NSA Special Qualities

Extract from: Scottish Natural Heritage (2010). The special qualities of the National Scenic Areas . SNH Commissioned Report No.374. The Special Qualities of The Cuillin Hills National Scenic Area • Magnificent mountain scenery • The contrast and complement of the Black and Red Cuillin • The surrounding wild landscape, a fitting foil for the mountains • Iconic images of crofting townships with dramatic backdrops • The Cuillin Ridge, a landmark throughout the northwest • The ever-changing weather • A place of inspiration • The most challenging mountains in Scotland Special Quality Further information • Magnificent mountain scenery This area presents magnificent, Within this NSA are three main mountain areas: the Black imposing, upland scenery of serrated Cuillin with its spectacular ridge; the massif of Bla Bheinn; and the more rounded Red Cuillin, also known locally as the ridges, deep rocky corries and scree- Red Hills ( Am Binnean Dearg ). clad slopes. Lochs Slapin, Ainort, Scavaig, Sligachan and Brittle present The mountains rise up dramatically from fjord-like tongues into the mountains. the sea creating formidable, enclosed sea lochs, with the absence of foothills The Red Cuillin are imposing from the A87 trunk road at Luib looking across Loch Ainort, and at Sconser looking enhancing their vast scale. Many iconic across Loch Sligachan, where the road sits tight between views of Scotland are centred here, the sea loch and the mountains whether Sgurr nan Gillean soaring above Sligachan, Loch Scavaig and the Cuillin ridge from Elgol, or Bla Bheinn above Torrin. Roads and paths are hard against the towering mountains, and the lack of human settlement or activity gives a sense of entering one of the wildest quarters of Europe. The Black Cuillin in particular have been described as ‘ the most spectacular mountain scenery in the British Isles ’ (McNeish, 1999). Loch na Cuilce and Loch Coruisk penetrate this landscape of rock, allowing low-level access into the heart of the inhospitable, remote and wild mountain core. • The contrast and complement of the Black and Red Cuillin The two main mountain areas within this Acid and basic igneous rocks create a diverse and compact area, the Black Cuillin and the complementary igneous geological landscape, with a clear distinction in the morphology of the two mountain types. In Red Cuillin, both contrast and terms of magma activity, the Black Cuillin formed first, complement each other. comprising dark, basic gabbro. Thereafter, there was an intrusion of acidic, granitic rock leading to the Red Hills. The Black Cuillin, with their broken cliffs of black rock, deep corries and narrow, The ridge of the Black Cuillin with the highest point Sgurr irregular summit ridges differ markedly Alasdair (992m), and Bla Bheinn form irregular angular, mountain massifs. Although the rock is dark, particularly in from the individual, rounded, red-tinged, the shade, when sunlit it can appear grey to brown in colour. scree-covered peaks of the Red Cuillin. The peaks are jagged and angular, not much higher than Similarly, the steep, rock-girt Loch the ridge itself, with imposing steep ridges and deep corries, Scavaig contrasts with the smoother- often consisting of just bare rock. sided sea lochs of Sligachan and Ainort. In contrast, the Red Cuillin are composed of lighter acidic, igneous rock, mainly granite which is richer in silica-based minerals. They are more rounded mountains, often steep sided and with lone, conical peaks: Marsco, Beinn Dearg, and peaking with Glamaig (775m). Numerous loose screes smother the summits, often with deep gullying. Appearing red in certain light, but often appearing reddish brown, pink to grey in colour. • The surrounding wild landscape, a fitting foil for the mountains A fitting contrast to the dramatic steep- As well as the sea, the backdrop to the mountains includes sided mountains is provided by the the flat island of Soay; Glen Sligachan, a large extensive area of smooth moorland broken with numerous hummocks; undulating moorland and grassland that Srath a Crèithech; and the stepped swathes of acid surrounds them, and by the flat- grassland and moors above Glen Brittle, below the steep bottomed, once glaciated glens. Signs of ascent of the Black Cuillin. human activity are minimal and the whole area comes across as wild and These areas all show minimal signs of human activity, whether buildings, agriculture or forestry, giving a strong untamed. appearance of wildness. The area is an SNH Search Area for Wild Land. However, in contrast to the generally minimal To the south, the eye is led on to the human influence inland, there is ample evident of previous islands of Canna, Rum and Eigg, each use along the fringes of the mountains, particularly in the with its distinctive profile, and these form of prehistoric hut circles and