Dun Carloway – An Iron Age Broch above an Atlantic Shore
A few hours.
The route
Dalmore is a bay of golden sand between dark cliffs on the west side of Lewis, facing straight out into the Atlantic.
A few minutes down the coast, Dun Carloway is the finest broch on the island, a drystone tower about two thousand years old that still stands close to its full height above Loch Carloway. Lunch is at the Calanais Visitor Centre, a short drive south.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Harris Hideaway, 18 miles away. Sleeps 2.
The day
Carloway
A walk on a wild Atlantic beach, then a climb into an Iron Age tower on its rocky knoll, and a warm lunch on the way south.
About three and a half hours
Dalmore Beach
An attraction
There's a car park above Dalmore, Tràigh Dhail Mhòr, a few minutes' walk from the sand. The bay faces north-west into the open Atlantic between rugged cliffs, with sea stacks standing off the rocks at its north-eastern end, and the big rollers that come in make it a favourite with surfers. There's no lifeguard, so stay out of the water unless you know it well. Above the beach is the township cemetery, which holds eighteen war graves, and readers of Peter May's Lewis novels will know both. Dogs are allowed on the beach; keep them on a lead past the cemetery. Nothing here needs to be open, which makes it a good choice on a Sunday, when most of Lewis is closed. Allow an hour.
10 min by car
Dun Carloway Broch
An attraction
It's about 10 minutes' drive south down the A858 to Dun Carloway, where a small car park sits below the broch and a short, uneven path climbs to it. It's free, with no gate or staff, so come in daylight. On one side the wall still rises to about nine metres, and where it has fallen you can see how it was built: two walls, one inside the other, with galleries and a stair between them. Step in through the low entrance passage, past a small cell that may have been a guard room. The story goes that the Morrisons of Ness hid here with stolen cattle in 1601 and were smoked out by the MacAulays of Uig. The stones are slippery in rain, so hold small children's hands. Dogs are welcome on a lead. Allow half an hour to an hour.
14 min by car
Calanais Visitor Centre café
Lunch
Lunch is about 14 minutes' drive further south on the A858, at the Calanais Visitor Centre café beside the standing stones. It cooks seasonal dishes from local produce and bakes its own cakes, with coffee roasted on Lewis. It's open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 4pm from October to March and 9am to 5pm from April to September, with hot meals until 3pm. It takes no bookings, dogs on leads are welcome, and children can have a Bizzi Bag lunch. It's shut on Sundays, so bring a picnic then.
If it rains
Both the beach and the broch are out in the open with no shelter, so in heavy rain look at the broch from the path and keep the beach short; the Calanais Visitor Centre, with its café and exhibition, is all under a roof.
Where to stay
Photographs by David Ferguson and Scott Mackenzie via Google