North Uist: walks and exhibitions

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Beinn Scolpaig

Post box at Loch Scolpaig

North Uist and South Uist (with Benbecula in between) are joined by causeways so it was easy to do walks on both islands during our stay in South Uist. This one, Beinn Scolpaig, was new to us, though we had stopped to admire the folly in the loch on a previous trip. It’s a circular walk, just shy of 4 miles (6km).

We parked above Loch Scolpaig, near this very pretty post-box, and took a farm track past the tower towards some abandoned farm buildings (which we explored on the way back). Veering to the right of these, we passed Scolpaig Bay before going through a gate and climbing the small hill (288ft / 88m) of Beinn Scolpaig.

Loch and Tower, Scolpaig
Scolpaig Bay
Climbing above Scolpaig Bay

From this point, the walk was pathless, and could be quite boggy in places which produced a bit of cursing from one member of the party, but we arrived at the trig point without mishap.

Boggy ground
Trig point
Anabel at trig point

Looking down, we could see a pebbly beach which we headed for next. We had a seat here on the interesting rocks, which I think might be Lewisian gneiss with later, darker intrusions, and admired the weird effect of the pebbles. We could have been at the edge of the world!

Looking down from Beinn Scolpaig
Birds on the rocks
Possibly Lewisian gneiss
Possibly Lewisian gneiss
Pebble beach

We then climbed over a headland with good views and a geo before heading back down to the old farm. Spot the little red figure trudging up the hill (me)!

Anabel climbing, pebble beach in the background
View from Caisteal Odair
Coastline at Caisteal Odair
Geo
Abandoned farm

The farmhouse has seen better days, but I’m sure I won’t be the only one to enjoy its air of dilapidation. From here we made our way back past the tower to the car.

Abandoned farm house
An ex-gate
Dilapidated door

Balranald

Balranald is an RSPB Nature Reserve which we walked around on our last visit (3.6 miles / 5.75km). I noted then that we saw more cows than birds – this time we didn’t even see cows! It was bitterly cold and started to rain towards the end, but that had the bonus of a beautiful rainbow.

Taigh Iar
Taigh Iar
Monach Isles in distance
Loch a’ Roe
Rocky beach
Eilean Trostain
Rainbow
John and rainbow

Taigh Chearsabhagh

Not a walk, but somewhere we popped into at the end of our walks. Taigh Chearsabhagh is a small museum and arts centre in Lochmaddy, North Uist’s main village. It has a very welcome café and we also enjoyed their exhibits. I was particularly taken with the art quilts which decorated the café wall. These resulted from a stitching retreat in summer 2023 when first timers to the island responded  to what they saw. I could have photographed them all but restricted myself to two and the poster which gives some idea of the stunning colours.

Exhibition poster
Island Inspiration by Christina Faull
Memories of the Outer Hebrides by Ann Diggory

The concept of 20:20 Print Exchange is so complex I can only refer you to the poster for an explanation. The prints were varied and interesting.

Poster
One wall of prints

Finally, we enjoyed Where the sea meets the road: John Macdonald Calmac Collection. CalMac (formerly known as Caledonian MacBrayne) has its roots in a steamer company founded more than 150 years ago by David MacBrayne, and is still the main source of transportation to and from the Western Isles. John MacDonald started collecting CalMac items as a schoolboy and many of them are on display in the museum along with a set of wall panels with warts-and-all memories from passengers and crew. CalMac is not without its problems as you will learn in my final section!

CalMac exhibition in Lochmaddy
MacBrayne’s poem

I love the MacBrayne’s poem:

Unto the Lord belongs the Earth and all that it contains

Except the Kyles and Western Isles for they belong to Macbrayne’s

Lochmaddy Marina and Ferry Terminal

Lochmaddy Marina

We travelled to South Uist on Saturday 21st September via the ferry from Uig in Skye to Lochmaddy. On Saturday 29th we were scheduled to take the ferry from Lochboisdale in South Uist to Mallaig on the mainland where we had three nights booked in a hotel. My plan was, weather permitting, to use the time to visit Eigg, one of the Small Isles. Unfortunately, my plans and CalMac’s did not coincide.

Ferry ahoy!