later shielings. One location Rudha an Dunain, has exceptionally good evidence distant islands emphasise the of settlement and field systems from the Neolithic period remoteness of the coast. onwards, including a canal, reputed to be of Viking date. The Small Isles rise out of the sea to the south, with Canna appearing as a flat platform, mountainous Rum with its own Cuillins and Eigg with its distinctive ridge. • Iconic images of crofting townships with dramatic backdrops The contrasting crofting settlements of The approach along the B8083 road to the east is first Torrin and Elgol, although themselves dominated by the Red Cuillin, and then, suddenly, the dark wall of Bla Bheinn takes over the view. The crofting mostly outside the NSA, present a township of Torrin holds the attention in the foreground, but foreground to some the most the eye is ever-led to the waters of Loch Slapin and the recognisable images of Bla Bheinn and massif of Bla Bheinn behind. the Black Cuillin – iconic images of the 2 Isle of the Skye or even Scotland itself. Torrin possesses an intricate pattern of dry stone dykes, fields, and buildings, built on the greener richer soils of Torrin with its mixture of small crofts and Jurassic limestone. Beyond Loch Slapin, and rising above enclosed sheltered fields feels human the forest, the rugged massif of Bla Beinn provides a and domestic. In contrast, Elgol has a spectacular limb of the Black Cuillin, with the familiar jagged, angular, asymmetric peaks of dark gabbro – feeling of a frontier open to the sea and appearing formidable and dominating the backdrop. the departure point both for the wildland to the north and the distant islands to the The scene from Elgol, presents a different picture. Perched south. on slopes overlooking the sea, the settlement feels more exposed – a frontier or departure point by sea for Loch Coruisk and the Black Cuillin, which emerge spectacularly out of the water across Loch Scavaig. The view is enhanced by an active harbour in the foreground, with a rocky shore and cliffs of Jurassic limestone. Although the eye is at first led up the loch which narrows to the Black Cuillins, it is later held by views to the widening sea to the south, open to the west winds and the Small Isles beyond. • The Cuillin Ridge as a landmark throughout the northwest Rising as a jagged ridge, the Black The Cuillin Ridge looks formidable from a distance, with its Cuillin presents a rocky crown to the Isle jagged, serrated edge. It can be seen from many places on the island, e.g. from Portree Bay. It is also visible from many of Skye, providing both a focus for the parts of the west coast, from as far afield as Sutherland, island and also a landmark throughout Ardnamurchan and the Long Island. much of northwest Scotland. • The ever-changing weather Sometimes the Cuillins are lost in the The continuously changing wind, sun, cloud, mist, rain and cloud and rain, to suddenly appear snow are a key aspect of these mountains. through a rent in the mist. At other times they are shimmering in all their glory above a mirror-calm sea. The colour and light on the mountains is rarely the same from day-to-day or even hour to hour. • A place of inspiration The Cuillin landscape has long been an The name Cuillin is derived from Celtic mythology, where inspiration for folklore, story tellers, Cuchullin, hero of Ulster, learned the art of archery from Sgathach – a formidable female warrior that lived in these writers, poets, artists and musicians. hills. Loch Coruisk, surrounded by towering The Cuillin Hills and Loch Coruisk provide a highly enclosed walls of dark gabbro, the walls reflected high-walled amphitheatre. in the dark water of the loch, inspired the painter Turner, and was called ‘That ‘Rarely human eye has known A scene so stern as that dread lake Dread Lake’ by Sir Walter Scott in his With its dark ledge of barren stone poem The Lord of the Isles . Seems that primeval earthquake’s sway Have rent a strange a shattered way Through rude bosom of the hill; And that naked precipice Sable ravine and dark abyss.’ Extract from Sir Walter Scott’s poem Lord of the Isles (1815) 3 It inspired J.M.W Turner, with his dramatic painting of Loch Coruisk (1831), and many others including Sorley MacLean with his epic poem The Cuillin . More recently it was the setting for the 2007 Gaelic language film Seachd (The Inaccessible Pinnacle ). The mountains have also inspired musicians such as Runrig with, for example, their haunting song Nightfall on Marsco . • The most challenging mountains in Scotland The narrow and precipitous Cuillin ridge ‘The Cuillin are the most challenging mountains in presents the ultimate challenge amongst Scotland .’ Scottish Mountaineering Club (1986) hill walkers, climbers and mountaineers Many hillwalking books have as their concluding chapter the in the British Isles.

Load more