Kammer

Visited 6th August 2004: This is an easy site to find thanks to the Halfway Garage. My visit was extremely brief because we were pressed for time, but to be honest there isn’t a great deal of ambience to be soaked up here.

Visited 6th August 2004: Relatively easy to find if you have the grid reference or some local knowledge, but we had neither. It took a while to track down Creed Lodge, but once we’d found that is was easy. Watch out for the traffic though!

Visited 6th August 2005: This site isn’t acknowledged by everyone as prehistoric, but having read about it and spoken to Margaret Ponting about it, I was curious. Cnoc Sgeir na h-Uidhe (pronounced kroc skayth na hoo-ya) is on the way to Na Dromannan:

Starting from the A858, park in the lay-by nearest to Cnoc Fillibhear Bheag. Cross the road and follow it, heading away from Calanais, until you are past the cottages on your left (I think you may cross over a cattle grid, but I’m not 100% sure). Here there’s a gate taking you into a small paddock on the other of which is another gate. From this point on you’re in open countryside.

At this point work your way onto the rocky outcrop behind the cottages, and this is where you’ll find Cnoc Sgeir na h-Uidhe. Don’t expect to find it easily!

Visited 3rd and 6th August 2004: Lou and I visited Na Dromannan on two occasions, partly because I left the camera in the car on the first visit, but also because we were bowled over by the stones and their location.

It’s such a peaceful spot up on the hill overlooking the other big Callanish sites (most clearly Calanais itself). We took the opportunity to sit in quiet contemplation (in a Swarth Fell stylee). You’ve got to make this little pilgrimage if you’re able!

This route is not very exact, so use it as an aide rather than relying on it. I’ve based it on memory and some photos that I took. I wouldn’t recommend the walk for anyone with limited mobility. Pushchairs or wheelchairs are out of the question because of the frequently changing levels of peat. Good footwear with ankle support is advisable, and if it’s been raining be ready to get wet feet.

Starting from the A858, park in the lay-by nearest to Cnoc Fillibhear Bheag. Cross the road and follow it, heading away from Calanais, until you are past the cottages on your left (I think you may cross over a cattle grid, but I’m not 100% sure). Here there’s a gate taking you into a small paddock on the other of which is another gate. From this point on you’re in open countryside.

Keeping to the east of the little hill behind the cottages you should find a peat cutters track. This track starts off being well defined, but very uneven, leading off to the north-east. You can follow the path for about half a mile before it becomes almost impossible to distinguish from the heather and peat. At this point you should change course and head north towards high ground. You should have the lake off to your right at the point when you change course.

This is where the going get tougher. You’ll find yourself going from one heather covered island of peat to another. The ‘valleys’ between each island can get very wet very quickly if it rains. Wherever possible keep on the high ground. The first ‘bump’ to aim for has a couple of distinctive boulders on the summit which make it quite distinctive. Once you’re on the top of that you can potentially see the bump that Na Dromannan sits on. We were lucky because the spoil heaps from the archaeological dig made for an excellent target, but once they’re gone it could be tricky finding the site without a GPS or some top notch map reading.

Visited 2nd August 2004: We parked by the Bernera Bridge information board and walked back across the bridge to Iarsiadar. There’s a gate by the road giving access into the field where the stone now stands. The climb up to the stone isn’t too steep, but there’s no path as such.

When you’re up by the stone you just have to imagine that you’re a few metres further west than you actually are.

Visited 2nd August 2004: Just as enigmatic as I’d anticipated, Bernera Bridge is a weird old thing. It’s situation above the channel of Sruth Iarsiadar is a great sensory bonus. The reflection of light (even on a dull day), the sound of the sea, the distant views, and even the modern bridge make it a great spot.

Long before the bridge this was a crossing point to Bernera, but what would it have looked like during the Neolithic? The sea levels were lower, so what did this spot represent to the people who put up the stones?

The Bernera Bridge ‘circle’ could be a lot more accessible than it is, given how close it is to the road. A steep gravel slope leads up to the site, so not ideal for anyone who’s got limited mobility.

Visited 2nd August 2004: The first site of the day, it was good to meet Ceann Hulavig in the flesh. Shame that the weather wasn’t great, but you can’t have everything. We were pressed for time (not recommended) and so any scope for chilling out and enjoying the place was rather limited. Would have liked to have made a second visit in the sunshine.

Visited 4th August 2004: We started off trying to get a view of Clach Stei Lin from the village of Siadar Uarach. You can see it from the end of the cul-de-sac that lies to the north west of the stone, but it’s not a great view.

In the end I approached on foot from the track to the south west of the stone, leaving Louise in the car. At the site there are two obvious stones, one standing (which we’d seen from the village) and the other, much smaller, lieing prone just to the north.

This is one of those places where you know very few people visit, despite being relatively close to the road. If these stones were in souther England they’d be litterred with rubbish and graffiti, but here on Lewis they represent a relatively minor site.

Vive l’indifférence!

Visited 5th August 2004: This is an interestingly placed site. It’s effectively become a garden feature, but it’s a well kept garden, and when we visited the owner was very friendly. She was happy for us to take a look at the stones from the garden side of the boundary.

If you visit, please ask before entering the garden area or taking photos from inside the garden. It would be a shame to upset the people who look after this site, especially as they are so congenial.

Coir Fhinn may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I rather liked it. Well worth taking a look at if you’re in the area visiting other sites.

Visited 5th August 2004: We approached this one all wrong. It was entirely my fault as well. We parked on the wrong side of the stream near the picnic area, and had to paddle across where the water was shallow. Then we worked our way up the headland, past some serious sand extraction quarries, up to the top then down towards Clach Mhic Leòid. It was an interesting route, but not ideal for the kids. There was a fence to get over before we got to the stone, and at this point I realised we should have done it all differently (presumably parking near the cattle grid).

The stone is big and macho. The views are splendid, but we weren’t blessed with sunshine. There’s a weird sort of notch in the top of the stone (like an inverted arrow), and I couldn’t help but wonder whether it’s an original feature. It could equally be the result of a lightning strike. A ‘must see’ if you’re on Harris, but not as charming as Sgarasta.

Visited 5th August 2004: On the Ordnance Survey map Sgarasta looks pretty accessible, sitting as it does just off the A859. I hadn’t anticipated the cows though. The farmer had kindly placed a ‘Beware Highland Cattle’ sign on the gate as a warning, but the presence of the cows on the other side of the wall rendered it unnecessary.

In the sunshine the stone and the views looked gorgeous, and I wasn’t about to back down. The cows watched me intently as I climbed over the gate and after a moment of hesitation I decided not to run for the stone. I casually strolled in a respectful arc around the cattle and kept up the same sort of pace until I got to the stone (it unnerved me having my back to them).

What a great stone! What a great view. The mountains and the sand make for a staggering back-drop. I nearly forgot about my bovine audience. Despite the road, this place has a real feeling of solitude. Not much time to enjoy the ambience though because everyone else was waiting in the car. We spent the afternoon on the beach (Bàgh Steingidh) within site of the stone. Highly recommended!