It has an area of 109 hectares (270 acres) and a maximum height of 108 metres (354 ft)[1][4][5] The island lies 71 kilometres (44 mi) north north east of Butt of Lewis and 18 kilometres (11 mi) east of Sula Sgeir. Rona and Sula Sgeir form the most remote and least-visited National Nature Reserve in Britain. On a morning of breath-taking beauty, we left the tiny port of Miavaig on Lewis. We were given just three hours to complete the filming and get back on board. Although farmers from Lewis have continued to graze sheep on Rona ever since, the island has remained uninhabited, apart from one brief and tragic episode in 1884–85. [20], In 1992 Rona was acquired from the government by a Danish owner, who restored Rona Lodge at An Acarsaid Mhór, and built a new landing jetty. Murray (1973) presumes that they confined their attacks to foreign vessels as they seem to have been tolerated by the local clan chiefs.

[1], There are the ruins of a small 14th century chapel at the south end of the island at An Teampull. As we approached the village, Bonxies – or Great Skuas – dive bombed us; an aerial assault that was an appropriate accompaniment to the story that George was relating. The structure, probably a monk's cell, is enclosed by a wall within which is the island's only gravestone. Today, the homes where islanders lived for generations have been reduced to a few loose stone walls outlining shallow depressions in the landscape. The island was famous for growing barley (an unlikely crop I would have thought, given the gales and rain so prevalent in this part of the north). In 1943 the last crofting family left and the island had become uninhabited, with the exception of the lighthouse keepers who lived at its north end until the lighthouse was automated in 1975. Rona is said to have been the residence of Saint Ronan in the eighth century. Other islets surrounding Rona include Eilean Seamraig, Garbh Eilean (connected to Rona at low tide), Sgeirean Buidhe Bhorlum, and A' Sgeir Shuas. The rats raided the food stocks of barley meal and it is possible the inhabitants starved to death, although plague may have been a contributory factor. Eilean Tighe (connected to Raasay at low tide) lies about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) away across the straits of An Caol Ronaigh, at the centre of which is tiny Fraoich Eilean. [5], After the first phase of clearances the population of Rona rose steadily to over 180, the main settlements being at Doire na Guaileadhin the south, An Acarsaid Mhór and An Acarsaid Thioram. [27] Over 300 species of plant have been recorded and in the absence of sheep the native woodland is regenerating. If you continue to use this site we’ll assume you’re happy to receive all cookies. The island continued to be inhabited until the entire population of thirty died shortly after 1685 after an infestation by rats, probably the Black Rat Rattus rattus, which reached the island after a shipwreck. 2572212 | VAT registration No. With no peat to provide heat and light, life would have been impossible. In June 1884, two men from Lewis, Malcolm MacDonald and Murdo Mackay, having reportedly had a dispute with the minister of their local church, went to stay on Rona to look after the sheep. [5][21][22] 57.5 hectares (142 acres) at the north end of the island remain in the hands of the Ministry of Defence. Nisbet, HC and Gailey, R A (1962) 'A survey of the antiquities of North Rona', Archaeological Journal Vol.117, p88-115. [2][13] The highest point on the island is Meall na h-Acarseid, which reaches 125 metres (410 ft). In May 1921, a group of crofters from Rona landed on Raasay and attempted to re-occupy their ancestral land. The island still has the Celtic ruins of St Ronan's Chapel. It is also the closest neighbour to the Faroe Islands. It was a hard life, and the entire population starved to death at least once. North Rona was immediately on my wish list of places to visit for the series Grand Tours of the Scottish Islands, but for two years in a row, plans had to be scrapped because the weather during our filming block was successively too rough to make a landing there possible. [5], However his support for the Jacobite cause worked against him and nothing was done. It’s hard to imagine the homes where islanders lived unless you see them. The island was occupied temporarily in 1938–39 by author and conservationist Frank Fraser Darling with his wife Bobbie and their son Alasdair, while they studied the Grey Seals and the breeding seabirds. Rona currently has two permanent residents, the island manager and his wife, who live at Rona Lodge (where B&B and bunkhouse accommodation are available), and who also manage the self-catering cottages at An Acarsaid Thioram. Once inside the gloomy oratory, we disturbed a nesting Fulmar whose defensive projectile vomit was directed towards us. The stamps serve visitors to the island who wished to have their mail posted there, and carried to the nearest GPO post box on the mainland. The rats themselves eventually starved to death, the huge swells the island experiences preventing their hunting along the rocky shores.[1].

