Taigh nam Bochdan - The House of Spectres - Pabbay

Here are two views of Taigh nam Bochdan, the House of Spectres, on the isle of Pabbay (near Barra). The first is looking down from the high ground to the north. To the left of the house you can see a cluster of overgrown black houses, and in front of them lies a large burial mound. With the low clouds shrouding the houses and burial ground it made for an eerie sight, especially given the strange history of the house. (See book 2, chapter 9 for the story of Taigh nam Bochdan.) The burial mound is home to one of the six Pictish Symbol Stones that have been found in the islands - there are over 200 of them on the mainland. See this link for a photo of the Pabbay symbol stone.

The second photo is looking down to the house from the high ground to the west. The Roisinis headland can be seen in the distance. I tried to get over to Roisinis, but a narrow slot of sea proved too much of an obstacle to cross. Although I failed to get across, in trying to do so I stumbled across something fascinating - which we'll see next time.