
From the nearby cairn.
From the nearby cairn.
Some landscape context highlighting the exquisite siting... the ‘fort – centre background right – can be seen to the right of the wondrous Dun Mor from the southern flank of Meall na Suiramach. I don’t believe the foreground height possesses a name? Suffice to say, it deserves one.
Dun Beag from the north descending Dun Mor, following a rather, er, ‘circuitous’ return from the wondrous Dun Vallerian.
Southern flank, looking approx east – all sorts of stuff going on ‘down there’; but then, to be fair, there’s archaeological stuff to be seen in seemingly every corner of Skye.
To the west, looking north toward the impossibly overbearing Dun Mor.
Southern flank...
North flank looking approx east.
And looking outward – better view.....
What I assumed to be the original main entrance to east, from without.
Northern flank, again looking approx west. Bioda Buidhe and the wondrous Cleat are the deceptively diminutive hills.
As one would expect, the main defences are to the north... here looking west(ish). Meall na Suiramach and the legendary rock formations of The Quiraing are shrouded with hill fog.
The fort is centre right
The spectacular landscape context of Dun Beag (far right, to right of Dun Mor). Loch Leum Na Luirginn, with its own small dun, is the background lake. Cleat is the wondrous viewpoint.
Dun Beag, viewed from the road.
The entrance passage to Dun Beag.
Some of the large blocks that line the upper reaches of the entranceway.
Some of the foundation course walling at Dun Beag.
Looking towards Staffin Bay from Dun Beag, where the fort is guarded by steep cliffs.
The grassy summit of Dun Beag.
Some of the copious tumble of blocks on Dun Beag’s western slopes.
The apparently perfectly formed little hill fort can be seen to the right of the aesthetically pleasing Dun Mor, centre right. Viewpoint is Meall na Suiramach, Quiraing.
Visited: May 21, 2017
The fort of Dun Beag lies just over a kilometre due south of Dun Vallerain, and likewise on a steep conical hill. Park beside the cemetery 800 metres west of Brodaig from the A855 (blue marker), walk back up to the Brodaig-Uig road, then turn left and continue for around 400 metres till a gate comes into view on your right. Dun Beag now rears steeply above you and looks impregnable, but a path from the gate heads northwards and contours all of the way round to the west of the hill then leads up easy grassy slopes to the summit (red marker). The ascent is about 100 metres.
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The upper slopes of the hill are covered in tumbled stones that were once the dun’s defensive western wall. The summit is basically a level grassy plain (measuring 37 × 15 metres ) with few redeeming features other than the superb views it provides towards both the sea and the precipices of the Cuiraing. There is a well defined entrance passage bordered by large squared blocks in its upper reaches. To the east and north, the hill falls almost precipitously to the moorlands below and there is little evidence of walling. On the easier western slopes, traces of walling two courses deep can still be identified amongst the tumble. Judging from the quantity of tumbled stones on the western slopes, there must once have been a substantial defensive wall here. In a few places, on the southern and western slopes, intermittent stetches of the foundation course can still be found in situ.
I viewed the Hillfort from the Cairn a short distance to the south.
There was nothing obvious to see other than the Fort occupying a high/tall rock outcrop.
It would take a fair bit of effort to get up there!