Loch nan Ceall 



with in between these gusts, a lull, uncanny in its stillness. I 

 have seen, on such days, cormorants attempt to raise them- 

 selves from the loch's surface, and have seen them beaten 

 down to the water by the storm so that they gave up the 

 attempt at flight. 



There is always a certain risk in using the road beneath 

 the rocks on a wild night of wind and rain, especially after 

 frost, for big rocks often break loose from the cliff, and 

 bound in great leaps to the road below. It was many 

 years ago that a tragedy was enacted at the small dwelling 

 which used to stand at the foot of the cliff. One wild night 

 a great rock, many tons in weight, breaking loose from the 

 hill above, crashed into the house, in which a newly mar- 

 ried couple had just established themselves. The house 

 entirely disappeared, and no trace was ever found of its 

 inmates. 



How different do the cliffs appear in early June when 

 the air is still and warm and when the rocks are tinged with 

 pink blossoms of many plants of Silene acaulis! 



During clear days of early spring, when the wind still 

 carries with it a nip of frost, but when the sun shines warm 

 and bright, buzzards sail across these rocks, and the raven 

 may be seen carrying sticks to her nest. On the summit 

 of the cliff the peregrine stands for hours motionless, scan- 

 ning the country round him, or wheels in strong flight 

 across the sunlit waters of the loch. 



Concerning the name of the loch much conjecture has 

 arisen. On the maps one will find the spelling "Loch na 

 Keal," but in the Gaelic alphabet the letter "K" does not 

 exist. The most probable derivation is, I think, "Loch 

 nan Ceall," or the "Loch of the Burying Grounds," for on its 

 shores are several such places, the most famous being on 

 the Island of Inchkenneth. A derivation of some interest 

 I had from a veteran Highlander who was no mean scholar 

 and could write the Gaelic well a somewhat rare accom- 

 plishment among the past generation. His opinion was 



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