Waternish, Skye

Waternish, Skye

Waternish, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Introduction

This afternoon I am reporting on the Waternish region of the Isle of Skye which lies off Scotland’s west coast.

Information on Waternish

Waternish is a finger of land or headland on the N.W of Skye.This feature juts into a stretch of water known as Little Minch. The region is about twenty miles N.W. of Portree, the ‘capital’ of Skye.

The ‘nish’ element of the name is a Gaelicised version of Old Norse ‘nes’. This means point or headland in turn influenced by the Latin ‘nasus’, a nose.

Waternish is a relatively remote area where can be found:

  • Remains of two Iron-Age brochs which are high status homes dating back about 2000 years. These are Dun Gearymore Broch and Dun Borrafiach Broch.
  • The Trial Stone which situated in the grounds of the ruined church at Trumpan. Here an interesting form of justice was administered. An accused person was blindfolded. If the accused was able to find the aperture in the stone with his/her hand he he/she was acquitted.
  • The ruined Trumpan Church which was the site of a massacre in 1578. During the winter of 1577, MacLeods of nearby Dunvegan massacred 395 MacDonalds.The latter were trapped in St. Francis Cave on Eigg (an island). The MacLeods lit a fire in the cave entrance thereby suffocating all of those incarcerated inside.In revenge, Clanranald, Chief of MacDonalds of Uist initiated an attack on the MacLeods on the first Sunday in May, 1578.
  • Skyeskyns, a local craft operation which converts sheep skins into rugs, footwear and other products.
  • Stein Inn, a well-regarded pub and eatery.
  • Fairy Bridge, an abandoned bridge with folk-lore connections.

Fairy Bridge

Waternish Landscape, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Stein Inn, Waternish, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Tour Guide at Skyeskyns, Waternish, Skye, Scotland

Skyeskyns

Trumpan Church, Waternish, Skye

More information

For more information on Skye and many other aspects of touring Scotland please refer Visitors’ Guide to Scotland, ISBN 978-1-9161332-0-4. This publication is also available via Kindle.

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