Dun Beag Broch- Isle of Skye

A nice easy walk to Dun Beag Broch on the Isle of Skye

On Location: 19th April 2024

Parking: There is a small free car park just off the main A863 road just north of the small village of Struan What 3 Words location ///emperor.smelter.marzipan Grid reference: NG 33769 38503. A visit to the broch is free of charge.

Refreshments: There are no toilets or refreshments available at the car park but nearby in the small village of Struan there is the Bog Myrtle Café and bookshop.

Dun Beag Broch is one of the best preserved and easily accessible Iron-age broch’s on the Isle of Skye. From the car park it is a straightforward walk across a field up to the remains of this ancient site. Please remember though that this is farmland so not only is the ground underfoot a bit rough but livestock may also be grazing the area. There are information boards both at the car park and at the broch. Even if you don’t feel like the walk, the views across Loch Bracadale are superb.

We have had a dig through the archives and found this old transparency which I took in the mid 1980’s on one of our first trips to the island. Esther and I don’t even recall visiting the broch but there it is, hardly changed in the 40 or so years.

This is mainly a post with a selection of my images from the route which is fairly self-explanatory.

Route map: click on the arrow to play the route. Route files in various formats are available to download by clicking in the Plotaroute.com link at the bottom right.

The broch is indicated by a roadside sign just north of Struan. Parking is on the opposite side of the road to the site entrance.

After carefully crossing the road we headed up through the gate to the broch which is on the skyline.

There are about 500 broch’s in Scotland, most are to the north and west. Not all are worth a visit like this one.

Outside the round walls of the broch there are many signs of other buildings.

Dun Beag (“little fort”) is one of the best preserved broch’s in Scotland. It is estimated that when it was built it would have been about 10m tall. It is unclear as to whether these were solely defensive buildings or symbols of power but it seems they could have been in day to day use.

An aerial view of the broch’s fine location with the distinctive shape of MacLeod’s Table away in the distance.

There is a good information board just before the entrance to the building.

The entrance is remarkably intact.

Within the structure of the walls, just to the right of the entrance is this round “cell”, possibly a guardroom.

The walls of the broch were double skinned with a middle gap allowing safe passage and protection.

From above the plan of the broch can be seen. The diameter of the outer walls is about 19m.

No matter how or why they were constructed about 2000 years ago they must have taken a lot of effort.

Looking out from the broch past Ullinish Point to the tidal island of Oronasy.

The entrance and cell. The walls that still stand are about 4.5m thick at the base.

Looking down Loch Harport from the broch.

Looking back at the remains of the walls.

From the broch it is a simple descent down the grassy slopes back to the gate and then on to the car park.

Whilst there are some stunning locations to see on the Isle of Skye it is well worth a bit of your time to find out about the history of the island by visiting many of the ancient sites such as this.

I hope that you have enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.