beach | The Scottish Pearl

Another grey day on the Isle of Lewis but that was to be expected. It was October after all. We were making our way to the infamous Blackhouse village.

The Gearranan Blackhouse Village is a coastal crofting village located in a secluded bay within the district of Carloway, on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis.

Isle of Lewis with the location of Blackhouse Village

Today the village is designated for a variety of self-catering vacation cottages.

The local community trust Urras nan Gearrannan Hu (the Garenin Trust) has carefully restored these once derelict properties to recreate an authentic blackhouse village. It feels like stepping back in time but with the local resident sheep on guard 😆

Traditional methods have been used to recreate the drystone masonry and thatched roofing of the original croft cottages.

What an experience to walk through the village.

What a great thing to have done, to have preserved these homes and given them another life.

So authentic including the sheep!

Can I say the ride to Luskentyre and Seilebost was glorious? Would that be a bit much? The ride was glorious!! 😄

We were on our way to see the island’s precious gems, the infamous beaches along the coast of Seilebost and Luskentyre.

Maps of the Isles of Lewis and Harris with the location of Luskentyre and Seilebost

Luskentyre sands is on the west coast of South Harris. We were heading there first.

As we got closer we could just make out the beautiful turquoise water and white beach. Needless to say, our anticipation grew. We were very excited. After all, Luskentyre is one of the largest beaches in Harris and it has been recognised as one of the UK’s best beaches. We had good reason to be “energised”.

Upon arrival, we were met with mounds of white sand dunes.

As we climbed over the dunes, we were rewarded with spectacular views.

It was marvellous. It lived up to its promise. And with the temperamental nature of the weather, the entire scene seemed to change every two minutes!

Grey and moody one minute, then sparkling green-blue waters the next. It was fascinating.

It was truly beautiful. I could see how the beach may be mistaken as a Caribbean beach in photos. However, there is one “tiny little exception” called temperature which cannot be detected in a photo.