During First World War, the commander of German U-boat U-90, Walter Remy, stopped his submarine at North Rona during each of his wartime patrols, weather permitting, and sent crewmen onto the island to shoot sheep to obtain mutton for on-board consumption.[2]. A grim find indeed. These, along with feathers, sea foul and sealskins were exported annually from North Rona to Lewis. Built into the earth and roofed with turf, they apparently blended into the landscape almost perfectly – the only tell-tale sign being wisps of peat smoke - emerging as if from the ground itself. The next stop on our itinerary was St Ronan’s chapel. But despite crystal blue skies, the seas grew rougher the further north we travelled. For someone like me, who has an almost obsessive fascination for far flung islands, the thought of visiting such a place is irresistible, especially so since my imagination was fired many years ago after reading a fictional account of a landing there in Neil Gunn’s celebrated novel The Silver Darlings, which describes how its hero Calum is blown off course in a fishing boat, and forced to climb the cliffs of North Rona in search of fresh water. Its original name is Rona but it is called North Rona more frequently, to distinguish it from South Rona, another small island, in the Inner Hebrides. In the early 1800s only six acres were under cultivation, and the last permanent residents left in 1839. Rona's name is believed to be of Old Norse origin, from Hraun-eyer meaning "rough islands" and probably reflects a Viking settlement. Rona is often referred to as North Rona in order to distinguish it from South Rona. The isle was resettled, but again depopulated by around 1695 in some sort of boating tragedy, after which it remained home to a succession of shepherds and their families, until 1844 when it was deserted. Many of the residents were crofting families who had themselves been cleared from more fertile land on Raasay. Before it was finally abandoned in the 1830s, North Rona was the remotest island community in Europe. Company Registered in England no. The boat had to return to Lewis before midnight, so there could be no dawdling or stopping to admire the view. English: Rona (Scottish Gaelic: Rònaigh) is a remote Scottish island in the North Atlantic. This was probably one of the reasons that the village was finally abandoned. This page was last modified on 6 April 2017, at 19:27.

There is no pier or jetty; no beach or sheltered bay; and the green pastures which we saw from afar, sit on top of some spectacular cliffs, which form a defensive girdle of rock and breaking surf around the island. North Rona cheese was also considered to be of exceptional quality and much sought after. It is included within the county of Ross-shire. North Rona is a remote island in the North Atlantic belonging to Ross-shire and the most northerly point of the county. Once inhabited by a small population it was thought to be more difficult to build a sustainable life here than even in St Kilda.

Their emaciated bodies were discovered in their homes when the factor of St Kilda was blown off course and wrecked on North Rona. Due to the island's remote location and small area, it is left off many maps of the United Kingdom. Most would have lived and died here without seeing anything beyond the wide horizon, where there isn’t the slightest hint of land in any direction. North Rona has an area of 269 acres and a maximum height of 354 feet. Timing the rise and fall of each wave as it lifted our flimsy craft towards the rocks, we jumped ashore and formed a human chain to get the camera equipment safely on dry land. MORE: Rare St Kilda photographs discovered. Sir James Matheson, who bought Lewis in 1844, offered the island to the Government for use as a penal settlement. Rona is an extension northward of the ridge of Raasay. It was a task that must have taken generations. George described how, over the centuries, all the good soil had been moved by hand from less fertile parts of the island and consolidated in an area around the village. [5], North Rona - Special Area of Conservation, Rona and Sula Sgeir - Scotland's National Nature Reserves, Information on the church and oratory at RCAHMS, http://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst1967.html, https://wikishire.co.uk/w/index.php?title=North_Rona&oldid=47638. The offer was refused. Back outside in the sunlight, we stood in the ancient graveyard and thought of the lives of the people who once lived on this tiny, remote island. Rona is a remote Scottish island in the North Atlantic. GB 638 3492 15, Copyright © 2020 Warners Group Publications Plc. [15] In the 16th century Rona became a refuge for pirates who made a base at An Acarsaid Mhor, then known as Port nan Robairean - "port of the robbers". Before it was finally abandoned in the 1830s, North Rona was the remotest island community in Europe.

[19] Thomas C Lethbridge gives a good description of the cave as it appeared in 1950, still with its stone seats and with the altar at the mouth of the cave. Because of the rough conditions, our journey time was nearly double what we expected, and it took over 6 hours to reach North Rona, which appeared out of a blue haze like a vision: an oasis of green grass in the vastness of the North Atlantic. The bird is an odd custodian of this ancient place of worship which has a history of religious devotion that is at least 1,000 years old. Its geology is Lewisian gneiss and the glaciated landscape is underlain by some of the oldest rocks in western Europe. There are several smaller bays in the north west including Port an Fhearainn (port of the land), Òb nam Feusgan (bay of the mussel), Port na Bà Brice (port of the speckled cow) and Òb an Deallaire (bay of the loiterer). Transport to the island is by private charter from Portree.

Having come this far was one thing – actually landing on North Rona was another. Reputed to have been founded by St Ronan, a missionary of the Celtic church, this exceptionally tiny and humble building is thought to be the oldest Christian building still standing in Scotland. It has a total area of 930 hectares (3.6 sq mi) and a population of 3.

It lies between the Sound of Raasay and the Inner Sound just north of the neighbouring island of Raasay and east of the Trotternish peninsula of Skye.