 Above and below: A guided tour of the Yarrows area supported by over 160 walkers |
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Yarrows is many things to many people. It has been promoted for many years as a beautiful circular walk around some of the major monuments that surround the Loch of Yarrows. At its highest point there are amazing, uninterrupted views of the Orkneys to the north, south to Morven and the Scarabens and across the water to the Moray coast. It is a priceless treasure store of Neolithic ruins, with Bronze-Age round houses and the loch-side broch, standing stones, stone rows, medieval field systems and vernacular croft dwellings. Standing on the top of the Yarrows Hill, 8,000 years of human activity roll out below you, looking over the Neolithic burial cairns, the Bronze Age round houses and the stone rows, standing stones, and the Iron Age broch on the loch-side, over to the Mesolithic sites at Oliclett and North Yarrows. There is a sense of timeless magic and mystery. |
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This belongs to everyone.
The far north of Scotland has some of the most extraordinary remnants
of these vanished cultures, often in stunningly beautiful locations.
This is why Yarrows is at the heart of the drive to promote Caithness
as a quality destination for people who wish to explore the richness
of our ancient heritage in an unspoilt setting. |
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Robert Louis Stevenson was famously disparaging of Wick, but was fascinated by the Caithness uplands - Here is his view of it, writing from his far away retreat in Samoa. Blows the
wind today, and the sun and the sun and the rain are flying Grey recumbent
tombs of the dead in desert places |