The company has notorious difficulties at the moment with an ageing fleet which keeps breaking down and replacement boats that are way overdue. On Tuesday evening, being a cautious type, I checked the CalMac app. About an hour previously an announcement had gone up that the Lochboisdale ferry was being taken off with immediate effect and redeployed to another island. CalMac would contact people in date order – which meant there would be three days worth of passengers to deal with before they got to us. After a moment of panic we decided to take matters into our own hands, and by the time we went to bed that night we had rearranged both ferry and hotel. Thus it was that we found ourselves back at Lochmaddy Ferry Terminal for an unscheduled return to Skye.

Ferry approaching
Ferry docking
Car deck opening

So that’s what’s coming up next! An unexpected stay in Portree.

Scotland, UK , , , ,

48 Comments »

  3. Oh I hope the calmac ferries sort themselves out. They are so essential to the islands. I didn’t know they were having trouble. Love the shot of all the comerants.

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  4. Pingback: This week’s small pleasures #418 – Thistles and Kiwis

  5. Two beautiful walks, the walk around Beinn Scolpaig looks especially lovely. I’m always slightly disappointed when I go to an RSPB nature reserve and don’t see many birds. There’s one not far from me but all I’ve ever seen there are ducks, swans and seagulls!

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  6. I absolutely loved travelling with you to North Uist. The beaches and sea colour are gorgeous and the whole area looks so beautiful. I hope one day I will be able to visit it.

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  8. So much beautiful scenery in this post. I had to laugh at the picture of you in the distance in your red coat, still making your way. It’s like that for us too. Glen goes way faster than I do usually and we tend to walk at our own pace.

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  10. It looks extremely flat on that island Anabel. Not a hill in sight in your photos ☹️
    I’d love to explore the Hebrides more, but three things put me off; the weather, the midges and the unreliability of the ferries.

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    • The east coast of South Uist is more hilly but not sure it would satisfy you! No midges at the end of September when we went, but as for the ferries – what can I say? It’s a gamble, but hopefully better next year when at least one of the two boats being built in Port Glasgow should be in service. Should …

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  11. You are certainly both adventurous when it comes to remote islands. We always watched the long range weather forecast very closely before any trip out there as we ( i.e the hill-walking club) would have considered it a wasted journey if we’d had poor weather conditions on arrival. Didn’t always work out that way though. Bob. BSS

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  12. Your first grouping has a photo of red rocks arising from the gravel that makes me think of a fossilized sea mammal (dolphin?). The Print Exchange reminds me of an art sale in Portland, Oregon I went to one year. Artists were given three plywood squares to create art (mostly paintings, but a few were thee-dimensional), an all would be sold during the public event for $40 each and frames for $10 more. Each piece was randomly placed, so if you wanted one particular artist, you’d have to scan the entire space (about 5 rooms). I still have the three I bought on my walls. It was hard to choose! A madhouse sort of art sale, but fun.

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    • A knowledge of the islands was a big help! I feel sorry for all the businesses on both island and mainland who find themselves disrupted by this problem over and over again. Still, at least one new ferry almost ready for delivery so 🤞🏻things will improve.

      The quilts were amazing, and you are right, it was interesting to read the quilters’ impressions of the island and what particularly inspired them.

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    • We could have tried to work that, but it would just have been postponing the problem. That ferry was gone for weeks! Also, because we made a snap decision right away we didn’t lose any money on the Mallaig hotel because we cancelled before payment kicked in. I feel sorry for them, they must have lost a lot of business with people caught in the same trap.

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  17. You are definitely organised, Anabel. I love the rocks you’ve been showing us, and the landscape generally – I’m a big fan of Bleak. That little museum looks quite a treasure (and a good place to retreat from the cold!)

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  18. It’s such a shame that the farmhouse has been abandoned. If it’s uneconomical to farm the land I’m surprised no one’s turned it into a holiday let. It’s in a beautiful spot.

    The quilts are fabulous. I dabbled a bit when I was young. It’s very creative work.

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  20. These walks are gorgeous! I love the wild, windswept nature of them, and the rainbow too. Even though the weather looks gloomy, it only adds to the mood and atmosphere. And I always love a quilt exhibit, especially as I was a quilter back in the day! 🙂

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  23. I love abandoned farmhouses. I wonder how much the tourist industry has been hit by Calmac. I’m fortunate in that I have all the time in the world, but I can never rely 100% on the ferries and always have to work around them, keeping my plans flexible. I imagine many others are put off.

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    • I imagine quite a lot. I remember saying at the beginning of the year that wherever we went it shouldn’t be on a CalMac ferry! And look what happened. We were ok because we knew what we were doing and were able to sort it out ourselves, but for someone coming from abroad who didn’t know Scotland it would have been much more difficult.

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