The last stop before I reached Lewis was a lovely rocky beach where I went for a walk and suddenly I had company – the company of cows. Cattle seem to love beach walks!
My next stop on the way to the Butt of Ness was at the Steinacleit stone circle, it was just a short walk from the parking spot.
Steinacleit is a prehistoric archeological site on the West coast of the Isle of Lewis and contains a circle of boulders around the remains of a chambered cairn or better said it was believed to be the remains of a cairn…
Beautiful views in all directions.
Steinacleit lay hidden, until crofters clearing peat in the 1920s uncovered a large circular structure and an oval walled enclosure.
Steinacleit was originally thought to be a Neolithic stone circle and chambered cairn, though comparisons with similar structures show it may actually be a prehistoric farmstead, with house and yard. (Historic Enviroment Scotland)
First dated around 2000 BC as thought to be a chambered cairn and stone circle, there were similar structures and settlements found more recently in the Western Isles dating back to 4000 BC. So this might have been the house and yard of an early farmer.
The site has never been excavated so Steinacleit remains a bit of a mystery.
Whatever it might have been, it was set in a stunning location on a hill looking over a little loch. Looking towards the sea on one side and the mountains on the other one.
It was a glorious and very sunny Sunday morning and I decided to drive to the Butt of Lewis and make some stops along the way. My first stop was pretty close to Shawbost, a tiny little hut along the road – The Shieling in Barvas and Brue.
A shieling is a little hut or cottage in the moors used in the summertime by the women and children who took the animals out. Today some shielings are used as summer homes.
The shieling is tiny but offers everything one might need and the surroundings of this one are stunning!
The lovely neighbours
