I've always wanted to go to the Outer Hebrides. I know the Inner Hebrides and in particular Mull really well but had never made it to the Outer Hebrides. The most remote corner of the UK, apart from Shetland maybe. This archipelago offers gorgeous white sandy beaches, friendly people where Gaelic is widely spoken. Many of the islands are now linked by causeways and Cal Mac ferries link the rest. I wanted to do a Hebridean end to end - from Vatersay in the south to the Butt of Lewis in the north. A distance of about 150 miles as the crow flies. My plan was to get the ferry from Oban to Castlebay on Barra, then go to Vatersay (linked by causeway) and start the end to end there.
I know Oban very well too as it is the gateway to Mull, an island I've been visiting since 1980. I stayed at the excellent Glenview BnB. I was going to leave my car in a public car park while I went to the Outer Hebrides, but the owner of the BnB kindly said I could leave my car there!
Day 0 Oban - Castlebay
The ferry was a long one - over 5 hours but didn't leave til 1.30, so I had a leisurely morning and the lovely BnB lady let me stay as long as I needed to - no early check out! At the ferry terminal there were a few cycle tourists assembled. A group of lads just finished school were doing it on the cheap. Plus there was a couple going up to the Uists. The ferry ride was relaxing and very scenic. Up the sound of Mull, past the familiar Duart Castle and then Tobermory and then out in to the open sea. Still another 3 hours of travel makes you realise how far flung these islands are. Eventually approach Castlebay and the imposing castle in the water greets you. Call in at Co-op for some supplies then head down to Vatersay. A hilly ride on quiet roads and then over the causeway to Vatersay which is hardly inhabited. I had done some research and apparently you can camp near the village hall and use their facilities. However when I go there, you can't camp in the village hall grounds themselves as they are covered in gravel. Everywhere around has roaming cattle. Not advisable to camp there as cattle are curious and would likely damage or even trample your tent! A bit desperate now as getting late. There's a campsite on Barra but it's too late to cycle there. Which leaves the beach! It was pretty awesome - completely deserted except for a solitary fishing boat but it's not the best place to pitch as the sand is fine so difficult to get the pegs in and a bit exposed. I manage to find a spot in between the dunes and cook my first campsite dinner. As night falls, the lonely fishing boat goes out to sea and I am alone. It's a fitful night's sleep as I feel like the tent is going to blow over, but I wake up and make some coffee and porridge and pack away my tent. All unscathed, but I have picked up quite a bit of sand in my drive chain. I have a ferry to catch!
Day 1 Vatersay - Howmore 33 miles
Despite the poor night's sleep amongst the sand dunes, I'm up and away in good time. I cycle back to Barra and then go up the west coast, past the campsite which looked great! Oh well, I've learnt my lesson here, will definitely stay here next time. Unfortunately didn't have time to visit the famous Barra airport, which uses the beach as it's runway. Oh well, another one for next time. I make it to the ferry point to Eriskay in good time. I meet the couple from the Oban ferry again who stayed at the hostel in Castlebay. I'm glad I made this ferry, as the next one wasn't til after 4pm. Alight at Eriskay, beautiful deserted beaches and a quick stop at the local stores. There's a man outside talking very loudly on his mobile. God is nowhere sacred? Past the Am Politician pub of Whisky galore fame then over a majestic causeway to South Uist. First stop the excellent Kilbride cafe, which is also very warm and has wi-fi! The campsite looks great but it's too early to stop. I then pick up the main road north. There's supposed to be a tailwind but not today! It's another 17 miles to Howmore, my stop for the night. Pick up some supplies at the ubiquitous Co-op. The hostel at Howmore is a delight. An old building but it's been recently restored and the kitchen facilities and showers are superb. You can camp in the grounds but it's only a few more quid for indoors and it's very windy out. There's quite a mix of people: an Austrian lady walker, an English couple, the guy is a hippie postie! And various others. It's a nice vibe and the wine is shared as we talk and enjoy the evening.
