by KeithS » Fri May 08, 2020 7:51 pm
Sub 2000' hills included on this walk: Conachair (Hirta)
Date walked: 08/05/2020
10 people think this report is great. Register or Login free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
This report has no pictures for a few reasons. I am not a good photographer and do not have a decent camera. Jane is a good photographer but did not take any pictures. The other reason I will explain at the end of the report so please bear with me till then.
St Kilda has held a fascination for both Jane and me for many years. We have both read about this amazing place and learned of its history and the harsh conditions endured by its inhabitants up to the island being evacuated in 1930. We have longed to visit there for many years. The time had now come for this eagerly awaited trip. Our plans had been well prepared, unintentionally coinciding with the 75th anniversary of VE Day. The boat from Leverburgh with Seumas and Anna at Sea Harris had been booked months ago and we were so much looking forward to it.
Jane retired from the NHS GP surgery where she had worked for many years on the 1st of May so this trip was to link in with that as a partial celebration and the start of a new life joining me as a retiree.
Following the revelry of the previous evening’s retirement party, the camper van was loaded up and we set off from Sheffield to initially spend a couple of days in Laide before heading off for the Outer Hebrides and our boat trip out to St Kilda.
As ever we enjoyed our drive up north. It is a long way but it is always so exciting to be heading towards the West Coast and our refuge by the sea. Although it is a drive we have now done hundreds of times the thrill never fades and my heart always skips a beat as we drive over the Fain from Braemore junction and we catch our first view of An Teallach, even more so on this occasion as we knew we had the lure of St Kilda beckoning later in the week.
After a couple of days in Laide, and having mowed the lawn, the first task I always do during the growing season, we drove round to Ullapool on the Tuesday evening to catch the ferry the following morning to Stornoway.
We have taken this ferry about half a dozen times before but this time was extra special. The sea was calm, unusual for the Minch, and as always I tried to pick out my house through binoculars as we passed Gruinard Bay. As Priest Island faded to our stern the line of the Outer Hebrides became clearer as we neared Stornoway.
The last time I had been out this way was only a few months earlier, in February, when I had come over on the morning ferry as a foot passenger. I then walked from Stornoway to Achmore and back, a circuit of about twenty miles, the last couple of hours being in the dark (for no other reason than it seemed a good idea at the time - which it was) before taking the night freight ferry back to Ullapool.
We arrived safely in Stornoway and, having stocked up in Tesco (other shops are available), we made our way south to Harris, stopping to enjoy the picturesque village of Tarbet before heading down to the southern tip of the island.
The next day, yesterday, was spent chilling around the stunning beaches of southern Harris before settling in at Leverburgh itself. It is a truly beautiful area. We kept looking out to the west, praying the weather would be good for our boat ride the following day.
And so the morning dawned of the day we had been looking forward to for over twenty five years, ever since the first time we had picked up that, now well worn, book on St Kilda and first learned of this world renowned place. It is one of the very few double world heritage sites in the world, for both its natural and cultural qualities.
We were up by 6.00am, not needing our alarms to wake us. There was no way we were going to oversleep today. We were down at the jetty by 7.30am, the first ones there. It was not long however until our fellow adventurers arrived. There was an eager buzz as we waited for our skipper, Seumas, to turn up which he did, just before 8.00am, our planned departure time.
We were soon safely ensconced on the boat, ‘The Enchanted Isle, a Stormforce rib which held twelve passengers. The boat had a covered cabin and was very comfortable. We exchanged stories as to what drew us to this trip. We all shared a sense of adventure and were thrilled to be embarking on our first trip to the westernmost point of the UK (Rockall notwithstanding).
Following a safety briefing we soon set off and sailed off to the west. Our prayers of the day before had been answered as the sun shone down and the swell was gentle. We made good progress and before the hills of Harris had disappeared from view behind us we could begin to make out the unmistakable outline of the St Kilda archipelago ahead. I couldn’t believe that we were looking at the real thing, no longer poring eagerly over photographs taken by others. The shape of the main island, Hirta, and the surrounding stacks seemed so familiar, as if I had been there many times before.
