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Your jouney will probably start by your taking the lovely long single track winding road the B887 which is situated off the main road Stornoway to Tarbert. The road is situated just two miles before you reach Tarbert
It is 15 miles in length and takes you through some of the most magnificent scenery in The Western Isles. Looking to the South side of the road you will see the Island of Taransay (made famous by the television programme 'Castaway' - which was filmed there). No one lives there now - the last people to reside there was in 1942.
This road is a single track winding road with ultimately takes you to Huisinis Beach. Along the way you will see spectacular scenery and all manner of wildflowers, birds, , a whaling station boiling chimney, Amhuinnsuidhe Castle, black hebridean sheep and even perhaps if at the right time of year, deer. I wont dwell on what yo will se as this page is more about the actual walk at the end of the road. Click here if you wish to view scenes along the way
Upon reaching the end of the road, you will see the Huisinis beach to your right - there is at the left hand side parking spaces and toilets. You can park your car here - or alternatively, if you drive a few yards along, you will see a sandy track - at the right hand side opposite the beach - and yes - you can actually drive down that track (slowly) - its only a couple of minutes - it leads to the North Side of Huisinis where the jetty is - there is also a parking area here for cars.
Walk Starts at The Lovely Jetty at the North Side of Huisinis
This lovely walk which takes yo to Traigh Mheilein - a lovely white sandied beach, with aqua marine blue seas all around you and looking across to the Island of Scarp - is well worth the effort of the scramble. You scramble up the cliff side - not too hard a climb though - easy for most - I suspect. It took us about an hour and a quarter to reach the beach which is a splendid reward for your efforts.
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The Jetty at The North Side of Huisinis
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The Walk Starts at the Huisinis Jetty
This jetty is so pretty, look across the Atlantic to the the famous "Island of Scarp". From this jetty we have across several visits seen many different birds and even a really huge jelly fish.
Even when its the middle of winter, to look out at the crashing waves of the Atlantic and watch the birds, sometimes struggling with the winds, this jetty is one of our favourite places to be peaceful and enjoy the beauty and tranquility of The Isle of Harris.
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Jellyfish Swimming seen from the Huisinis Jetty
This amazing jellyfish was swimming just near the Huisinis jetty. We spotted this in June 2010. Although I had seen many different jellyfish on the beaches in the Western Isles, I hadn't seen one as large as this one before and swimming to.
Jellyfish known as jellies or sea jellies. Jellyfish are found in every ocean - from the surface to the deep sea - invertebrates that live in the sea. On the Isle of Harris and The isle of Lewis - you can see many different types of jellyfish
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Looking Across to The Island of Scarp
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A Wheatear near North Huisinis |
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Bird Sightings Western Isles - Harris
As you get along your way on this walk, depending upon what time of year it is you will see a variety of birds. The one opposite is a wheatear, a migratory bird, which spends its winter across in North Africa, we see them here in late spring and through the summer months.
You will also see, many other birds, such as pipits. oyster catchers, pied wagtails, guillemots, fulmars, gulls, buzzards, the lovely diving gannets, and if you are extremely lucky of course the eagles, golden and white tailed eagles.
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The Isle of Scarp - Postal Service - Rocket
The Isle of Scarp - opposite the jetty at Huisinis played a part in the history of the postal service. In 1934 German rocket scientist Gerhardt Zucher tried to persuade the British government to use rockets to send mail and medicine to remote islands. 30,000 pieces of mail were loaded into a cannister and fired from Harris across to Scarp.
The singed remains ensured that rocket mail is not a postal option today. The slipway is there for going to Scarp, but like Taransay, today the island is now very quiet, there just being a couple of houses which are occupied during the summer months.
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Looking Across to The Island of Scarp
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Birds Resting on The Rocks Below |
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Spectacular Sea Views
As your walk gets underway - you cut across the moorland - where you will see a stone wall in front of you with a gate. Once through the gate you walk alongside the wall for a little way - and then onto a rocky stony path which winds its way up the moorland to the cliff side.
As we climbed a little way up, we looked down on quite a few birds that were resting on the rocks - shags and gulls.
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Atlantic Sea Views all The Way
As you wend your way up the rock face, there are plenty of places for you to stop and admire the stunning scenery or just stop and listen, you will hear the birds. There are plenty of gulls flying overhead, as well as the shags and cormorants, there were also lots of tiny birds to be seen, like the migrant wheatears who pass through spending their summers here.
Indeed in the later months like November there are snow buntings passing through the Western isles
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Graham climbing the route to Traigh Mheilein |
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The beach opposite the Island of Scarp |
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Spectacular Sea Views
This is the glimpse you get of the lovely golden white sandied beach, its really quite deceiving as it would appear at first sight like the beach is quite small, in fact it stretches on for quite some length.