Day 2 Howmore - Berneray 41 miles
After a comfortable night at the Gatliffe hostel I went to have a look at the nearby beach, it's actually the 20 mile beach that lies on the west coast of South Uist. Then I rejoined the main road and headed north into a headwind again. This wasn't supposed to happen! I saw the young lads from the Oban ferry again. They had just camped by the side of the road! Then on to Benbecula where there was another Co-op again and it started to rain. In no time I had crossed Benbecula and then briefly on Grimsay then North Uist. Weather getting worse and I had to break out the rain gear for the first time. I decided to go the west way round North Uist as slightly shorter and should be out of the wind more. Passed the signs to Lochmaddy and then turned north towards Berneray. Beginning to brighten up. Headed over another causeway to Berneray and then a few miles to the second Gatliffe hostel in a stunning seaside location. However, this one wasn't as nice as the Howmore one, it was quite busy and rather grubby, so I camped there for only £9 and made use of the facilities which were OK. I found a great camp spot, next to a disused barn where I had shelter for my bike and it was so quiet, all I could hear was the sea and sheep. A strange assortment of people. A rather earnest chap from Kendal who seemed to assume the role of being in charge, a strange looking French fisherman who said 'wi-fi is bad' and a little Chinaman dressed head to toe in Harris tweed!
Day 3 Berneray - Rhenigdale 37.5 miles
The day started with a short ride to the ferry terminal at Berneray, then across the sea to Leverburgh on Harris. It's quite a complicated route as the boat has to navigate around some smaller islands and shallow waters. A friendly and attractive older blonde lady chats to me and the Chinaman at the ferry terminal. She is a school inspector and en route to Stornoway to inspect a primary school. Her friend is meeting her at Leverburgh to drive her there. The Chinaman manages to cadge a lift from her and the drop him at the Rhenigdale hostel, which is several miles out of their way. I don't have that luxury so have to negotiate the mountainous Harris. I head up the west coast, and their are fantastic sandy beaches. Then there is a monster of a climb heading east over the island to Tarbert. Tarbert is quite a bustling place and I will be heading back here to catch the ferry to Skye. Then more climbing over a very scenic road and then take a minor road for the 7 miles to isolated Rhenigdale. It's beautiful cycling but pretty tough - a drop down to sea level, then over the mountains and back to sea level again. The hostel is very good and deserted - it's just me and the Chinaman who had got there several hours earlier. There was one pitch outside, but as the hostel was deserted it seemed silly to camp outside. The silly idiot Chinese chap hadn't brought any food with him! What a nob, they had passed several food place, I even saw him in the Co-op at Leverburgh. Well there was no way I was giving him any of my hard earned rations that I had slogged over the mountains of Harris with. The warden Kate arrived and was friendly and helpful and told my Chinese friend how to get to Stornoway.
Day 4 Rhenigdale - Garenin 46 miles
After a filling breakfast of porridge I left my Chinese friend to his piece of toast and retraced my steps and hills - back to the main road above. Then I continued my journey north and crossed 'the border' into Lewis. Harris and Lewis are the same island. Who decides where the border is? I thought it would be at the very narrow section at Tarbert but no. It seems to be a random squiggly line north of that. Now heading north in to Lewis at last I had a tail wind. I stopped for lunch at a roadside BnB that offered arts and crafts, tea and coffee etc. I wish I hadn't. It was run by a Brummie woman and her husband. All I got was a hard sell, trying to sell me her tat and extra food, coffee etc. The food was nothing special. I asked for some water for my drinks bottles and she told me to fill up from the outside tap! That's service for you. From there I headed north then took a left turn to Callanish. I went to visit the famous standing stones which are featured on the album cover of Jehovahkill by Julian Cope, one of my favourite artists. There is a very short but steep hill to take you up to the stones. The road here is a bit more gentle and undulating and finally reach Garenin, home of the Blackhouses and my destination for the night. The hostel here was luxury! Only £15, only recently opened so all new facilities, very comfortable beds and even towels provided - in a hostel!! My microfibre towel is good, but it's nice to have some real thick towels for a change. There is a friendly chap called James who is doing some surfing up here. He offers some grub and also some finest malt whisky - a great remedy for the midges! There's also a trans lady called Nicky who I saw at Tarbert. She is also heading to the Butt of Lewis so we decide to go there together tomorrow. It's pretty quiet otherwise, so after watching sunset it's a good night's rest.
Day 4 Garenin - Butt of Lewis - Garenin 63 miles
The biggest mileage of the tour but it is a there and back journey. Going to the Butt of Lewis with a trans person, must be a joke in there somewhere! Josie was great company though and a good cyclist, also her bike was a lighter road bike than my trusty Dawes steel touring bike. Well that's my excuse with not being able to keep up. It was also a lovely sunny day. The route was fairly flat and unremarkable, just lots of moorland and bogs. We did stop to walk up to another standing stone, but this involved walking through boggy ground and the stones were fairly unimpressive after Callanish. We continued the journey to Ness and then the Butt of Lewis and lighthouse. There was a lovely secluded beach with just an old couple with their dog. It was sheltered and absolute bliss. Hebridean End to End completed, and what an awesome journey it's been!Had lunch at a nearby café and then retraced our steps or rather wheels back to Garenin. Unfortunately the hostel is fully booked tonight, so the kitchen is busy and there's a bit of a queue for showers. Then a French couple turn up quite late, they are on a whistle stop tour of Scotland and are up at 4am to catch an early ferry! What a waste, so they can claim to have 'done' Lewis.
