WELCOME
‘Rathad’ is a journey through the South Lochs of the Isle of Lewis.
It is an adventure of discovery through time and space
along the old and new Pairc Road.
This is a story which can only be told through the experiences of the people who live and work here and through images of the extraordinary beauty found in this remote region.
Our film is an independently written, filmed and produced ‘docu-story’ set around the paths, tracks and roads of Pairc, a small but resilient community in the Outer Hebrides.
This place and the people who live and work here have faced hardship and happiness, adversity and, at times a dramatic history.
For those who have, and do, call this place home it is a cherished environment worth protecting and investing in.
This is a collaborative project, made by and with local people who have in common the day-to-day use of the road through Pairc. They share their experiences, memories, wisdom and knowledge through stories, conversations, poetry and songs.
Community leaders, knowledgeable experts and historians offer interesting, relevant and engaging commentary throughout.
The narrative is accompanied by impactful and dramatised scenes, interspersed throughout the film bringing to life key historical events of the area and illustrating vivid recollections.
The film describes and celebrates the skills and service of the people who have lived, worked
and travelled here. It features interviews and conversations with people who remember the roads,
both old and new, being constructed, the circumstances of the times, anecdotal stories, influences on the commissioning and implementation of the highway building.
The project is being initially produced in separate episodes, with the intention to form a complete, cohesive and entertaining audience experience when completed. Each episode will introduce and reflect a settlement along the highways’ route through Pairc.
The film begins at the start of the Pairc Road where it connects with the main ‘spinal’ route from Stornoway in Lewis to Tarbert in Harris, known locally as the ‘South Lochs Turn’.
The land here is surrounded on three sides by its marine coast and the highway connects its communities by
passing settlements, crofts, common grazing pastures and wild moorland.
The settlements in Pairc were, in the past, almost exclusively accessible only by sea crossing. In more ancient times, people working this land crossed the moors on mostly unmarked tracks and sometimes unmade paths until the first built roads wereconstructed in the 1920’s.
These relatively modest original highways were designed to improve the infrastructure, promote economic development and perhaps, most importantly, to connect isolated communities.
Contributions are from those who were born and raised here; native Hebrideans and newcomer residents. Some are Gaelic-speakers, many are active crofters and fishermen along with community leaders and volunteers as well as artists and craft artisans, filmmakers, archivists, historians, researchers and others working to keep the community alive, vibrant and prosperous.
Background
Pairc is made of nearly 68,000 acres of the Hebridean Isle of Lewis, known as the South Lochs. The land area of this peninsula is almost cut off from the rest of the island by “two long arms of the sea”1 to the north by Loch Erisort and in the south by Loch Seaforth.
Access to Pairc is from a narrow strip of land which begins at the road turn from the main artery road of the islands at southern end of the village of Balallan. There used to be a wall across that slight neck of land built by the Earl of Seaforth early in the 17th century, called Gàrradh an Tighearna ("The Laird's Dyke"). The remains can still be seen at Sildinis today.
Pairc is a region almost empty of development with wide open vistas of rolling moors and inland lochs populated by sheep, deer and small communities settled on its seaboard fringes.
Villages in the southern part of this land were comprehensively cleared by the Mackenzie landlords of Seaforth in the 19th century to ensure the land could be employed almost exclusively as a deer park for deer stalking and to create a large scale sheep farm.
There is a long and bleak history of poverty, struggle and resistance such as the now famous ‘deer raid’ demonstration of 1887 which was undertaken by starving and impoverished people from the area and now commemorated by a stone-built cairn broch on the outskirts of Pairc.
There is also a history of happiness and enduring human spirit which has bound this community together over the centuries.
The settlements of the district begin at the land-end of Loch Erisort at Sildinis, followed by Habost, Kershader, Garyvard, Caversta, Cromore, Calbost, Marvig, Gravir, Lemreway and Orinsay.
There are also the remains of many other small, ‘cleared’ and deserted settlements, such as the runrig village of Cleiter, the tiny hamlet of Torastay by the sea on the way to Cromore and the ‘lost’ village of Steimreway which has come to symbolise the sometimes harsh history of Pairc and its past residents and of culture which is perhaps in danger of disappearing.
Locations
Sildinis is the first settlement with the remains of an older ‘runrig’ settlement of Cleiter, ancient standing stones and Medieval dyke over-looking the topography of the extraordinary Eishken hills. The village was cleared in the early 19th century but resettled mainly by crofting tenants from Balallan in 1886.
Habost is a working crofting village thought to be perhaps the oldest settlement in the area, once a lively community with shops, mission hall and a kiln. This village was originally a ‘Tack’, an area of land let by the landowner to a ‘tacksman’ who in turn would provide sub-lets to his own tenants.
Kershader at one time housed one of the larger schools, now the Ravenspoint Community Centre where a replica of a World War Two ‘Charioteer’ submersible is on display. The War Memorial in the centre of the village records those who gave their lives to serve and protect their country. On the outskirts, there are remains of a Norse mill.
