Northern
Scotland
By the time
we had made it from the Isle of Harris/Lewis to Durness we only had 3 days left
for actual walks, and as the weather was set to remain rather Scottish with
heavy showers and yet more gale force winds, we again decided to stick with the
beach holiday theme.
Arriving in
Durness just after midday we headed straight for the Sango Sands campsite which
is set on the edge of the cliffs above Sango Bay.
 |
| Campervans overlooking the beach |
After lunch
we headed off for a short walk that involved a visit to Smoo cave. Having spent my youth caving in the Yorkshire
Dales, I tend to avoid cave tours, especially if I have to pay. That said I really did enjoy this little trip
and the guy taking us down really knew his stuff. It's only a short trip of
around 20 minutes and if you have never been down a cave it would be a good
introduction. You can of course still go
into the cave without paying, it's just the cave accessed by boat that you pay
£4.00 for. More info in the links below
 |
You can see a quick video of the trip here, or click on the link to watch in another window
Apologies for
my web address appearing throughout the video but a promotion company nicked
parts of my Iceland video off YouTube and used it to promote a car hire
business.
Balnakeil
Bay and Faraid Head
Next morning
was clear so I headed down to the bay just before sunrise. I wasn't alone in my quest for capturing some
nice light and another photographer from Ireland was already setting up further
along the beach. It was a bit difficult
trying to keep out of each other's shots, but even so we both managed to
capture some people free images.
 |
| Sango Bay |
After
breakfast we walked around to Balnakeil Bay to enjoy a circular walk up onto
Faraid Head, returning along the eastern headland.
Balnakeil Bay
is easily accessible and is a short walk I have done numerous times. Each time there is always something
interesting to see or photograph and today was no different.
While messing
about photographing shells and crabs we came across a Dolphin stranded on the
beach about 20 metres into the sea. On
the access to most beaches up here there are signs with phone numbers for the
Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme.
Typically we did not have the number with us, but fortunately while we
were discussing whether to head back along the beach to get it, a couple of
their members turned up. They told us
the person who had called them had also spotted a young dolphin in difficulty
as well. The guys waded into the sea to
check, but sadly there was nothing that could be done for the adult and as the
young dolphin appeared to have headed back into the bay, they dragged the dead
animal ashore.
 |
Leaving the
rescuers waiting for someone to come and do an autopsy we continued our walk,
eventually coming across another dolphin that had been found alive a week or so
ago. Again little could be done for it
and it was put down to end its suffering.
Whether it
was the storms, illness, pollution, or indeed a combination of these factors it
was hard to say, but it was at least heartening to know that there are groups
of people around our coast collecting data in order to understand the problems
facing marine animals. More info via the link.
Leaving the
beach we headed out onto Faraid Head and spotted a seal close to the
shore. A few minutes later we spotted
what we thought was another dolphin in trouble.
It was too far off to photograph, but a look through the binoculars
showed it was actually a dead cow floating in the sea!
 |
| Faraid Head |
 |
| The view from Faraid Head across Balnakeil Bay. More rain on the way. |
Sandwood
Bay
Sandwood Bay,
or to give it its Viking name Sandvatn (Sand and Water) has a lot of myth, legend and
folklore associated with it. Stories of
beautiful mermaids, ship wrecks and the ghostly wanderings of lost sailors all
come together in this wild and remote setting.
It is one of those
beaches that any lover of wild places should visit at least once in their lives and for me it is perhaps the best beach walk in the UK, it's certainly one I
cannot help returning to.
On reaching
the remains of Sandwood Lodge we got our first view of the beach and could see
the tide was almost fully in. Despite still
being at least a kilometer away, we could hear the constant rumble of large
waves pounding the shoreline.
On the beach
itself any ideas of wandering barefoot along the tide line were soon
quashed. In fact due to the sloping
nature of the beach it was pretty dodgy walking 20 or thirty feet above it due
to the fact some of the larger waves would race up the sand way beyond what
appeared to be the high point. Some waves
even managed to sneak up from behind due to the way the sand was deposited
around the rocks in the centre. It was, both exhilarating and downright scary at
the same time.
Heading north
we did harbour thoughts of extending the walk to the Strathchailleach
bothy, but the river outlet from Sandwood Loch was in spate and being pushed back
inland by the force of the incoming tide.
With no way of crossing we turned tail and headed back along the beach
to enjoying the spectacle of Am Buachaille appearing above waves, the tops of
which were shredded and blown back out to sea by the strong wind.
Don't let anyone tell you there is no such thing as
wilderness left in the UK, anyone who visits a place like this, on a day like
this and is left unmoved has a soul that has long since passed away. This really is a wonderfully wild place and
it was with something of a heavy heart that we left and headed back to the
vans.
Red Point
On the way home we stopped off at Gairloch, and yes you
guessed it, yet another storm rolled in.
Pouring rain and strong winds which made the van rock so violently I
actually felt queasy came in during the night.
Fortunately it had blown through by mid-morning and we headed out for a
wander around Red Point.
I nearly did
not bother writing about this walk as I found it pretty depressing due to the
amount of plastic rubbish littering the shores.
The vast majority of this rubbish clearly relates to the fishing
industry with crates, nets and rope all littering the shoreline. We picked up quite a bit and moved some of it
together before placing rocks on top to stop it getting back into the sea. In reality though it was a futile gesture and
I really am ashamed to be a part of a species that does this to the planet.
Travelling does have its negatives when you see things like this, but then again it is about much more than just having fun and ticking off sights and experiences. It should inform, educate and occasionally make you question yourself. This little trip certainly had all of this and more.
All text and images copyright David Forster www.bluestoneimages.com