The swell which had been rhythmically striking the bottom of the boat on the two hour trip out to the islands eased off as we made our way into the bay, the island now laid out in front of us with the ruins of the old buildings of the main street forming a line behind the shingle beach.
We were about to set foot on St Kilda! We would have nearly five hours on the island. The only human residents are National Trust volunteers, scientists and a number of military personnel.
On the boat ride out Seumas had been telling us some of the history of the island, some of which we did know, some was new to us. We then transferred to the small tender which was to take us onto the island itself and after the short ride we came alongside the pier.
And then the moment came. It was so surreal. We stepped off the little boat and onto the place we had dreamed of for so long. Did it live up to expectations? Of course it did. We were met by the National Trust ranger and then left to our own devices.
We started by exploring the village and pictured how it would have been when the island had last been permanently inhabited, nearly a century earlier. We then made our way away from the bay and worked our way up the slopes, leading up to Conachair, the highest point of the island. The going was steady, with a faint path. We took our time. There was no rush and we kept stopping to look back at the village and bay gradually getting smaller behind us.
The view from the high point was breathtaking. The whole island and its surrounding stacks were laid out in front of us. We could just make out the distant outline of Lewis and Harris to the east.
There was a slight breeze but the sun shone as we sat and enjoyed the picnic we had brought with us. We cautiously explored the area to the north with the magnificent cliffs, the highest in the UK, tumbling down to the sea below. The birdlife was incredible. The noise and smell of the gannets, petrels, fulmars and puffins was almost overpowering. These, along with a few sheep were the main natural residents of St Kilda. We pictured the Old Kildans making their way perilously down the cliffs on home made ropes, risking their lives as they collected their eggs.
We then wandered back down to village bay and explored the museum, school and church, all giving us more insight into the history and wonder of this magical place. All too soon we met up with the others for our boat ride back to Leverburgh. We all enjoyed a hot drink and a slice of Flora’s delicious gingerbread courtesy of Sea Harris.
The treats were not yet over though. Once back on The Enchanted Isle our route took us past Boreray and the spectacular sea stacks. The thrill of looking up at their cliffs with all the birdlife will remain with us for years to come. An amazing experience, and the icing on the cake before finally heading back east to Harris and our camper.
So that was the end of our incredible trip to St Kilda. The whole day had been perfect. Perfect? Well, truth be said it had been perfect in all but one respect. The one aspect which spoiled the day, was also the reason that there are no photographs with this report....
Our long awaited trip, which was due to take place today, did happen… but only in my head, all in my imagination.
Jane and I are actually still in Sheffield. After an unpleasant week last month Jane has now recovered from the Covid-19. I have more than likely had it, although with very minor symptoms. We are keeping to social distancing measures. Jane has not been able to retire, the doctors have persuaded her to continue to work at the surgery a little longer, at least until this current scourge has passed. Our camper van is gathering dust at the farm where it is kept, unable to be taken out. The grass is growing out of control, uncut, in Laide, probably intermixed with its usual dandelions, daisies and other associated weeds.
I am sure the day would have been perfect, had it taken place. The silver lining in all this is that, hopefully we will be able to make this trip with Seumas sometime. Whether it is sooner or later, who can say? But sometime, sometime...
St Kilda - The trip of a lifetime. This time, the real thing. Now with pictures
And so, after another false alarm late in 2020 we were finally rebooked and ready for the real thing in May 2021, no imagination required.
Having reread my first report it is amazing how accurate it was when compared to the real thing so I will not repeat the entire report, just highlight the few differences.
The ride across from Harris was bumpy, but fun. I did feel sorry for a couple of our fellow passengers who were very seasick, as they knew they had to repeat the journey back in a few hours.
