Introduction

The Old Man of Storr is an unusual geological feature on the Isle of Skye. This island forms part of the Inner Hebrides, a group of islands situated off Scotland’s west coast.

Information on the feature

The single, 165 ft (55 m) high pinnacle comprises the remains of an ancient volcanic plug. It protrudes vertically, like a giant finger. This feature can be accessed via a steep path leading from the roadside car park, a popular site for tourists. The site can be reached via 15 minute drive from Portree, the ‘capital’ of Skye.

The ‘Old Man’ feature is found in the Trotternish area of northern Skye. Here, spectacular landslides formed when thick basalt lavas from the Tertiary age (65 million to 2.58 M years ago) flowed on to weaker, sedimentary rocks from the Jurassic era causing the latter to give way. This landscape includes the Quiraing, Table, Needle, Prison, Dun Dubh and the Old Man of Storr.

More information on Isle of Skye’s geology can be found here.

The name Storr is of Old Norse origin and means great man. (Until finally defeated by the Scots in 1263, Skye and vast tracts of western Scotland came under Norwegian control, dating from the time of the Vikings.)

Views

Subject to reasonable visibility, the pinnacle is usually visible to visitors travelling along the A855 to/from Portree.

Upon climbing to the base of the feature visitors are rewarded with a vista (weather permitting) which includes:

• The islands of Rona and Raasay and the Torridon mountains (to the east).
• White cottages of Staffin to the north.
• The unusual folded topography of Trotternish, Loch Leathan and the Cuillin mountains to the south.

Here is a video clip taken from Old Man of Storr vantage point.

More information

For more information on Scottish islands, Scotland’s geology and touring please refer Visitors’ Guide to Scotland, ISBN 978-1-9161332-0-4

Acknowledgement: Some of the information in this article was sourced from Scotland Magazine.