The Old Man of Stoer

The Old Man of Stoer - - - stands solid like the people of Ukraine!

Enjoy with me today a scene that was the highlight of our ‘Stoer Head’ walk. A mighty fine stack indeed and one can see why it is be a magnet to climbers.

A 60- metre (197ft) high sea stack of Torridonian sandstone in Sutherland, Scotland, close to villages of Culkein and Stoer and the nearby Stoer Head Lighthouse. The stack is popular with climbers, though they have to be mighty cautious due to the frequent high winds in this area. The area is rich in seabirds, with fulmars nesting on the rock and the nearby cliffs.

Some five months after our visit a rather daring rescue was carried out here - BBC News:

Two climbers were rescued after getting into difficulty on a sea stack on Sutherland's north west coast. The men were climbing the Old Man of Stoer, a 60m (197ft) tower of rock, when the sea conditions deteriorated. They became crag fast - stuck - on a ledge near the bottom and were unable to move due to high waves and the tide. Stornoway Coastguard helicopter winched the climbers to safety and they were flown to Lochinver to be checked over. "The Old Man of Stoer is a popular location for climbers but weather can rapidly deteriorate and, particularly at this time of year as we come out of the summer months, rising waves and high winds from the North Sea present significant risks that anyone moving around the coast can expect to encounter."

Essential full screen.