This short walk round the site of an abandoned village makes a tour of information boards telling the story of the Clearance of this beautiful spot. The coastal views are superb.
Waymarked route through croft pastures and high bracken in places.
None to start, nearest bus stop Smoo Cave, Lerrinmore.
Ceannabeinne layby on A838.
There is a layby around 5km east of Durness, marked with the first of the information boards. The trail begins through the gate on the seaward side. On its own the path would be hard to follow but it is marked by arrow posts and each board also has a map showing your current position. Some of the scattered stones of the houses are in view; in 1841 fifty people lived here, but by 1842 all had been cleared. Begin the walk by bearing right downhill through the field, aiming for the wooden boardwalk with a handrail across the boggy dip. The route then goes to the right through a gap in the drystone wall.
On the other side of the wall head left to reach the next info board; the wall here crosses the foundations of an old long house. The route then bears right to reach the next board, where there is a much clearer long house. When Ceannabeinne's residents were served with a writ by their landlord, James Anderson, the women grabbed the sheriff's officer and got him to burn the papers. Later the police superintendent was chased away, and a further attempt retreated when they heard the villagers lay in wait. Finally the superintendent and fourteen special constables gathered at Durine Inn. Up to 300 men gathered and attacked the inn, and the constables fled - it was the riot of Durness. The route cuts sharply back left from here towards the wall, where there is a wooden bridge.
Cross the bridge but keep to the right, not going back through the wall. The path now slopes to the right with a view of the sea ahead, before marker posts indicate where to head left to the next board. From here the marked route makes a detour up to the top of the grassy hillock on the right. This is a superb viewpoint, with sandy beaches seen down below and the dramatic, slabby cliffs of Whiten Head seen across the mouth of Loch Eriboll. Return to the board at the bottom of the hillock, and then bear right, following the markers.
The route finally bears left through a gap in a stone wall to reach another board, beside the remains of a row of cottages. Following the riot, the cause of the villagers was taken up by the national press. The folk were eventually given an extra year to prepare properly for their departure and none were arrested, but the clearance did still go ahead. From the row of houses head left to reach the three-way bridge by the stone wall crossed earlier. Rejoin the outward route here, crossing the bridge and then following the wall to the right, passing through the gap and returning to the start.
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