Waternish Point visit

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Waternish Point is a wild but beautiful spot with wonderful sea views. An excellent place to spot whales and dolphins. Note that the walk crosses croft land and the crofter has requested that dogs should be kept on a lead.

Terrain

Most of the approach walk is on a good track, boggy in places. The final approach to the head is over some pathless but fairly dry ground.

Public Transport

None to start. Traveline Scotland.

Start

Car park at Trumpan Church. Map and directions.

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Grade (key)

Bog Factor (key)

Walk Statistics

Distance: 13.5km / 8.5 miles
Time: 3 - 5 hours
Ascent: 389m (Profile)
Start Grid Ref: NG224613

Maps / GPS

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Accommodation

Walk Description

Stage 1

Take the minor road through Waternish to the ruins of Trumpan Church (where the road turns back south). There is a car park and picnic table here. The sad remains of Trumpan are a reminder of one of the bloodiest episodes in Skye's history. On the first Sunday in May 1578 the local MacLeods were gathered for worship in the church. The Macdonalds of Uist, of whom 395 had been massacred in a cave on Eigg at the hands of the MacLeods the previous year, were mooring their ships in Ardmore Bay. They barricaded the packed church and set fire to the thatch. All the Macleods within were burned to death, save for one girl who escaped through a tiny window. The girl ran to Dunvegan and raised the alarm, whereupon the famous Macleod totem the Fairy Flag was unveiled and an army of Macleods came and massacred the Macdonalds in turn. The bodies were buried in a dyke nearby, giving the battle the name 'The Spoiling of the Dyke'.

Stage 2

Walk northeast along the road, past some houses, to the sharp bend half a kilometre away. The road bends right here; instead turn left on the landrover track. After a couple of kilometres, a cairn is reached on the left commemorating the death of a man who died in an earlier local battle between the Macleods and Macdonalds in 1530. A little further along the track, a large ruinous stone structure is visible above on the moor. This is Dun Borrafiach, an iron-age broch. It is worth a visit as it is one of the best preserved on Skye, with its great stone walls still standing to ten feet or more.

Stage 3

Return to the track and continue northwards. Another broch becomes visible on the right, Dun Gearymore on a grassy mound. This appears much more ruinous than Dun Borrafiach but a careful examination reveals a hole in the ground and a short section of passageway remaining with roof intact.

Stage 4

Again return to the track. After cresting a low hill the Waternish lighthouse becomes visible a couple of kilometres away. Bear left off the track as it bends right near two posts and through a gap in a grassy dyke, keeping on along a very faint path towards a gap in a drystone wall. Beyond, the firm grass above the coast gives a superb clifftop walk all the way to the lighthouse, which is automated and powered by solar panels. This is Waternish Point, a place of sweeping seascapes dotted with islands. Apart from Rubha Hunish in Trotternish, clearly visible to the east, this is the best place on Skye for spotting whales and dolphins.

Stage 5

The return is by the same route. A much tougher walk can be had by returning down the east coast - see walk description.

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