South Uist walks

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Loch Druidibeag walk

On our recent venture to South Uist we spent most of our time walking on both Uists and Eriskay, mostly routes we had done on our 2018 visit, but some new ones. Where a walk is repeated I have added a link to the original post in the title and tried to vary my images this time. These are the South Uist walks.

Loch Druidibeag

This was a familiar walk from the RSPB carpark on a small B road at Loch Druidibeag. We took part of the Hebridean Way across the moors to the main road and the east coast machair which we followed back round to the B road junction, returning along it to the car.

When we arrived, the only other occupant of the carpark was Rosie, an enormous Swiss ex-army truck. This was not our only sighting of Rosie, but we never met her humans.

Rosie
Whole lotta Rosie
Rosie

We went in the opposite direction to the RSPB Bird of Prey Trail, but I liked its sign.

Outer Hebrides Bird of Prey Trail sign
Outer Hebrides Bird of Prey Trail sign

This memorial would not have been here on our last visit. A lovely place to be commemorated.

Memorial to Ian MacDonald
Memorial to Ian MacDonald

Andrew has taught me to enjoy a good washing line, and I wonder if this house will ever be reclaimed from the sheep?

South Uist washing line
South Uist renovations

And finally, a scarekite, if that’s a word, and one of many examples of abandoned farm machinery which I find quite artistic. I suppose it’s expensive to get things off the islands: wrecked cars are also a common sight.

Scarekite
Farm machinery graveyard

Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile and Ormacleit

We had done the first part of this walk before, out to the headland of Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile, South Uist’s most westerly point. As we approached the trig point a large dark shape became apparent – yes, it was Rosie!

Anabel at Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile
Rosie at Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile

This time we extended our walk along the beautiful beach to the north as far as Ormacleit.

Walking to Ormacleit
Walking to Ormacleit
Walking to Ormacleit
Walking to Ormacleit
Walking to Ormacleit

At Ormacleit there is a “castle”, basically just an old ruin behind a farmhouse. From here we returned inland through fields to St Mary’s Church where the car was parked. Last time, the church was open and we were able to look round. This time, unfortunately, it was locked.

Ormacleit Castle
Looking across fields to St Mary’s Church

Loch Eynort & Cladh Hallan

Two separate walks which, coincidentally, we seem to have done on the same day on our last stay.  On the shores of Loch Eynort one local man, Archie MacDonald, has planted over 100,000 trees and provided 5 km of pathways through his croft at Arinaban providing some very pretty views.

Croft map
Loch Eynort from Arinaban Woodland
Loch Eynort from Arinaban Woodland

As we drove south to visit the standing stone at Polochar we got held up behind a large vehicle – Rosie of course! From where she turned off we think she was heading to Eriskay for the ferry – we certainly never saw her again.

Rosie on the road
Standing stone at Polochar

After lunch we headed for Cladh Hallan, a circular walk with remains of Bronze Age houses.

Wheelhouse, possibly 200 AD
Cladh Hallan Bronze Age houses

However, as with the walk at Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile, the most spectacular part was along the beach. So much of the west coast of South Uist looks like this – it’s stunning.

South Uist beach
South Uist beach
South Uist beach
South Uist beach
South Uist beach
South Uist beach

As an added bonus, towards the end of the walk we had a graveyard to explore. The first stone in the gallery is Mrs Mackinnon, our B&B hostess on our very first visit to South Uist in 1989. We knew she had died just before our second visit in 2018 so were glad to find her again.

Cemetery gates
Mrs Mackinnon
General view
Metal grave marker
Anchors – one sunken
Red gravestones
General view

A few extras

These are not from walks, but from stops on the way to and from walks.

Flora Macdonald’s birthplace:

Flora MacDonald’s Birthplace
Flora MacDonald’s Birthplace
Flora MacDonald’s Birthplace
Flora MacDonald’s Birthplace

Home of the “French MacDonalds” and the interior of the small church nearby:

The French MacDonalds
The French MacDonalds
St Joseph’s RC Church

A roadside memorial to two bards, and a panel from Kildonan Museum which gave me food for thought (enlarge to read more):

There is always a danger that history comes to mean the past, as opposed to an interpretation of the past.

Memorial to Donald John MacDonald and Donald MacIntyre
Between memory and desire

Our Lady of the Isles:

Our Lady of the Isles
Our Lady of the Isles

As well as South Uist, we also spent a couple of days walking in North Uist and – coming up next – a day in Eriskay.

Linked to Jo’s Monday Walk.

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63 Comments »

  1. Pingback: Summary – October to December 2024 and 2025 wishes – Our Lake District Escapades

  2. Hi Anabel – having only just got to this one … I see Rosie is a ‘furriner’?? But fun seeing her out and about – pity you weren’t able to meet her owners. I love the runnels on the beach … so much change when the tide goes in and out – it looks a glorious place to visit and walk, especially with warm clothes! Also that washing line … good stories – cheers Hilary

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  3. How did I manage to miss this? The scenery is lovely and I could quite happily live beside any one of those beaches. Seeing Rosie in several different places but never seeing her owners reminds me of the 1971 suspense film Duel where a travelling salesman is constantly terrorised on the highway by a truck but you never see its driver.

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  8. I would have loved to have seen a photo of the people who drive Rosie around! I can’t imagine trying to navaigate something that large. And the photos of the beach are stunning!

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  10. 3rd time writing and hopefully, it takes. I love the dreamlike look of this place you visited. It has a sense of Sadness but it’s just so beautiful. Love the cemeteries and would be looking around them and read the names. I’ve had a couple of blec h months but I hope not to be MIA here.

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  11. The scenic walks, from the peaceful Loch Druidibeag to the rugged beaches of Rubha Aird a’ Mhuile, make me want to pack my hiking boots and head there myself. I love how you’ve captured the unique charm of the island, from the lonely Swiss truck Rosie to the stunning, often hidden treasures like the Bronze Age houses at Cladh Hallan. Your writing paints such a vivid picture of the landscapes and the history. I can only imagine how peaceful and inspiring these walks must have been. Looking forward to reading more about your adventures on Eriskay!

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  17. Love all your cloudscapes photos. The skies are huge and the land looks quite barren, bleak and lonely- not sure it would be somewhere I’d like to live!

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  24. So many beautiful views, especially the coastal ones! And I was very much taken with your point about the ‘danger that history comes to mean the past, as opposed to an interpretation of the past’

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