Pabbay & Vatersay Revisited

On May 21st the ship Hjalmar Bjorge left Oban. Aboard were Joey, Patricia, Janet, John, Francis, Elaine, Clare, Nigel, and myself. There were three crew; skipper Mark, his wife Anna, and Lynda the cook. It was my first cruise acting as a guide, and I was a uncertain as to how the next 10 days would go. But I was certain that the selection of islands we hoped to visit would offer some amazing experiences.

After a calm night at anchor in Tobermory Bay we set out the next morning to attempt to land on Pabbay, a deserted island south of Barra. Under partly sunny skies we approached Pabbay from the east, the white sand beach of Traigh Bhan glowing in occasional sunshine. In short order we were ashore, and made our way to the ruins of what had been Pabbay's only village.

Ashore on Pabbay

I'd only been to Pabbay once before, back in 2007 on the boat Boy James, skippered by Donald Macleod (see book 2, chapter 9). Aside from wanting to return to a beautiful and historic island, I wanted to see how they'd permanently mounted its amazing Pictish Symbol stone.

We all made our way across the sands to the village, which was last occupied in 1911. Its cluster of black houses have been drastically altered into sheep pens, and standing above them is the shell of Taigh nam Bochdan, the house of spectres. I will not recount the long, strange history of this haunted house, but you can find it in chapter 9 of book 2.

Taigh nam Bochdan

Next to the village is Pabbay's massive burial mound. There used to be a chapel on it, but there's no sign of it these days. At the base of the mound stands the symbol stone. When I saw it in 2007 it was lying prone, as if it had been tossed aside. But a few years ago they securely mounted it upright. I was happy to see they've done that, and that its carvings are no longer subject to direct rainfall and the feet of uncaring visitors.

Mark & Anna on the burial mound - symbol stone at base

Even though they did good work by mounting the stone upright, it is something that should have been done a very long time ago; for the mysterious Pictish symbols, the crescent/v-rod, and the lily, are so badly worn that there is not much left of them. The next photo shows the side of the stone with the symbols, but you can not see them. All that's visible is the Christian cross at the top, a later addition to the stone. For a better (and much older) photo see page 87 of book 2 (or this CANMORE page).

The worn symbol stone

After we explored the village I led a group over a grassy ridge to Dunan Ruadh, a broch ruin on the east coast of the island. The broch was in direct line-of-sight with Dun Sandray, a broch on the island of Sandray, three miles to the northeast. The brochs were located such that a fire beacon could easily relay news from island to island that unfriendly visitors were in the area.

Dunan Ruadh - Sandray in the distance

Dunan Ruadh

The climb over to Dunan Ruadh was hard going through the thick, tall grass that covers most of the island, which makes Pabbay one of the harder islands to explore on foot. After a few hours ashore we gathered back at the beach to board the inflatable and return to Hjalmar Bjorge. Pabbay was an excellent first island of the trip, and next up was nearby Sandray.

Pabbay anchorage

But when we went to take a look at the Sandray beach landing, it was too swelly, and so we made our way to anchor for the night in the east bay of Vatersay. There were only a few clouds in the sky, and as there were several hours of daylight left we went ashore for a walk.

East Bay - Vatersay

No visit to Vatersay is complete without seeing the Annie Jane memorial, and so we paid our respects to the site where over 300 people are buried who drowned when the immigrant ship Anne Jane ran aground in 1853. You can find a list of the victims here.

Annie Jane Monument

After over 150 years of blowing sand the words carved at the base of the monument are hard to read. Fortunately I copied them down when I first visited Vatersay in 1998:

ON 28th SEPR 1853 THE SHIP ANNIE JANE WITH EMIGRANTS 

FROM LIVERPOOL TO QUEBEC WAS TOTALLY WRECKED IN THIS BAY AND

THREEFOURTHS OF THE CREW AND PASSENGERS NUMBERING 

ABOUT 350 MEN WOMEN AND CHILDREN WERE DROWNED AND 

THEIR BODIES INTERRED HERE

AND THE SEA GAVE UP THE DEAD WHICH WERE IN IT   REV: XX 13

I've visited the monument many times over the years, but this time I noticed something different. In the sand next to the obelisk was a board with an old black & white drawing of a man; its title read: Jean Vernier (1822-1853). Reverend Jean Vernier was one of eight members of the French Canadian Missionary Society who were returning to Canada on the Annie Jane. The reverend, and four others of his group did not survive the shipwreck.

Jean Vernier (1822-1853)

On the walk back to the beach we met the woman who owns the old Vatersay school house, which is now one-half private residence, one half a self catering apartment. The woman's dog gave Nigel a good workout by playing fetch with him on the beach.

Fetch on the beach - old Vatersay schoolhouse in the distance (right)

In the morning we set out for our next destination - the Monach Isles. We did not know it at the time, but over the next 10 days we would be blessed with non-stop sunshine.

The Pabbay Stone

On our May 21 cruise one of the destinations (if the weather cooperates) will be Pabbay of the Barra Isles. I've only been to Pabbay once, back in 2007, when Donald MacLeod took me there on his boat Boy James (see book 2, chapter 9).

