The Outer Hebrides was a chain of about two hundred islands lying in the Atlantic Ocean to the west of Scotland. They stretched for 130 miles from the north at the Butt of Lewis to the south at Barra Head. The ferry journey from Ullapool to Stornoway took just over two hours.
Our campsite was just outside Stornoway and the next morning we drove south to the Isle Of Harris – home of Harris Tweed – didn’t buy anything. There were few trees and the terrain was grassy peat bogs surrounding hundreds of small lochs. We saw lots of sheep and even a few cattle and, had the sun been shining, the scenery would have been beautiful in a wild way. Everywhere were thick carpets of wild flowers bright against the greens of the grasses, interrupted by huge granite boulders scattered over the landscape. The colours were rich and varied, even on that dull day.
We returned to Stornoway for lunch before driving north to the lighthouse at the Butt of Lewis, reportedly the windiest coast in the UK. The day’s drive was little more than a hundred miles, we kept to the main roads and the route had very little traffic – although a large proportion of these vehicles were other motor homes.