Day 5 Garenin - Tarbert 48 miles
A hearty breakfast at the excellent café at Garenin Blackhouses - this and the Howmore hostel must rank among the best I've stayed in! Today was just retracing my steps all the way to Tarbert, so not much to say except a bastard of a headwind all the way. Needless to say I didn't stop at the Brummie BnB café on the way back, I just gave them the 2 fingers as I cycled past. Childish I know, but it made me feel better. Back up the monster climbs in Harris and looking forward to the long descent to Tarbert but I was robbed due to the headwind! Check in to the hostel at Tarbert which is conveniently located for the ferry but a bit overpriced at £20.
Day 6 Tarbert to Broadford 43 miles
Up early to catch the ferry from Lewis to Skye. A pleasant crossing with a good cooked breakfast on board. Land at Uig on Skye and already it feels much busier. There are coaches bound for Glasgow which thanks to the Skye bridge you can reach directly - not really an island any more. Skye was a bit shit really. It was headwinds all the way and I was stuck on main roads the whole time which were really busy. I stopped at Portree Co-op (much larger than the ones on the Outer Hebrides) and a friendly looking labrador waiting outside lunged at me ferociously, I didn't think rabies was present in Scotland. You see, allow a bridge to link to the mainland and this is what happens. Then on to Sligachan which has a campsite, but it's totally exposed and blowing a gale. Then a loose dog pisses up someone's tent. I remonstrate with the owner but all she does is squirt some disinfectant on it. Are all dogs badly behaved on Skye? This episode puts me off the campsite, so I check out the hostel - closed. So soldier on to Broadford which takes forever in the headwind and check in to the backpacker hostel which was pretty rubbish. Full of trendy Europeans with topknots and beards (and that's just the women) cooking all sorts of weird shit in the kitchen. I feel a bit of an outsider and everyone is a smoker including my roommates. I've also got the worry of potential ferry delays tomorrow due to high winds.
Day 7 Broadford to Mallaig 16 miles
Not a great night's sleep in the Broadford hostel. Stuffy and smelly and noisy. Plus the anxiety re the ferries. I don't want to be stranded. I could go across the bridge but this would mean a massive detour. Cal Mac have a useful app where you can check the ferries and it's saying could be delayed. I cvcle south and then take the road to Armadale. This bit of Skye is called Sleat and is often referred to as the Garden of Skye. Immediately there's a huge sign with a flashing display saying delays. Oh joy. I have no option but to press on the next 15 miles, into a headwind again. The scenery is nice and eventually I make it to the ferry at Armadale. And good news, it's on time, and it's right there! You see if I didn't have this technology I would have been blissfully unaware and been none the wiser. It's a somewhat choppy crossing but what a relief to be back on terra firma! Well, the proper mainland, you know what I mean. I could even cycle all the way home from here, but I won't. Instead it's the train. Unfortunately, it's not for another 6 hours, which gives me some time to kill in Mallaig. I was last here in July 2013 cycling Dover to Cape Wrath. And what a contrast! Then it was a blistering heatwave. I passed the time in the café with lunch and endless cups of coffee. A steam train full of daytrippers arrived and suddenly the town was besieged for a couple of hours, then they left. Finally boarded my train on the West Highland line - one of the most scenic in the world and crosses the famous Glenfinnan viaduct as featured in Harry Potter. I change at Crianlarich and quickly head in to the waiting room to escape the ever present midges, then get the train to Oban. There's a hilarious Glaswegian drunk on the train talking full volume in to his phone, ridiculing his mate who's just had a haicut. "Whaddya mean, he's got nae fucking hair. He needs a fucking polish, not a haircut." There's a few bemused looking tourists. We pull in to Oban and it's pretty late now but a short cycle back to the Glenview where my car is waiting for me and an excellent curry at the Light Of India restaurant.
It's been a great trip, I want to come back next year and spend a but more time on the Outer Hebrides now I know the best bits, and cycle round Mull.
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