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Ousdale Broch's thick drystone walls and low doorway among bracken on a green hillside.
Sutherland

Ousdale Broch

An Iron Age broch on the moor above the Caithness coast, one of the best preserved in the county after conservation, reached by a path past a cleared village.

Welcome

Between Helmsdale and Berriedale, where the A9 climbs over the high ground above the sea, a path leads down from a lay-by across the moor to one of the best-preserved Iron Age brochs in Caithness.

Brochs were tall, round, drystone towers, built by the people of Iron Age Scotland. At Ousdale the walls are about four metres thick and still stand to a good height, with three small cells built into them and the remains of a stair that once climbed within the wall. The Caithness Broch Project cleared and conserved it between 2015 and 2020, and it is now among the finest in the county.

On the way down, the path passes the Borg, the low ruins of a village emptied in the Clearances. There are boards and benches along the way; the climb back up is the only hard part.

A short drive awayThe River BothyA tea room, deli and gift shop in a stone cottage on the Berriedale River, just off the A9 on the Caithness coast.6 min by roadSee itShelves of jams, gifts and homeware inside the River Bothy, with botanical prints on the panelled walls.
Before you go

The broch is open at all times and free.

Park in the lay-by beside the A9 at Ousdale; the path down is gravel, and uphill on the way back.

Where
Off the A9 at Ousdale, between Helmsdale and Berriedale.
The walls
About 4 metres thick, with three cells.
Where it is

On the moor above the sea, off the A9 at Ousdale between Helmsdale and Berriedale.

Close byThe Caithness coast.
  1. The tumbled stone walls of Badbea among bracken on the clifftop, the sea far below.Badbea Clearance VillageA cleared village on the cliffs nearby.2 miles3 min by road
  2. Aerial view of a lighthouse on cliffs above a rocky coastline, low cloud drifting over farmlandDunbeath BayA harbour and castle to the north.11 miles15 min by road
  3. Latheronwheel HarbourLatheronwheel HarbourA little stone harbour up the coast.14 miles18 min by road
Directions
Shelves of jams, gifts and homeware inside the River Bothy, with botanical prints on the panelled walls.CafeThe River Bothy4.6 miles
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