Outer Hebrides
We ventured further North, Stornoway being our next destination. Once again Dolphins and all kinds of sea birds kept us company for a long stretch of the way. In the distance we could make out the Shiant Islands, the so called miniature St. Kilda, these westernmost islands of the Hebrides having a mystic appeal to all sailing in this region. The Outer Hebrides can supply for enough islands, islets, lochs and bays for a hole summer of sailing. We wanted to pay some of them at least a short visit.
Lewis and Harris
In Stornoway we hired a car and drove as far south as the amazingly white sand beaches of Luskentyre on the Atlantic coast, a distance of about 70 miles.
It was an exhilarating drive over mountainous Harris and South Lewis, climbing up mountain passes providing for most scenic views, with sheep flocking frightfully close to the roadsides and lochs all around everywhere you look. Large parts of Lewis are heather and marshland, where peat is being cut and stacked for drying. Driving on the narrow winding one-lane roads, that have passing-sites every now and then, was great fun for me.
We paid the village of Geàrrannan a visit, a settlement dating back from the 17th century. Having been inhabited until 1974, it is today a heritage site, preserved to give visitors an impression of the arduous life of the crofters. The people of Geàrraannan had been farming the land and rearing sheep and cattle, without electricity or piped water supply, which came to the village as late as the 1950ies.
On these remote islands we heard people speaking Gaelic for the first time, a language which had been brought here by the Celts. It is still today the first language, whereas on the East Coast of Scotland hardly anybody can speak it anymore.
The friendly gentlemen curating this site, demonstrated for us the workings of this quaint weaving loom, which had been used for weaving the famous Tweed of Harris. To this day this unique and sought-after fabric is being produced on the island, it is used by renowned fashion designers in South England. In order to be sold under the seal of Tweed of Harris, it must be produced here and the wool must come from the sheep of the Hebrides.
Cape Wrath was now looming ahead of us, this awe-inspiring headland on the north-west corner of Scotland.The Clyde Cruising Club Pilot Book describes it like this: Great care must be taken in planning a passage around this major headland. It is totally exposed to north and west and frequently subject to very strong winds which build up huge and dangerous seas. Even in calm weather a large ocean swell is often present….
Ein Gedanke zu „Outer Hebrides“
Beautiful and strange – thanks for keeping us informed!