We were met by the National Trust for Scotland warden who briefed us on our trip. We were a little disappointed that there was work being carried out on the island by the National Trust for Scotland and that there was a landing craft in the bay which was unloading what appeared to be stones from lorries along with the accompanying noise of machinery and even the beeping of the vehicles as they reversed, presumably warning the Soay sheep of their presence. The noise was ever present wherever we were on the island as it resonated around the natural amphitheater behind the village. The warden even had to stop her introduction as a helicopter flew close overhead before landing nearby as the noise of its engines drowned her out. The work did rather detract from the ambience of the islands where peace and quiet would usually be the norm and it was a shame but, even this could not spoil the magic, even if it was slightly diminished. I am sure the work was necessary and hopefully the peace would be resumed once it was completed
There was low cloud and the summit of Conachair was hidden from view so Jane decided she would explore the village and surrounding areas whilst I ventured to higher ground.
We therefore went our separate ways and I started up the slope behind the village, passing numerous cleits on the way. Cleits are old stone structures and are unique to the St Kilda archipelago. They were used for storage and there are well over a thousand dotted about the islands.
As I gained height I could see that the easternmost peak of the island, Oisebnal, appeared to be clear of clouds so I headed up towards the top. This turned out to be a good decision as the view from the top was amazing and I could clearly see the island of Boreray and its accompanying sea stacs about five miles to the north east. This was in fact the best view of the day from Hirta.
I made my way down to the col between Oisebnal and Conachair where I met up with a few other people from our boat trip who were taking advantage of photo-opportunities. After a short chat stop I headed up the slopes of Conachair, soon disappearing into clouds. I was surprised to come across some aircraft wreckage and then remembered that there had been a number of crashes on the island during the second world war.
Continuing to the summit it was obvious that I was not going to get any views which was a shame as the cliffs which fell to the sea from where I was were the highest sea cliffs in the UK. Never mind, it was still a good day.
I then descended to the west down easy slopes and, after a slight rise came upon the masts and associated buildings on the top of Mullach Mor. This made navigation easy as there was a good track which I was able to make use of to start my descent, soon coming out of the clouds. I followed the track to the south until I reached the tracking station at Mullach Sgar where I had a brief chat with one of the military personnel who was based there.
I continued down the track a little further from where I could look out over the small island of Dun when I saw a familiar figure coming towards me. Jane had been exploring the southern part of the island and was making her way up to the track. This was a pleasant surprise and we continued our descent to the village together, passing numerous Soay sheep on the way.
We then had time to explore the houses along the main street of village bay. These are very much in ruins although many contain plaques giving details of the previous occupants and some have been restored to a lesser or greater extent to give a feel of how life would have been for the inhabitants. It was also possible to visit the museum, church and schoolhouse where we were able to buy a small souvenir of our visit.
It was then time to return to the boat for our return visit. There were still, however, a couple of treats for us to enjoy before our return journey.
The first was our hot drink and gingerbread cake which was certainly as good as I had imagined in my initial report.
The next treat surpassed anything my imagination could have prepared me for. We headed towards Boreray and were able to enjoy views of the sea cliffs of Hirta which I had originally been deprived of. These were certainly spectacular as they made their way up into the clouds.
We then continued to Boreray and the sea stacs of Stac Lee and then Stac an Armin. Words cannot do justice to these rock features. Photographs cannot prepare you for what we now could see. Any, albeit minor, disappointment on Hirta due to the work being carried out, was overshadowed by what we now experienced. I have never been anywhere quite like here and we were pleased that the boat kept stopping and gave us time to experience where we were, made even more amazing by the knowledge that a number of the islanders had been stranded on one of the stacs and had to survive for nine months in the shelter of a small bothy high on Stac an Armin.
It was with sadness that we had to leave the St Kilda archipelago and head back to Harris.
Our first visit had been in my imagination. Our second certainly lived up to expectations and will remain with us for a lifetime.
- Attachments
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Last edited by
KeithS on Wed Feb 19, 2025 8:26 pm, edited 4 times in total.
