Inverness and the Whaligoe Steps: Day 23 – Scotland 2017

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28 April 2017

That morning, we arrived early in Inverness. As we drove through, we promptly fell in love with the place. Inverness is one of those cities that still holds onto small village charm in so many areas. The more we explored, the more we talked about moving there one day. Inverness captured us right from the start.

Ness Walk

The River Ness runs through the heart of Inverness. In the middle of the river sit a collection of natural islands. These are called the Ness Islands, and footpaths and bridges link them together to form Ness Walk. The morning was cool and cloudy as we started off for our walk. For us, it couldn’t have been more perfect weather. We passed few people as we strolled across the bridge and onto the islands. The daydreaming began instantly, and we talked about taking this walk every morning if we lived here.

It’s a peaceful, easy walk. The path leads through towering trees and then back out to the banks of the water. We passed other walkers, mothers with strollers, and folks on bicycles. It is a great path for all of these, and everyone shared the trail. There really isn’t much else to say about it, other than that it is lovely and worth a visit. Someday, we’ll have to get back and do it again.

After our walk along the River Ness, we made our way into Inverness and wandered the streets and shops for a few hours. It’s a great city. It’s not too overwhelming, and while it has the normal hustle and bustle of city life, somehow it seemed more quaint, quieter. Perhaps we were seeing it through rose-colored glasses, but we thought it was perfect. After seeing all we wanted to, we decided to get a jump on the next day’s sightseeing and so headed on toward the Grey Cairns of Camster and the Whaligoe Steps.

Grey Cairns of Camster

We were a bit mistaken with what we thought the Grey Cairns of Camster were going to be. We imagined the cairns that we’d crawled through back in Ireland. The Carrowkeel Megalithic Tombs were incredible, and from what we had read, the Grey Cairns of Camster were along the same lines. The tombs of Carrowkeel are as they were when they were found. They haven’t changed in any way. The Grey Cairns of Camster, however, were rebuilt. We didn’t know this, and when we read the information signs at the tombs, we were under the impression that the cairns were a modern construction to replicate what historians thought the cairns would have looked like. We were a bit right and a bit wrong in both of those thoughts.

At the historic site, there is a long cairn and a round cairn, both excavated for the first time in the 1800s. Originally, the tombs were built around the 4th millennium. In the late 20th century, Historic Scotland restored the cairns so that visitors could access them and go inside. They are the original stones in the original locations, but they’ve been helped a bit to recreate the cairns to the best of the historians’ abilities. There is still debate on the original shape of the cairns, but at least they give us a good idea of what they could have looked like.

Archaeologists found human remains, including two full skeletons, animal bones, pottery, and flint tools inside the chambers. The tombs and passageways are empty now, but it is important to keep in mind that these chambers were once the resting place of other people and should be respected.

We only went inside one cairn when we visited. It had rained quite a bit and the entrance to the other was inches deep in mud. Seeing as how we’d need to crawl in on hands and knees, we decided to just admire it from the outside. The location is awe-inspiring. The sweeping moors make for quite the emotional landscape.

Whaligoe Steps

When one thinks of a fishing harbor, a place like the Whaligoe Steps probably isn’t the first image to pop into mind. One might think of docks alongside a quaint fishing village, not 300-some-odd steps down into a rocky inlet surrounded by cliffs. It’s a steep walk down that feels twice as long on the way up, but it’s well worth the trek.

Finding the Whaligoe Steps is the first hurdle to pass. There aren’t any signs to point it out, and once you do find the small parking area behind a few cottages, you’ll definitely feel like you’re in the wrong place. We felt entirely out of place, but a friendly man greeted us upon exiting the car. He pointed us in the direction of the steps after telling us a few stories of the place. Fisherman used Whaligoe Haven as a harbor from the late 1700s until the 1960s. Many fish were caught there, and the remains of the working harbor are still there to see. There is a ruin of a salt store (salt was used to cure the fish), a hand-powered wench, and a barking kettle (used to heat treebark or tar to waterproof nets and boats).

Before we headed down the 365 steps, the man told us the tale of a whale washing up in the harbor, which led to the area being named Whaligoe.

Heading Down

The harbor may be a natural formation, but the impressive steps leading down to it are manmade. The flagstone steps zigzag down the cliffside and lead down to the Bink, another manmade area that is flat and grassy. Local volunteers do a wonderful job of maintaining the steps, but they can be slippery when wet. If you’re not a fan of heights, maybe just keep your eyes on the steps instead of looking out over them to the steep drop below.

The Whaligoe Steps are an incredible location to visit. It is a harsh yet beautiful place. We were the only people there during our visit, so we really took our time. There’s not a whole lot to see, but the views are unbeatable.

Back To Inverness

After drinking in the ocean views at the Whaligoe Steps, we made the two-hour drive back to Inverness to check into our hotel room and grab dinner. We were staying at Strathness House, a Victorian terraced townhouse with 12 rooms. Eight of the rooms have river and castle views, and we splurged on that for our one-night stay. Naturally, I was too busy enjoying that view to snap any photos, but trust me, it was lovely. We had a delicious Italian meal just down the road and then retired to our room for the evening. Just as our day had started, we ended it with daydreams of having that view every night from our own bedroom window if we ever moved to Inverness.
Cheers,
Lydia and Billy