The Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides
Sightseeing on Mountainous Hebridean Island with Strict Sabbath
Jul 6, 2009
Thirty miles west of the Scottish mainland, the Isle of Lewis, as it is mainly known, is one of Britain’s furthest-flung outposts. Arriving in Stornaway, capital of Lewis, visitors immediately sense the island's other-worldliness. It has few cars or people and miles of untouched countryside.
Isle of Lewis and Harris Tweed
Only the northern end is actually the Isle of Lewis.
The south is the Isle of Harris, home of Harris Tweed. They are linked by a scenic road through brooding mountains which, until it was built, separated the two ‘isles’ as effectively as the sea.
Lewis’ Peat Moors and Rugged Coastline
Everywhere the scenery is awe-inspiring. Inland there are vast unpopulated peat moors which have a wild desolate beauty. The coastline, backed by mountains, is rugged, particularly on the western side where the high dramatic cliffs and rocky coves are pounded by Atlantic rollers
The mountainous hillsides, lakes and valleys are often only accessible on foot, offering remote and challenging opportunities for activities like walking or mountain biking. The Isle is also popular for sea and loch fishing.
Lewis and Harris Closed on the Sabbath
An important aspect of Lewis and Harris is that both are strictly religious. So on Sundays. everything apart from hotel restaurants and a couple of pubs is closed for the Sabbath, though there are now, after much controversy, flights and ferry services from the mainland.
So on the Sabbath this alluring island feels at its most other-worldly compared with the rest of the United Kingdom.
Arnol Black House Museum and Gerrannan Cove Crofting Villlage
On the west coast the Arnol Black House museum, housed in a traditional thatched cottage, shows how hard and frugal life on Lewis was until well into the 20th-century. When the last occupants of the building moved out in the 1960s, they left behind their simple wooden furniture and basic utensils. Bunk beds behind curtains occupy one end while the other, strewn with straw, housed their animals.
Houses were called ‘black’ as everything inside was blackened by the ‘central heating’ - a smoky peat fire in the centre of the single main room.
Gearrannan Crofting Village
Further south down the west coast at Gearrannan, originally a traditional crofting village, a group of cottages has been imaginatively updated for self-catering holidays.
While retaining original features like dry-stone walls and thatched roofs, they have modern central heating, comfortable bedrooms and smart bathrooms and kitchens.
Callanish Standing Stones Beside Loch Roag
Nearby, silhouetted on a forlorn moorland beside Loch Roag, with brooding mountains all around, the Callanish Standing Stones, a group of 48 slim tall megaliths, are arranged in concentric circles. The central one is over 15 feet high.
Dating back 5000 years, the stones are an awesome sight, forming one of the most complete prehistoric sites in Britain. To anyone wandering amongst them, they evoke a feeling of inexplicable mystery. Noone can fail to be humbled by the thought of the skill and effort which must have gone into their creation and erection. A Visitor Centre offers some answers to their tantalizing origins.
Lewis' Capital, Stornaway, Where Visitors Can Enjoy Fresh Locally-Caught Fish
Lewis’ tiny capital, Stornaway, where visitors arrive from the mainland either by air or the ferry from Ullapool (a 2-hours 40-minute crossing) has an old-fashioned air. Radiating from its small port is a handful of narrow streets with small shops, cafes, a theatre and several pubs.
On the edge of the town, Solas in the 3-star Cabarfeidh Hotel is one of several first-class restaurants which take advantage of having plenty of fresh locally-caught fish to offer. Depending on the season, scallops, prawns, lobsters, oysters and salmon are on menus, often served together on a large platter. Fish is also served in soups and exotic sauces as well as smoked.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
