North- West Coasts of Sutherland and their Bird Life. 495 



I hired a boat and two men from Acriesgill, a small hamlet 

 on Loch Inchard, and sailed out to Bulgie Island, passing 

 through the narrow strait between Ehon Island and the 

 mainland near another fishing hamlet called Oldshore. Loch 

 Inchard is a fine sea loch with splendid harbourage, but 

 narrow, and about 5 miles in length. There is nothing very 

 specially characterising the coast until we arrive nearly 

 opposite the open sandy bay at Loch Sandwood, which is 

 guarded on its southern horn by a fine but short range of 

 cliff, and by the Buachaille or Shepherd, a remarkably fine 

 isolated stack of rock. The Buachaille is about 30 feet 

 square at the base, resting on a solid platform of level under- 

 cliff, washed over by the tide waves, but left bare as each 

 wave recedes. The Buachaille maintains this massiveness — or 

 nearly so — for a height of about 80 feet, and then rapidly 

 diminishes to the top 120 feet higher. The strata are in 

 regular horizontal layers, except on the very summit, which is 

 rough and broken and jagged. As we rowed past within 30 

 feet of the base we could see a gull sitting on the very highest 

 pinnacle. 



Whilst we lay on our oars, admiring this majestic pinnacle, 

 a great thunderstorm burst overhead, accompanied by forked 

 lightning, peals of thunder, and drenching rain, scaring ever 

 and again the sea-birds from their ledges, and adding vastly 

 to the grandeur of the wild scenery. This storm rolled about 

 more or less all day, passing out over the sea towards the 

 Lewis, and crossing the track of a large fleet of fishing boats 

 which were making their way via the Pentland Firth to the 

 east coast fishery, their contracts at Stornoway having been 

 completed. 



On approaching Bulgie Island from the southward, it 

 is seen to consist of one large rounded lump, perhaps 

 100 feet in height, with six or seven outlying skerries, aU 

 more or less covered with sea-birds, either nesting or 

 resting. 



Two pairs of greater black-backed gulls {Larus marinus) 

 were perched on the topmost pinnacles of the skerries. 

 Cormorants and shags — the former scarce, the latter common 

 — were drying their wings in the light air. Puffins were very 



