Introduction

Welcome to the third page of my tour of the Isles of Lewis and Harris.

North Lewis

Heading out of Stornoway in a north-westerly direction on the A857, you cross over the barren landscape of the peat bogs to the west coast of the isle. While unimpressive to the visitor, one can not underestimate the importance of the peat to the locals as an energy resource. Piles of  rectangular bricks of peat can often been seen on the moors drying for use as domestic fuel. I have to say, there is nothing like the smell of a peat fire burning.

Carrying on up the road at Barvas (Barabhas) towards Port Nis you'll find the Morven Art Gallery, which is also home to a cafe that's a good place to take a break during bad weather (which we needed as we toured this area on our worst day weather wise). While the pictures were nice, they were out of our price range. However, don't let this stop you visiting to have a look at the pictures yourself and take moment for quiet contemplation. You might even be tempted to treat yourself.

A few miles further up the road is one of the tallest standing stones you'll ever see, Clach an Truiseil. At around 6 metres tall, this has to be one of the tallest standing stones in the UK. In fact along this road there are numerous heritage sites that can be visited for those interested in history. (And those who get the good weather).

Just beyond Shader (Saider) is Borgh Pottery, which is well worth a look. Again, this is somewhere to shelter from bad weather (ideal for us again).

A short distance from Port Nis, is the museum come cafe come community centre at Tabost. Also, with access to the internet, we found this a good place to check our e-mails, which cost us £1 per hour. We didn't think we'd need an hour, but having gotten used to broadband now, we'd forgotten how slow dial-up can be. Once again, this is an ideal place to visit in bad weather, and the museum is interesting if you get the time to look around and read the documents (in other words, don't visit with kids that get bored very easily).

A top end of the Isle of Lewis, is the Butt of Lewis (Rubha Robhanais) lighthouse. Perched on sheer cliffs alive with birds, the lighthouse makes an impressive end to the journey up the isle. It's only a shame that it's not open to the public. However, a short distance back from the lighthouse is a small sandy bay (Port Sto) which can be accessed down a small track, and is a nice sheltered spot for a picnic if you get the weather.

Because the weather was bad when we visited this part of the Isle, we didn't get out and stroll along the sand dunes at Europaidh. Also, we couldn't have a walk around Port Nis either with it's harbour and beach. In fact, the oppressing weather made the area feel very bleak, which I'm sure it isn't.

Port Nis is also where the heritage trail along the east coast of Lewis from Traigh Ghearadha (page 2) ends up.

North and South Lochs

To the south of Stornoway are the areas of North and South Lochs.

Both of these areas aren't really geared up for tourists, as they only offer quiet roads and beautiful scenery. However, if you want to see some birds of prey or other wildlife, this makes them ideal areas to tour, South Lochs in particular.

The road to the South Lochs (B8060) does have a youth hostel at Cearsiadair that also acts as a cafe and community shop. Have a bite to eat, visit the toilets and stock up while you can.

Just a short way down from the South Lochs junction with the Stornoway to Tarbert road is the Memorial Cairn to the Pairc Deer Raiders. To quote the text at the site, the monument was erected in memory of the people of Lochs who challenged the authority of the state in order to focus public attention on the poverty and injustice they suffered under the oppression of heartless landlords who dispossessed their forebears from over thirty villages in the Park.

Well that concludes page 3 of my tour of the Isles. Click here for Page 4.

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All the pictures on this page were taken by myself.. Larger versions of the photos are available if you wish to use them for a project or web page yourselves. You are free to do this, but please mention this web page as the source for the photos. Thanks for your cooperation..