Heaval
Barra's highest hill at 383 metres, just above Castlebay, with a marble Madonna on its slopes and views over Vatersay, the Uists and, on a clear day, the Small Isles.
Heaval rises straight up behind Castlebay to 383 metres, the highest point on Barra.
It is a steep climb, and the view from the top is one of the finest in the Hebrides.
From a small car park by the road, a mile north-east of the village, the way climbs over rock, heather and grass, boggy in places lower down. Two-thirds of the way up the southern side you pass Our Lady of the Sea, a white marble statue of the Madonna and Child placed there in 1954, looking down over Castlebay and its bay. From the summit, Castlebay and Vatersay lie below, Eriskay and South Uist stretch away to the north, and on a clear day you can pick out Canna, Rum, Eigg and even Skye.
Allow two to two and a half hours there and back, and wear good boots. The car park has room for only about six cars.
Open at all times.
Two to two and a half hours there and back; boggy in places.
- Height
- 383 metres.
- Statue
- Our Lady of the Sea, 1954.
- Walk
- Two to two and a half hours.
From a small car park by the A888 a mile north-east of Castlebay, HS9 5UN.
Scotland, in print.
Every photograph commissioned, every word written by somebody who went. Printed twice a year, made in Scotland.
For further reading, before you go.