Glen Meavaig

Route: Glen Meavaig, North Harris Eagle Observatory

Area: Outer Hebrides, North Harris

Date of walk: 10th March 2024

Walkers: Andrew and Gilly

Distance: 3.3 miles

Ascent: 200 feet

Weather: Mostly sunny

North Harris provides one of the best opportunities in Scotland for viewing golden eagles and has some of the highest densities of breeding pairs in Europe. The North Harris Eagle Observatory is situated along Glen Meavaig, in the heart of the territory of a pair of golden eagles. It was built in 2012 by the North Harris Trust with funding from Scottish Natural Heritage and others

We parked on the B887 road at the bottom of Glen Meavaig, where there is a car park with room for about five cars. An honesty box suggests a donation. We set off along the obvious track – a route map isn’t really necessary as it would be impossible to go astray. We headed up the glen, soon crossing a bridge over the Abhainn Mhiabhaig

The great rocky buttress of Sròn Scourst dominated the view up the glen and became ever more impressive the further we progessed. Just before reaching the hide we spotted a bird soaring above the ridge line on our left. The binoculars were deployed and it was a thrill to see the clear outline of an eagle, probably a golden eagle though it could have been a sea eagle. A few yards further on we arrived at the hide, where there is visitors book for the recording of sightings. We sat on an outdoor bench for a while and saw a pair of eagles, possible a third too, but it was too far away to be sure

It’s possible to extend the route by walking further along the track, which extends for miles, but we were well content with what we’d seen and retraced our steps back to the start

Click on the icon below for the route map (subscribers to OS Maps can view detailed maps of the route, visualise it in aerial 3D, and download the GPX file. Non-subscribers will see a base map)

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Glen Meavaig, North Harris Eagle Observatory

The start of the walk from the car park by the B887 road

We follow the sign. Navigation couldn't be simpler and a map isn't needed unless planning to extend the walk

We follow the easy track along Glen Meavaig

The imposing rock buttress of Sròn Scourst on our right...

Oireabhal on our left, where we'd have a golden eagle sighting later on

Thousands of trees have been planted in the glen. This plantation was established a few years ago and seems to be doing well

We cross the bridge over Abhainn Mhiabhaig

Looking along Abhainn Mhiabhaig to Oireabhal

Sròn Scourst again - the observatory is just beyond the small rise at its foot

Eagle eyed Gilly spots a bird in the distance and the binoculars are brought into action

The only photo I could manage. Although I'd brought a long lens, the birds were too far away for a decent shot. Through the binoculars it was clear that there were two, possibly three, golden eagles above Oireabhal

To compensate for the poor image above, here's one I took a few years ago in a different location

Sròn Scourst, North Harris Eagle Observatory

We arrive at the North Harris Eagle Observatory

There's a picnic bench outside the observatory and we spent some time here scanning the skies. We had a few distant sightings before a pair of eagles flew off behind Sròn Scourst

Visitors book in North Harris Eagle Observatory, where we duly recorded our sighting. There's no guarantee of seeing eagles, as the book shows

The track continues to Loch Scourst and for many miles beyond, but it was mission accomplished for us, so we retraced our steps back to the start

A final glance up to Oireabhal, where we'd had our sighting

Route map

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