My primary reason to go there was to see the Pictish Symbol Stone, with its crescent and V-rod, and lily symbol. There are only six known symbol stones found in the islands, and this one was discovered by Father Allan MacDonald in 1889.

The stone was a sad sight when I saw it in 2007; lying prone at the base of the burial mound, looking discarded, heavily eroded, and subject to more wear and tear by falling rain and the careless feet of visitors. Since 2007 it's been set upright for protection, and I look forward to seeing how they've done it. Below are a few photos from 2007 and, if you'd like to see the stone, consider joining our cruise on May 21. For more on the symbol stone of Pabbay see page 299 of this link.

The Pabbay Symbol Stone - lying prone at lower right of the burial mound (2007)

Pabbay Stone - the carvings are hardly visible (blame the elements - and the photographer)

Drawing of the Pabbay Stone by J. Romilly Allen from the 1890s

The Crosses of Raasay

One of the jewels of Rassay is its Pictish Symbol Stone. It lies in a small patch of ground east of the road north of Raasay House. The top of the stone has a square Chi-Rho cross that appears to be carved inside a Pictish mirror symbol. Below the cross is what's described as a tuning fork (or tongs), and at the bottom a crescent and V-Rod.

Raasay Symbol Stone

Although the symbol stone is easy to find, there was another Raasay cross, carved into the bedrock near the landing place below Raasay House, that I was only able to locate on my third visit to the island. I first read about this rock-carved cross in Boswell's Journal, where he mentions that 'on one of the rocks just where we landed...there is rudely drawn a square with a crucifix in the middle.'

On visits to Raasay in 1995 and 1998 I searched in vain for this cross. I walked back and forth all over 'The Battery', looking on every rock surface I could find. But I saw nothing that looked like a cross. The Battery is the little peninsula below Raasay house that was the main point for landing on the island before they built the ferry slip a mile and a half to the south.

These days the ferry lands at a new slip on The Battery, and on a visit last May I looked for the cross again. But this time I found it thanks to location details and photos on this CANMORE page. The cross lies just above the original landing place, on the southeast side of The Battery, where Boswell & Johnson landed in 1773. The cross is a sad sight, nearly completely worn away. So there is no way someone can find it without specific directions, and most everyone who arrives on Raasay these days drives (or walks) past the cross without even knowing it's there.

The cross is the same design as the mirror chi-rho cross on the symbol stone; and you can find a comparison drawing of the two crosses on the last page of Proc. Soc Antiq Scot Volume 41. Other good images can be found on page 64 of Proc. Soc Antiq Scot Vol 67, and on this Pictish Stones of Raasay page. Next time you are on Raasay be sure to pay your respect to this vestige of the past before it completely disappears.

The cross is on the exposed rock face at centre

On Roads to the Isles - 2

Another road to the isles is the route to Crinan. From Inverary you follow the A83 south to Lochgilphead, and then head west on the B841 towards Crinan. Whenever I pass this way I try to take the time to make a diversion south from Bellanoch to see the 6th century Daltote Cross and Kilmory Chapel.

Many people visit Kilmory, but few take the time to see the Daltote Cross. I first learned about it in chapter 3 of T. Ratcliffe Barnett's The Land of Lorne (1933); in which he relates a visit to the cross in the company of one of the sisters that lived in Daltote cottage, which lies on the road 300 feet east of the cross.

To get to the cross you drive south for a mile on the Tayvallich road from Bellanoch (which is next to the Crinan Canal). Here you will reach a left hand turnoff to the minor road to Kilmory Knap. That's the way you want to go, but before heading down this road stop and pay your respects to the beautiful war memorial: a replica of the Kildalton Cross on Islay.

The War memorial

From the memorial follow the road to Kilmory for seven miles until you reach a slight bend in the road (where a private, gated track, heads off to the right). You can leave your car here, as there is just space enough space to park on the west side of the public road. The cross lies a quarter mile down the gated track.

The track beyond the gate leads to the cross

When I first visited the cross there was a sign on the gate that showed a woodland walk down the path. The last time I was there the sign had disappeared - but there is still a sturdy stile that allows you to get past the gate. Once afoot, cross the stile and head south for a quarter mile. At a spot where the track drops and turns hard to the right, keep walking straight for a hundred feet or so into the moss, grass, and bog, and you will see the marker sign for the cross.

Footpath route to the cross

The cross, incised on a large upright slab, is beautiful, but a bit sad; as it's flaking away with the elements. It is carved inside what looks like the mirror symbol you find on some Pictish Symbol Stones, and I wonder if this might be a Christianized symbol stone like the one on Pabbay.

Below the cross is a Holy Well, and here and there you'll find old stones that may mark ancient graves. It is a peaceful spot, and in the three times I've visited over the years I've never run into anyone else. Chances are, though, that you won't be entirely alone, as it can be very midgy. So come prepared for the bugs. See this RCAHMS page for a photo of the cross in better days.  Next time we'll continue on down the road to Kilmory Knap Chapel.

The Daltote Cross

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.