet morning and after chatting for a while to the couple in the rented van next to us who were from Vancouver, we headed off across the Kyle.

The original bridge and causeway here were built by Sir Alexander Gibb and partners in 1971 to carry the A838 across the loch. Until 1956 there had been a passenger ferry but the route around the head of the loch involved a narrow road some 10 miles long. The causeway is 32.4 miles long and it crosses a natural island, Tongue Island (Eilean Thunga). The 600 ft bridge is at the western end of the causeway, and it has eighteen spans supported by twin piers. The bridge was refurbished in 2011. There are two parking places along it where you can stop and admire the view.

Just over the bridge is the road to Talmine. There are plans to build Space Hub, Sutherland at Melness, which is north of Talmine. Twelve rocket launches are planned for each year and the promotors say it will provide local jobs. We then entered the Flow country.

It is a huge expanse of blanket bog, moorland and mountains covering much of Caithness and Sutherland. The peat layer is big enough to cover a two-storey house and holds more carbon than all the UK’s woodlands put together. Moine House sits on the old road which was the only road across the bog until the A838 was built in 1993. It was occupied by a forester and his family in the late 19th century.

There is now some street art inside.

The old road is now a walking trail in parts. Today some was closed so that ground nesting birds were not disturbed.

The A838 descends and crosses the River Hope before reaching Loch Eriboll. It is Britain’s deepest sea loch and Ard Neackie is a headland which has the remains of old limestone kilns.

Further on we passed a sculpture croft and Choraidh Croft tearoom which were both closed. We stopped at Tràigh Allt Chàilrgeag where zip wires run across the beach between the two hills and several people were enjoying them . I had a coffee in the van and then wandered down to the beach where a lone surfer was struggling to find some decent waves.

One mile east of Durness village is Smoo Cave a natural sea cave with a 50m entrance, the largest to any sea cave in the British Isles. There are steps down to the entrance.

The cave name is thought to originate from the Norse ‘smjugg’ or ‘smuga’, meaning a hole or hiding place. The cave is unique within the in that the first chamber has been formed by the action of the sea, whereas the inner chambers are freshwater passages, formed from rainwater dissolving the carbonate dolomites. Partway through the cave the waters of Allt Smoo also drop in as a 20 metres high waterfall.

After a short distance on the road you enter Durness. The recently built village hall is on the left, school children having contributed some of the art works.

In front is the John Lennon Memorial Garden. He used to visit regularly as a child with his cousins in their croft at Sangomore.

We found our campsite and settled in, over looking Sango Sands.

Round Britain: Melvich to the Kyle of Tongue

On By Carol HenshawIn roads, ScotlandLeave a comment

Our campsite in Melvich was among hills and fields of sheep.

I could not see the sunset because of the hills but there was some colour in the sky afterwards.

We woke to a rain forecast but managed to get organised and leave before it started. Melvich and Portskerra the next community, are almost continuous. We did a diversion to Portskerra Pier which has views over Melvich Bay.

There is a memorial to some fishing disasters with the names of those lost.

From the headland there are views out to sea.

The next village we entered was Strathy. Like much of this part of Scotland it was still owned by traditional chiefs in the 19th century and the land was divided into estates. However, landowners wanted a more reliable income than their poor tenants and cleared the communities to coastal towns or gave them passage to Canada and the United States to create space to enable sheep farming. In 1790 Captain John Mackay of Strathy sold his estate to an Edinburgh lawyer William Honeyman; who leased the land to sheep farmers from Northumberland. In 1813 he sold it to the husband of the Countess of Sutherland. By 1815 more people were cleared to the coast and the mains farm was divided into crofts. We continued down to the parking space on Strathy Point and walked down the road down to the lighthouse.

There are views to cliffs and a natural arch.

Further along the A836 we passed a sign to a place called Brawl! Entering Bettyhill, we stopped for a coffee at the Farr Bay Inn and were the only people in the café. Bettyhill was a clearance village. It was named after Elizabeth, Countess of Sutherland who was responsible for many of the clearances. Hundreds of families were moved from Strathnaver townships to 3-acre crofts, too small to meet their nutritional needs on uncultivated Strathy Point. The rocky coast here has no harbour but they were told to develop a fishing industry despite knowing nothing about it and having no funds to purchase boats and equipment. The town has the Strathnaver museum in a disused church which is currently being renovated and is closed. Behind the museum is an ancient Pictish Cross – the Farr stone. Up the river Naver valley is Achanlochy Clearance village which the seven families were forced to leave in 1819. We could not really wander around as it was raining heavily so I have no current photos of Torrisdale Bay.

Near Borgie Forest we turned off to Skerry where we spent a week in a cottage in 2015. We parked down by the harbour and had our lunch.  Skerry harbour was constructed in the 19th century by cutting access through the rocks.

The island in the distance is Eilean nan Ròn, an island populated for many years. 73 people lived there in 1881 and 30 in 1931 but it was evacuated in 1938. The final evacuation list contained nine people from the Mackay family. The island now has a lot of grey seals with many coming to pup every summer.

The geology is different here from the Caithness flagstones we have seen for the last few days. There are red rocks visible in the cliffs here.

We continued on to the Kyle of Tongue campsite to wait until the rain stops and permits some exploration.

