Berneray

城市概覽

Berneray is by no means remote, but until late in the 20th century it was difficult to reach. You needed to take three ferries, from mainland to Skye to North Uist to Berneray, and tourists had little reason to bother. That changed dramatically in 1999 when the road causeway linked it to North Uist, and the ferry service for Harris relocated here from Lochmaddy. This means that Berneray nowadays has thousands of visitors who only see 200 yards of it, between the pier and the causeway. It also made the island a linchpin in the connectivity of the entire Western Isles, as the once or twice a week Harris ferry became a shorter crossing three times a day. But beyond that thoroughfare, the rest of Berneray is a back-eddy with a quiet rural way of life. The bedrock of the Outer Hebrides is gneiss laid down three billion years ago, very hard and impermeable. On North Uist just south this lies flat and is overlain by bog and dozens of small lochans, and on Harris just east it's heaped up into gnarly hills; both are a dismal prospect for farming. Berneray is something of a "Goldilocks zone" between them, with better-drained sandy "machair" terrain to the west, and to the east a straggle of habitation sheltered by low hills. Ardmaree, Backhill (the largest, with the fishing harbour), Rushgarry and Sandhill, with Borve more central, all merge into each other. All these islands were inhabited from prehistoric times, then by Celts and Vikings. Folk lived by crofting - subsistence farming and fishing - in a way that persisted here right up to the 1850s. Distant lords fought for control but there were no battles or castles on Berneray. The big change came with the potato famine of the 1840s followed by the Clearances, when much of the population was evicted to make way for sheep grazing. People made a partial return in the 20th century as landlords were more sympathetic to crofting. But even in the 1980s, Berneray was sufficiently secluded that Prince Charles (now King Charles II

如何抵達

By plane 1 Benbecula (BEB IATA) is the airport for the Uists, 25 miles south across the causeways. Loganair fly daily from Glasgow taking an hour, and fly M-F from Stornoway on Lewis taking 35 min. The buses from South Uist run past the airport, taking an hour. Alternative airports are Stornoway (SYY IATA) and Barra (BRR IATA). Reaching either involves a ferry crossing and a long drive.

By boat 2 Berneray ferry pier is the landing point for Calmac ferries from Leverburgh on Harris, taking an hour. Apr-Oct there are 4 M-Sa and 3 Su, Nov-March 2 or 3 a day, see Leverburgh#Get in for fares. The pier is an unattended slipway with a small waiting room with toilets; there are no shops or other facilities here. The ferry berths overnight alongside the causeway: there is no sea passage through this, unless you're a fish or an otter and can swim through the culverts. Ferries also sail from Uig on Skye to Lochmaddy on North Uist, 11 miles by connecting bus from Berneray. 3 Berneray harbour is the landing point for yachts and other small craft, which should keep clear of the ferry pier. There's a toilet and shower block, moorings, and a lifting crane. Bays Loch the inlet is shallow and has limited shelter, in rough weather (especially from the north) make for Lochmaddy on North Uist.

By road The causeway from North Uist (B893) is passable at all tides and in all but the worst Atlantic weather. Causeway and approach roads are double tracked, a luxury in these islands, but beyond that the roads are the standard Hebridean single-track lane with passing places. Buses run regularly from South and North Uist to the ferry pier, and from Stornoway and Tarbert to Leverburgh ferry pier. Buses W10, 16 and 17 run M-Sa along the chain of islands so you can travel in a day between Stornoway on Lewis and Castlebay on Barra. Only one service per day plies the entire route, but Berneray being midway has more connections, with four buses from Stornoway, six from Tarbert on Harris, si

當地交通

Walking will get you everywhere on this compact island. A single-track paved lane follows the east coast, with another through the centre and a third across the southside machair. A waymarked path circles the island, or you can follow the shoreline along the long beaches — a complete circuit might take five hours. As elsewhere, dress for the changeable weather and have stout footwear. There's no car hire on Berneray nor on North Uist, see Benbecula for firms based at the airport.

必看景點

1 Beinn a'Chlaidh (Hill of the Graveyard) is a ritual area in the south, though it's unclear what is prehistoric and what is Viking, early Medieval or later. There's a standing stone (Clach Mhor, big stone), west of it the remnants of a Bronze Age chambered cairn (A'Chiste Chloiche, the stone chest), and 125 yards southwest is Leac an Righ (stone of the king). This is carved with the imprint of a human foot and resembles the stone at Dunadd in mainland Argyll where kings of Dál Riata were crowned. Nurse's Cottage 200 yards north of the harbour is the base for Berneray Historical Society (Chomunn Eachdraidh Bheàrnaraigh). It's open May-Aug: M-F 11AM-3PM and has a small exhibition of island life. The society publishes an online newsletter in May and Nov each year. A resident nurse wasn't needed once the causeway offered help from the other Uists. 2 Berneray Church, Church Road HS6 5BD. The church is a plain 19th-century building above Backhill the main settlement. It's Presbyterian (Church of Scotland) but all are welcome at services, held at noon on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Sunday of each month, with the 2nd and 4th Sunday services in Lochmaddy. These are mostly in English, with one psalm in Gaelic. Psalms are sung in the Hebridean style with no music. (updated Sep 2023) Grey seals or Atlantic seals (Halichoerus grypus) have a colony on the shore of Bays Loch, and an even larger on the west coast where they're less disturbed. They're the ones with broad Roman noses, while Common or Harbour seals (Phoca vitulina), also found here, have puppy-dog noses. Otters (Lutra lutra) are most likely to be seen on the rocky east and south coasts, and Bays Loch is as good a place as any. Freshwater springs flow out on those coasts, which otters need to clean their coats, and the crabs they eat dwell among the rocks. The rising tide gets the crabs busy so the otters do likewise. Crotal is the orange lichen on the intertidal rocks. From it is extracted a red dye used in traditional kni

體驗活動

Water sports such as surfing and kayaking need to be self-organized, there isn't a business. Boat trips might be negotiable at the harbour, there's no schedule. Hills on Berneray take most of 15 minutes to walk up — the highest is Beinn Shleibhe at 93 m (305 ft) — but open out great views. Hebridean Way is a way-marked hiking and cycling trail the length of the Outer Hebrides. Stage 7 northbound simply follows the causeway from North Uist to the ferry pier and doesn't explore Berneray, but you can go further i