The Western Isles - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 310

ACCOMMODATION
Coel na Mara 7 Direcleit T 01859 502464, W coelna
mara.com. With your own transport, this secluded B&B,
across the bay from Tarbert, is a good choice: nicely
furnished throughout, with great views over East Loch
Tarbert. The sma llest and cheapest room doesn't have
en-suite facilities. £90
Harris Hotel Scott Rd T 01859 502154, W harrishotel
.com. Just a 5min walk from the harbour, this is Tarbert's
longest-established and largest hotel. It's been refurbished

fairly recently so it's a solid choice, with 23 en-suite rooms,
some with sea views, a nd all with free wi-fi - also serves
food, even on a Sunday. £100
No. 5 hostel 5 Drinishader (Drinisiadar) T 01851
511255, W number5.biz. A converted cottage, 3 miles
south of Tarbert, offering bed linen and laundry service
along with canoes, kayaks and cycl es f for hire. Beds are in
dorms, plus one twin. March-Oct. £20 /person

6

EATING AND DRINKING
First Fruits Pier Road Cottage T 01859 502439.
Very pleasant tearoom behind the tourist o ce, housed
in an old stone-built cottage and serving real coffee,
home-made cakes, toasties and so forth. April & May Mon,
Wed & Fri 10.30am-4pm, Thurs & Sat 10.30am-3pm;

June-Sept Mon-Fri 10am-4pm, Sat 10am-3pm.
Isle of Harris Inn Scott Rd T 01859 502566. A lively
pub, next door to the Harris Hotel , offers very good fish
and chips (under £10) and the occasional seafood special.
Mon-Sat 11am-11pm; food served noon-9.30pm.

North Harris (Ceann a Tuath na Hearadh)
Mountainous North Harris was run like some minor feudal fiefdom until 2003, when
the locals managed to buy the land for a knock-down £2 million. If you're coming
from Stornoway on the A859, it's a spectacular introduction to Harris, its bulging,
pyramidal mountains of ancient gneiss looming over the dramatic fjord-like Loch
Seaforth (Loch Shìphoirt). From ARDVOURLIE (Aird a' Mhulaidh), you weave your way
over a boulder-strewn saddle between mighty Sgaoth Aird (1829ft) and An Cliseam or
the Clisham (2619ft), the highest peak in the Western Isles. This bitter terrain, littered
with debris left behind by retreating glaciers, offers but the barest of vegetation, with an
occasional cluster of crofters' houses sitting in the shadow of a host of pointed peaks,
anywhere between 1000ft and 2500ft high.

The road to Hushinish (Huisinis)
The winding, single-track B887, which clings to the northern shores of West Loch
Tarbert (Loch a Siar), gives easy access to the awesome mountain range of the
(treeless) Forest of Harris to the north. Immediately as you turn down the B887,
you pass through Bunavoneadar (Bun Abhàinn Eadarra), where some Norwegians
established a short-lived whaling station - the slipways and distinctive redbrick
chimney can still be seen. Seven miles further on, you pass Abhainnsuidhe Castle
(pronounced “avan-soo-ee”), designed by David Bryce in Scottish Baronial style in
1865 for the Earl of Dunmore. The main road takes you through right past the front
door, much to the annoyance of the castle's successive owners - as you do, be sure to
admire the lovely salmon-leap waterfalls and pristine castle grounds. It's another five
miles to the end of the road at the small crofting community of Hushinish (Huisinis),
where you are rewarded with a south-facing beach of shell sand that looks across
Hushinish Bay to South Harris.

Scarp
A slipway north of Hushinish Bay serves the nearby island of Scarp , a hulking mass of
rock rising over 1000ft, once home to over two hundred people but abandoned in
1971 (it's now a private holiday hideaway). The most bizarre moment in its history
- subject of the 2002 film he Rocket Post - was undoubtedly in 1934, when the
German scientist Gerhardt Zucher experimented in sending mail by rocket. Zucher
made two attempts at launching his rocket from Scarp, but the letter-laden missile
exploded before it got off the ground, and the idea was shelved.