The sand is a glorious white colour and so fine - it's made up of partly ground shells which are blown onto the land and help to create the stunning fertile machair which can br seen at Huisinis
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Wildflowers - Geraniums - Malvia
I spotted on the moorland just above the Traigh Mheilein beach. I think they may be a species of geranium, although I am reliably informed that there are about 7 different types that can be seen here on the Western Isles, including common storksbill, herb rocket, cranesbill.
They were actually very tiny, and there was only the one patch of them that I could see, made up of about 4 flowers.
If you can assist with identification please email chris@gcwweb.com.
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Wildflowers - Isle of Harris - Geraniums - Malvia? |
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The beach opposite the Island of Scarp |
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Beach dance
I took this shot of my daughter and boyfriend, who were enjoying the beach, there was only the four of us on the entire beach and they were dancing on the sand. (Ah - romance is alive!)
The Sound of Scarp separates the island of Scarp from the mainland of Harris. You can see this island straight opposite as you walk towards Traigh Mheilein.
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The Beach
The photograph opposite taken early June this year shows the beach on a very warm bright sunny day, again there were just the two of us on the beach that day
.We have now done this walk on about five occasions and enjoyed each walk. Along the way, we have seen all manner of different wildlife and fauna and flora.
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The Traigh Mheilein Beach |
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The Beach |
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The Beach on a Beautiful sunny day
There have been the birds, buzzards, pied wagtails, gulls, shags, cormorants, seagulls, gannets, oyster catchers, even a snow bunting one time in November. In the summer the moorland is just full of lively rabbits and then there is the lovely machair especially nearer to the Huisinis end.
Over the occasions we have visited the North side of Huisinis we have seen many wildflowers, from wild primroses to the geraniums, thrift and many more tiny wildflowers..
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The Machair
The most precious though are the flowers which form the "machair". Last year (2010) the flowers were quite prolific
making up a carpet covering much of the moorland grass. (this year I don't think the machair has been as successful )
Particular areas of the Western Isles - seem to have their own machair - that is made up of all different types of flowers - sometimes some of the species being only specific to that particular region.
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The Machair - North Huisinis |
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Western Isles council, Conmhairle nan Eilean Siar and Scottish Natural Heritage & the European Union have funded the RSPB Scotland-led project to make sure that the lovely Machair doesn't die away. The hope is that the funding will allow the development of a better understanding as to conserving the machair.
The existence of the machair depends on environmental and human factors. The balance of these has meant that it has survived for many years. its survival is threatened by climate change - sea levels and the ever changing of land use by humans
The machair creates perfect conditions for threatened birds like corncrake, chough and corn bunting
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Looking back towards the Huisinis Jetty |
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Jetty - So Near Yet so Far
Once having reached the lovely Traigh Mheilein beach, you can look back across to the jetty on the North side of Huisinis
It appears like it is so near, and yes by sea it would be, however for me it was still an hour and a half,s steady scramble/climb to get back to the jetty.
Once rested and having had a picnic, we set of on the homeward journey.
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Just Sheep |
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Traigh Mheilein
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Traigh Mheilein Beach
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I couldn't resist taking this picture of the line of sheep, one following on from the next and so forth |
Graham and a walker on the fine white sand which creates such a contrast to the aqua blue seas |
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To reach this beach from the North side of Huisinis you have quite a scramble - but well worth the effort! |
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Traigh Mheilein |
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Cairn - Traigh Mheilein |
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Huisinis - The North Side
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This is the view of The Sound of Scarp as you approach the lovely white beach. |
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The view over this cairn at the top of the cliffs looking down on the beach is awesome. |
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Huisinis - The North Side - A lovely view out to Scarp the famous Island. |
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Looking Across to Scarp |
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Isle of Fladaigh |
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Traigh Mheilein |
Graham en route to Traigh Mheilein-looking across to The Isle of Scarp |
The island in view out at sea is The Isle of Fladaigh. |
The incredible colours of the white silvery sand and the aqua blue sea. |
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Traigh Mheilein |
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Isle of Scarp |
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Huisinis - Jetty - North side
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Perhaps the most beautiful beach in The Outer Hebrides |
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The view of part of The island of Scarp - taken from the cliff tops opposite |
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Another view of the pretty jetty in October. |
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Looking Across to Scarp |
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Walking down to Traigh Mheilein |
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Boat Moored at the Jetty
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Graham en route to Traigh Mheilein-looking across to The Isle of Scarp |
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Graham on the last stretch of moor as you approach the lovely beach |
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A lovely boat moored at the jetty at Huisinish |
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