Oops! - A Cara Redo

Sometimes you have to climb a bit to get a good photo. And then, sometimes, you have to climb twice. That was the case on Cara, when I scrambled up the hillside to get a photo of the Brownie's Chair. I had found a good high spot for the photo, looked through the viewfinder, and then uttered an expletive (or three). The reason is evident in the photo below.

I had left my pack on the stone, ruining the shot. So I climbed back down to the chair, hid the pack, and then climbed back up. Ever since then I've always set my pack well away from something I want to photograph. Although that has led to a few panic attacks when I was unable (briefly) to find where I'd stashed my pack in tall grass. 

Eriskay - Urisk Isle?

Island names are often intriguing; the name Eriskay in particular. Nearly all references I've come across over the years say it means 'Eric's Island'; named after some Norseman from long-ago. But there's another possibility.

View indicator atop Eriskay

In his book An Island Odyssey, Hamish Haswell-Smith, says it means 'Island of the Water-nymph', but he gives no explanation of where that derivation comes from. But in his The Scottish Islands he says the name means 'Urisk Island'; a combination of the Gaelic 'uruisg', and Norse 'oy'.

According to John Gregorson Campbell's Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands (1971), urisks are:

A large lubberly supernatural, of solitary habits and harmless character, that haunted lonely and mountainous places. Some identify him with Brownie, but he differs from the fraternity of tutelary beings in having his dwelling, not in the houses or haunts of men, but in solitudes and remote localities....the race was said to be the offspring of unions between mortals and fairies...the leannan sith.

Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands is a fascinating book, and you can find a PDF of it here.

There are several Urisk place names in Scotland. The only island one I've read of is Slochd an Aoirisg on Tiree. It's not marked on the map, but is said to be near Hynish. A mainland site that is marked on the map is Coire nan Uruisgean, which lies above the southeast shore of Loch Katrine. It was said to be the meeting place of the Urisks in Scotland, and walkers in the area encounter a sign warning that Urisks are around. You can see a photo of the sign, along with more about the Urisks of Loch Katrine here.

Patrick Graham writes about Coire nan Uruisgean in Sketches of Perthshire (1806): 

"Ben Venue is rendered venerable in the superstition of the natives, by the celebrated Coire nan Uriskin (the cove or recess of goblins) situated on the northern side of the mountain, and overhanging the lake in gloomy grandeur. The urisks were a sort of lubberly supernaturals, who, like the Brownies of England could be gained over by kind attentions, to perform the drudgery of the farm; and it was believed that many families in the Highlands had one of their order attached to it. They were supposed to be dispersed over the Highlands, each in his own wild recess; but the solemn stated meetings of the order were regularly held in this cave of Ben Venue."

Below are a few photos from my walks around Urisk Island. Over the years I've seen most of Eriskay but, unfortunately, I've yet to meet an Urisk. Neither have I come across any written legends of Eriskay urisks. If you know any I would love to hear from you.

Acairsaid Mor from the south

Acairsaid Mor from the north

Acairsaid Mor

Haun

The Prince's Cairn

Eriskay Causeway

When You Wish Upon a ...

There are a few wishing stones scattered around the Hebrides, and a wish I made at one of them actually came true. 

The wish I made while seated on the Brownie's Stone of Cara did not come true. It was a hot day, and after taking a seat on the stone I made a wish. I then dug a can of beer out of my pack, only to find that my wish had not been granted, the beer was warm. Perhaps the Brownie does not of approve of drinking. Although warm, the beer still hit the spot.

Making a wish on the Brownie's Stone - Isle of Cara

On my first visit to Staffa I was so excited to see Fingal's Cave that I walked right past Fingal's Wishing Chair without noticing it. But on my next visit I took the time to sit in the chair and make a wish. That wish did come true, for when I went into Fingal's Cave I had it all to myself.

Fingal's Wishing Chair - Isle of Staffa

I am sure Robert Lewis Stevenson visited the Erraid Wishing Stone in his early days, but whether he stood on it and made a wish to be a writer, as is often said, I do not know. I have to admit that I did not stand on the stone, as that requires jumping over the small moat that surrounds it. Like the ringing stone on Tiree, the Erraid stone looks like a glacial erratic. I do not know if it also rings, but next time I'm on Erraid I'll find out.

Wishing Stone - Isle of Erraid

Cara International

Cara International Airport - Gate 1A

The last post about Gigha reminded me of an odd, and memorable experience I had during a long stay on the island. While there I managed to get over to nearby Cara of the Brownie for a few hours. Sitting on the south end of Cara is the Brownie's Stone; a giant stone throne that is either a glacial erratic or, as I read long ago in a book I've forgotten the name of, a chunk of stone blown out of the hillside by a meteor.

It was wanting to find a way to get over to Cara and sit on the stone that had brought me to Gigha. But as sometimes happens, an experience you plan on is often surpassed by reality. For while sitting on the stone I had one of the most surreal island experiences ever. It was a hot spring day, and I'd just finished a red-tinny of MacEwens, when a tiny airplane swooped overhead and landed behind me on a swath of grassy terrain. Cara itself is tiny, just a mile long and a quarter wide, and the last place you'd expect an airplane to land.

There wasn't a Brownie at the controls, but a fellow I envied dearly for his ability for such daredevil island hopping. Maybe I'll try it myself someday.