Last day in Skerray

On By Carol HenshawIn ScotlandLeave a comment

It was raining this morning so we set about packing up and cleaning the cottage for an early getaway tomorrow morning. Looking out the window, we could see that a coach was parked at the junction and the Stagecoach service bus was stuck behind it. The driver of the Stagecoach was walking down the road with his phone trying to get a signal so we invited him in to use James’s mobile which can make calls via the wifi as there is no signal here unless you are right down by the harbour wall. The driver told us that the coach was empty and that there was no sign of its driver. Cars could just squeeze past but there was no way he could get his bus past it. He had reported the problem to his company and left to wait for a response. James departed to get the paper and had to tell people standing at the bus stop in Bettyhill (hoping to get to Thurso) that they would be waiting for a while. Two hours later, after everyone passing had stopped to see what was going on, a car drove back and forth down to the harbour and eventually returned with two men who sheepishly got into the coach and drove off. I can only assume that they were having a lengthy smoking break or a coffee with folks in the campervan that was parked down there. After lunch the weather was improving so we had a short walk along the pebble beach and the first few cliffs, looking across to Neave Island and Eilean nan Rón. The abandoned houses on the latter are still visible, the people having been evacuated in 1938.

Coast near Skerray 5 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Eilean nan Ròn near Skerray 5 June 2015 (1 of 1)

We had dinner in the Bettyhill Hotel and enjoyed the warm evening finished off by a great sunset over the island.

Strahnaver 5 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Sunset Skerray 5 June 2015 (1 of 1)

A walk in the woods

On By Carol HenshawIn Scotland, walksLeave a comment

With the temperature in double figures, sun in the sky and no wind for the first time this week it was definitely a day for a walk. As a change from the beach we did an almost eight mile circuit on tracks and paths in Borgie Forest. There was only one worker there and for most of the way it was just us, bird song and the smell of the conifers. We could hear two cuckoos and numerous other birds. Several wild flowers were on or close to the path.

Borgie Forest Flower 4 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Further south where some trees had been cut, there were good views across to the surrounding hills.

Borgie Forest View 4 4 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Back at the car park we had our picnic by the totem pole (we had not seen one of these since we visited the Totem Pole Park in Oklahoma). Inevitably no wind and being stationary brought out the midges and I got bitten despite slapping on the Deet before we set out. As we drove back the wind reappeared with increasing cloud cover so tomorrow will probably be spent getting organised for the next leg of the trip, to Orkney. Hopefully the forecast rain will allow even a short walk along the Skerray beach.

Borgie Forest totem pole 4 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Bus shelter greenhouse, bookshop and beach

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, Books, bookshops and libraries, ScotlandLeave a comment

This morning we had to go the Thurso for supplies and on the way passed the Skerray bus stop (which I presume is now defunct) and has been converted into a greenhouse.

Bus shelter greenhouse Skerray 3 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Nearer to Thurso We passed Dounreay nuclear power station and I recalled lorries of nuclear waste trundling down the A9 through Dunblane at night heading for reprocessing further south. It appears to be in the process of being closed which will decimate local employment opportunities despite being good for the environment. In Thurso we headed for the first bakery/cafe we saw to top up the caffeine levels and I overheard a conversation between a wiry 60-something cyclist from Northern England and the woman behind the counter. He was trying to offload all his small change but she reminded him that he might like it to weigh him down when battling the wind on his way to Tongue. I could not resist asking him if he had cycled all the way up here but no, he had taken the train to Elgin to stay with a relative and having been to John O’Groats was now heading for Durness and the west coast. I bid him good luck as he would be battling a strong headwind. Indeed we passed him later on as we drove up the hill out of Thurso.

I was very happy to discover that Thurso has a secondhand bookshop and found a first edition of a volume of the New Naturalist series that I collect. After that we left town and headed back along the coast wondering about walking out to the old lighthouse on Strathy Point. Having got as far as the car park the very high winds made it not safe to walk any further out to the end of the point and the lighthouse (only the third time I have abandoned a walk due to wind). Instead we had lunch back at the cottage and a walk on the more sheltered Torrisdale Bay.

Torrisdale Bay 1 3 June 2015 (1 of 1)

Torrisdale Bay 2 3 June 2015 (1 of 1)

A beach and back in time

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, ScotlandLeave a comment

After a slightly later start this morning we visited the Strathnaver Museum in Bettyhill. It is situated in the 18th Century Parish Church of St Columba. Inside the member of staff who greeted us apologised for the lack of heating. I empathised as I do some voluntary work in a secondhand bookshop which is in an old Methodist Church and we have the same problems of heating a large space and fitting around the remaining church furniture. James had asked me why the name of the place ‘Bettyhill’ was so different from the Gaelic name on the road signs. It was named after the Duchess of Sutherland and was developed to house the people evicted from their homes in Strathnaver in the early 19th century. The museum has some neolithic finds but also document the clearances which came late to Sutherland (with contributions from local schoolchildren, videos and other oral history) and also the history and genealogy of the Clan McKay.

Old Croft Window Farr 2 June 2015 (1 of 1)

After a coffee at the nearby cafe which was next to an abandoned croft we then had a walk on Farr Beach. It was empty apart from a dog walker. I found three more pieces of sea glass but before we had finished walking it started to rain so we headed back to the cottage for a lazy afternoon reading in front of the fire.

Farr Beach 2 2 June 2015 (1 of 1)