No time to stop on Eriskay itself though I was tempted to do the short 20 min minor slog up this tiny island’s highest hill, little Beinn Sgritheann. On a day like today, it gives stunning views.
Tempted also to stop at the famed island pub, The Politician, used in the film Whisky Galore which told the story of the SS Politician which ran aground off Eriskay in 1941 and was plundered by islanders for its 50,000 cases of whisky!Due to wartime rationing , whisky was scarce and so the wreck was more than welcomed. One or two original bottles are on show in the bar.
The Prince’s Beach, named after Bonnie Prince Charlie who landed here at the time of the Jacobite rising, is also worth a stroll.
After a brief pull in at the top of the road to look back at the little harbour we’d just arrived at, on we headed, driving through the village, over the long causeway (these are so lovely) and in 5 mins we were on South Uist.Chris calls it God’s Country as he was brought up there.
But our destination tonight was the lovely Langass Lodge hotel on North Uist, a 4 star, traditional lodge in a pretty yet quite wild setting which offers lovely rooms and good food. A short 15 min dampish walk leads to an ancient Stone Circle and great views over Uibhist a Tuath (Gaelic for North Uist.)
No justice done to South Uist this trip either -the photo below shows one of my favourite spots on the island, a few minutes drive from the causeway – South Glendale beach.Gorgeous area when the tide is out.
South Uist is a bit like that for me – there are areas I love and think are so beautiful but there’s a lot that doesn’t attract me in the same way as the other islands.
In fact, I always think that impressions of South Uist (even parts of North Uist and Benbecula) if anyone only drives or cycles up the A865, must be quite poor.Too many houses look unkempt, the land is covered in barbed wire fencing and everything looks faintly untidy somehow, flat as a pancake until the beautiful Ben More group of mountains appears.Only then do things look up.
Ben More itself is a superb hill walk, a tough slog(very boggy at the start but so worth it…ocean all around, islands and lochs and mountains…
It’s well worth going down the lonely Loch Skipport road where the indented coast is stunning with great views to Skye too…
Eagles, red deer, otters, hen harriers…the Outer Hebrides are amazing for wildlife…
The west coast itself, 5 mins drive away, is edged with about 20 miles of white sand beaches backed by, in summer, some lovely wildflower machair and dunes.The east coast of South Uist (Loch Skipport side) is also wonderful – very wild and indented with stunning views to Skye.Only a few roads wind their way down to these remote shores but it’s chalk and cheese scenery-wise, compared to the fertile west side of the island.
We were getting hungry so, after a short visit to the old graveyard at Nunton where my Great Grandparents are buried, we stopped off at the Stepping Stones restaurant in Benbecula.It’s in Balivanich which ain’t pretty, also being an army base and right by the island’s small airport.However, the restaurant was lovely inside with a good menu and I enjoyed some excellent homemade broth with Chris having some a spicy chicken goujons type dish.First visit to this restaurant – would return!
Benbecula does not looking anything very much as you drive through but there are some lovely walks - one of which is another favourite of mine for views over the watery landscape of the Outer Hebrides.This is the short walk up tiny Rueval, Benbecula’s highest hill at just over 100m high! A inauspicious start from the Cleansing Depot , on a good track, leads to a hill path (rough and boggy in places) and in 30 mins or so all in, the summit of this amazing little hill.Views, to me, are sublime.
There are some wonderful views across to Skye from the Benbecula road too…
Over the causeway to Grimsay and North Uist – my spiritual home in many ways…
Eaval also offers a great hill walk on a decent weather day albeit it’s a 4km walk in to the base, in a beautiful area but on a very boggy path.Good boots required! We saw Sea eagles , 🦅 Red Throated Divers and found a Plover’s eggs on our last venture up.
Detail on our hike up Eaval in this report I posted on walkhighlands last year…
The view from the top below…
Before heading for Langass Lodge we continued north on North Uist, driving over the Committee Road which is a short cut to the north west coast.It’s also a good place to see Short Eared Owls and Hen Harriers, though none of these lovely birds were in sight this time.
We hit a bit of an impasse as a herd of sheep were being cajoled along the road by the farmer at Sollas…
We were soon at the parking area near the cemetery at Clachan Sands, very close to the Berneray causeway.A 5 min walk beside a ploughed field, brought us to the magnificent twin crescents of white sands at Lingeigh and Hornish beaches.
Strolled to the end of the beach, only a couple of other people out and about on this cold but sunny afternoon.It all looked so beautiful! It really is one of my favourite places in Scotland.It being winter, the beaches unfortunately get quite a bit of tangle/ seaweed on them which is absent in summer – it comes all the way from the Sargasso Sea!
Summer at neighbouring Hornish beach, which adjoins Lingeigh…
A twenty min drive took us back to Langass Lodge where all seemed very quiet inside.Finally a chap came out, checked us in and we were shown to our upstairs room in the original Lodge.This was really lovely, very attractive, very Scottish, prints of wildlife on the walls but also a ‘modern Scottish’ quality to the décor plus a view out over the garden to the nearby sea loch.
Showered, changed into slightly smarter casual clothes then headed down to eat at 6.30pm.We chose the main dining room rather than the bar/conservatory as there was an extended family in that nice space ( we usually eat in there) and we could hear them even as we came downstairs! I don’t know why some people allow children to talk at the top of their voices or shout in a public space…there’s no way my two boys were allowed to do that when 7 or 8 yrs old or so.People can be so inconsiderate these days. Grumpy old woman rant over…
Dinner as ever was excellent…smoked salmon to start with, then halibut in a tasty, white wine sauce.Chris had a steak, as ever.
Spent the evening catching up on messaging the family, looking at some baby pictures sent to me of my darling wee grandson, read a bit then flaked out by 10pm.Berneray and over to Harris tomorrow, forecast looking good!
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