It was my last evening on the Isle of Harris and would there be a better way to spend it than a walk on Luskentyre Beach and enjoying the waves?!
Feeling like the last person in this world…
The cake shed – an amazing honesty “box” near Luskentyre. It must be very good, so far I never managed to find more than a few crumbs in there.
After adoring it from above all the time, it was finally time for a little stroll in Seilebost.
I drove the long and winding road to Huisinish – everyone had told me that it is such a hard drive, but honestly, after driving in Assynt I found this one lovely and relaxing with a really well-maintained road and the most glorious scenery.
And suddenly there was a castle – Amhuinnsuidhe Castle. Built from 1864 to 1867 for the 7th Earl of Dunmore. Today they rent out cottages and also the castle.
After around 11, 12 miles I got my first glimpse of Huisnish beach.
Huisinis itself is a small collection of cottages and crofts at the west end of the beach, and you approach either along the beach or along the road behind it. (Undiscovered Scotland)
Going up the hill you will get a view of the Isle of Scalp – something I will have to do next time.
During my stay in Tarbert, I had to do a tasting tour of the Isle of Harris Distillery – when I was in Scotland in 2019 I bought a bottle of gin, just because I liked the bottle. It tasted amazing and I found out that this gin had won many awards – it was the Isle of Harris gin. One of the many reasons I wanted to visit Harris & Lewis.
The Isle of Harris Distillers is a “Social Distillery” founded with the idea of not only creating amazing spirits but also offering jobs and keeping the young people on the island.
Founded in September 2015 the distillery now employs almost 40 permanent staff, a quite significant number on an island with around 2000 inhabitants.
The goal was to create an amazing whisky, but as whisky takes time, as much as it needs it, gin was produced and is now loved & celebrated around the world.
From the cosy peat fire by the entrance we made out way up to the tasting room and even got a bit of the young uisge beatha (the spirit) to taste. It reminded me a bit of our Austrian Schnaps.
We were also able to visit the stills rooms,they were nice and warm and learned more of how to make whisky and gin.
First barrels of the sleeping whisky, I believe they are all sold already.
When will the whisky be ready? When it is ready!
The Harris gin is completely produced in and around Harris, it gets it special taste from Kelp, which is also harvested on the cliffs of Harris.
Another iconic image of Harris, but unfortunately Tarbert Shop closed before my first visit to Harris.
