Neist Point – Down to the Lighthouse at Skye's Western Tip
About 1.5 miles on foot.
Neist Point is the most westerly headland on Skye, a long grassy finger of rock with a white lighthouse at its tip and sea cliffs on every side.
A concrete path with steps and handrails drops from the car park to the lighthouse, about a mile and a half there and back. The way down is easy. The climb back up is the work.
- Time
- About an hour: 1.5 miles (2.4 km) down to the lighthouse and back, with two long, steep climbs on the way back up. A short walk with a stiff finish.
- The path
- A concrete path with long flights of steps and handrails; boggy grass beyond it.
- Where to start
- The visitors' car park at the end of the road beyond Glendale and Waterstein.
- Set off
- From November to January, leave the car park by 2pm to be back up before dusk.
- When to go
- All year in daylight, and not in a gale. From November to January leave the car park by 2pm.
- Dogs
- On a lead: sheep graze the headland and the cliffs are unfenced.
- Children
- High, unfenced cliffs: keep hold of young children. The climb back is steep.
- Before you set out
- The lighthouse and its cottages are private and fenced. High, unfenced cliffs: keep away from the edges, above all in wind.
The walk
Park in the visitors' car park at the very end of the single-track road beyond Glendale and Waterstein. Don't count on toilets here: there are public ones in the Dunvegan village car park, on the way. The Glendale community gives the walk as 1.5 miles there and back, and about an hour. A concrete path with steps and handrails runs down the hillside and out along the headland to the lighthouse and its keepers' cottages. It's downhill on the way out, which leaves two long, steep climbs for the way back.
The lighthouse was first lit on 1 November 1909. David A Stevenson designed it, it stands 62 feet high, and it has been automatic since 1990. The lighthouse and cottages are private and fenced, so look from outside. Beyond them the ground is rough grazing, boggy once you leave the concrete. The Glendale community calls this the best place on Skye to see whales, dolphins and porpoises, so bring binoculars and give it time.
The cliffs are high and unfenced. Keep well back from every edge, hold on to young children, and keep dogs on a lead, as sheep graze the whole headland. In a strong wind stay on the path and away from the cliff tops, or leave the walk for a calmer day. The headland faces west and holds the last light of the afternoon, but be back up the steps before dusk: from November to January that means leaving the car park by 2pm. Café Lephin in Glendale serves coffee and lunch: ring 01470 511465 before you count on it.
If it rains
There's no shelter on the headland, and wind is the real danger here, more than rain: in a gale the cliff tops are no place to be. Keep it for a calmer day.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
For further reading, before you go.