Summer 2022: Uig walks
Gallan Head on the Aird Peninsula
On our first full day in Lewis, a Sunday, we had arranged to meet Simon, a friend and former colleague of John’s who had recently moved to the island. Most places on Lewis don’t open on Sundays, so we headed for the one place we knew we could get lunch, The Edge Café at Gallan Head. This amazing place is run single-handedly by Fiona L’Estrange who cooks everything from scratch when you order, so it’s not for those in a hurry and it’s advisable to arrive soon after opening to get a seat. We had a great lunch, but before that, John and I went for a walk out to the headland.
Gallan Head, the village, is a strange looking place. It’s a hangover from the time it was home to an RAF station which closed in the 1970s, after which it lay derelict for many years. In 2016 a community trust was able to buy the headland, including the area where the camp was, and it is slowly coming back to life. It wasn’t very nice weather when we were up there, but it still had a bleak beauty to it.
Mangersta (Mangurstadh)
After leaving Simon we drove back past our own road end and continued to Mangersta where we did a lovely circular cliff walk – but first we admired the local sense of humour.
A few shots of the walk are shown below, and Mangersta cliff-top also features in the post-header.
Mealasta
Another morning, we drove past Mangersta to the road end at Breinis, currently the full-stop for human habitation in Uig. However, a track leads on for another couple of miles passing three rocky beaches, the ruins of Mealasta, a deserted village whose inhabitants were forced out in 1838, and a pile of rocks thought to be the site of a pre-Reformation nunnery. This would have been quite a bleak place to live, I think.
Uig Sands
After a chilly lunch on one of the little beaches above we drove back to our own area and went for a walk on Uig Sands, a golden contrast to the pebbles of Mealasta.
We detoured onto the road in the hope of a coffee at the Uig Community Centre tearoom, but it was shut for a family wedding. However, outside we made the acquaintance Of Leif Erikson, the first recorded European to set foot on American shores, who spent time in the Outer Hebrides. He stands alongside one of the outsize Lewis Chessmen which are dotted around the area, the originals having been found nearby.
Valtos (Bhaltos) peninsula
Our final Uig walk was around the Valtos peninsula, which juts into Loch Roag (Ròg), mainly on the 6-mile circular road but sometimes on beautiful beaches. (Valtos is a Norse name meaning “sheepfold on the mouth of the river”.) We noted with amusement that our guidebook recommended a clockwise route for “the best views”, while the local map we had purchased recommended an anti-clockwise route for the same reason: we stuck with local advice and set off anti-clockwise from the car park at Tràighe na Cliobhe (Cliff Beach) near the head of the peninsula.
Walking back the way we had driven, the road took us along Loch Sgalleir before sweeping left and climbing above Loch Roag.
At Reef (Riof) we visited An Suileachan, a monument commemorating the land raiders of the early 20th century and celebrating the peninsula’s move to community ownership in 1998. The bench proved to be a good place for a picnic.
A little further round the coast we left the road again to take a rocky path up a narrow valley past the remains of four Norse watermills.
The valley led up to a small, marshy plateau by Loch Barabhat complete with Iron Age fort. From here we turned and retraced our steps down to Reef Beach (also known as Tràighe na Beirigh, or Beach of the Fort).
Between the road and the beach, the wildflowers were out in abundance on the machair. It was also a tad windy as you can see by the flag! And despite the deserted appearance, there was quite a busy campsite here.
Our final detour off the road was down to Valtos Pier where some of the boats seemed beyond redemption.
Finally, we swung back round towards Tràighe na Cliobhe where we had left our car.
The day after this walk, we left Lewis. However, I have missed out two walks from our week’s stay because they took place outwith Uig. Great Bernera and the Butt of Lewis will have to wait for another post.
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
What a place! I’d love to do some more exploring in Scotland and her islands, posting order rolls in soon and we have asked for a certain Scottish posting. The Mangersta water spout made me smile, although if you came upon it and didn’t know it, could be a bit unnerving.
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Ooh, I hope you get back to Scotland. Best place to be – not that I’m biased of course. There is obviously at least one person with a weird sense of humour in Mangersta!
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Looks like you packed a lot of lovely walks in during your trip to Uig! The memorial sounds very moving.
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Yes, we did, we had a great week, thanks!
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Hi Anabel – some chilly walks – I guess you have to be reasonably lucky with the weather. Amazing to be shown the area – thank you. Beautiful I imagine with the sun out – but no less beautiful in the harsher conditions. Cheers Hilary
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Even when the sun was out, it was still quite cool, but that’s what we expect and we dress accordingly (except for when john decides to go swimming in the sea which he did several times!)
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Oh good heavens … I’m shivering at the thought … good for him – I have a cousin who when she’s down for the tennis goes off into the sea every night … not me!! Cheers H
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Not me either!
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You had some beautiful walks in remote areas and, like you, I don’t think I could live there. It’s just so nice to see the pictures
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Beautiful for a week. Must be wild in winter.
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That sign post is great – the creator must have had some fun. And isn’t the scenery gorgeous, even if it was a bit windy.
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Definitely someone with a quirky sense of humour!
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Anabel, I could endure windburn with no burning sun to clamber around Mealasta and Mangurstadh. A bonus having quirky art to photograph.
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I’m glad you see the appeal!
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I certainly do and wished we had spent more time in Scotland and headed in that direction.
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I just love the islands. You might have noticed!
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Just a bit.
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😀
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Goodness, there’s certainly plenty of interesting bits and pieces to find on walks in Uig. Lewis looks as beautiful as North Uist. Which do you prefer?
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Hard to say! Probably Uist (North and especially South). However, I feel we’ve explored everything there quite thoroughly and there are areas of Lewis we haven’t touched yet, so I might be more inclined to go back there first.
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