Garyvard was once a thriving fishing village and with its jetty, a crossing point for travellers from the rest of Lewis via Loch Erisort, the sea passage which forms the northern edge of Pairc. Crofting, the weaving of Harris Tweed and peat-cutting for fuel are carried on from the past to today as treasured Hebridean traditions.
Cromore has always been an active crofting and flourishing fishing settlement. It has 27 crofts of which 21 at one time, housed Harris Tweed looms. The industrious and fruitful commerce of this community acted in part as a trigger for the establishment of connecting road-building to improve the infrastructure of the area. There are two significant ancient sites at Eileen Chaluim Chille and Dun Cromore.
Marvig was known as ‘the Capital of the Lochs’ and was and continues to be a renowned and prosperous fishing village. It was home to settlers evicted from other parts of the area, and further afield, following the period of ‘the clearances’. Marvig was in the past, as now, home to notable musicians, poets and artists as
well as members of the clergy famous for their Gospel ministries and understanding of the human condition.
Calbost is a small village made up of 14 crofts which was ruthlessly cleared when the landowner wanted to establish a sheep farm in the area at the beginning of the 19th century. At one time it was one of the most heavily over- populated places in Pairc but following its depopulation, the population declined even after people returned to crofting at the beginning of the 20th century until there was just one resident remaining in 1995. The settlement is now beginning to thrive once again.
Gravir was the largest village at the heart of Pairc, located roughly in the centre of the land. The road from Garyvard in the north and Calbost in the east meet at the church. The settlement was principally a crofting and fishing village located beside Loch Odhairn, a sea loch with a jetty. The now, privately-owned, large Victorian school building, also served as a museum for some years and is sited at the tip end of the loch.
Lemreway was once a quite large village cleared of inhabitants in 1843. Eventually people were allowed to return to resettle there to carry on typical crofting, weaving, boat-building and fishing employment. The sea loch below the settlement provided an excellent and natural harbour for fishing and trade made even more successful with the construction of its large jetty. The remains of a corn mill was discovered beside a stream near the shore and parts of an ancient kiln, used for drying grain have also been found.
Orinsay was cleared like some of the neighbouring settlements in 1843 to provide land for a large sheep farm and deer park. In spite of the famous ‘land-raids’ of 1891, the village was not re-established as a settlement until after the First World War. Subsequently 14 crofts were assigned and the ‘new’ inhabitants relied mainly on crofting and
fishing as in so many settlements in Pairc. The road, which connects Orinsay to Lemreway was a long and difficult process which was finally completed after the Second World War.
Construction of the M-1 Gravir, 1962 -1963
Tional September 2021
With kind permission of Pairc Historical Society.
The road which goes up the hill to crofts 21, 22, 23 and 24 is known as the M-1 because it was built at the same time as the first motorway to be built in Britain, also called the M-1! The day work started on the site, a local made the comment, “Tha iad ag obair air an M-1 an-diugh.” The name stuck.
In the photograph on the right (above) the hard working squad find time to pose.
Left – right : Roddy Macritchie, Garyvard, Duncan Macleod, 44 Crossbost, Eddie Macleod, Gravir, Alex Murdo Macleod, Caverstay- Foreman and technical adviser and Ian Macphail, Gravir (Iain beag Mairi Ned). The latter is now married and settled in New Zealand. Missing from the picture are Donald Matheson, Glen Gravir and Peter Campbell 18 Gravir, (Peter Phadruig).
Independent Producers
We are in the process of producing a ‘docu-story’ about the making and use of the road in the South Lochs of Lewis. This film will be presented on video as a journey through time and space along the road, old and new, that runs through Pairc.
The work is being created with the assistance and support of local people contributing their stories and experiences, historical resources and archived materials and by employing the talents and skills of people, young and old, who live and work here.
The film is being developed in 10 episodes, each focusing on a settlement along the Pairc Road, providing insight and entertainment to a varied audience via YouTube initially, and then potentially as a ‘streamable’ series via digital platforms.
This project will, of course, require funding and support from other agencies and organisations for which we are developing a business plan and technical proposal which will be available shortly.
Jan Schouten
Jan is a videographer, a long-time resident based in Stornoway on Isle of Lewis. He has been working on several film and documentary projects connected to Pairc over the last two years including commissions and a collaborative exhibition ‘Women of Pairc’ with David Simpson.
Jan’s work has become renowned for displaying and articulating the beauty, history and potential of Pairc through his documentary style.
He combines drone landscape videography with filmed and closely observed personal interviews.
Jan is particularly interested in discovering and illustrating the stories behind the images he captures.
David Simpson
David is an amateur artist and designer living and working in Garyvard, Pairc. He works in a variety of media including sculptural paintings, pencil drawings and collage using reclaimed and recycled materials wherever he can.
David enjoys exploring new avenues of creativity and expression. Over the last three years, he has worked collaboratively, exhibiting with other artists.
In 2021 he joined local artist Emma Mackenzie for ‘Lived Landscapes’ showing a series of his pencil drawings of old croft buildings of Pairc.
In 2022 he worked on the ‘Women of Pairc’ exhibition combining his own interpretive portraits with video conversations produced by Jan Schouten.
