The remote archipelago which lies off the north-west coast of Scotland
boasts a huge range of contrasting and spectacular land- and seascapes.
Lewis is austere, with a featureless peatland core, bounded by dramatic
sea cliffs, whilst neighbouring Harris is extraordinarily rugged but
fringed with stunning unspoilt beaches. The Uists are characterised by
gentle fertile machair lands, and Barra has a more brutal landscape
carved from ancient gnarled rock. But these islands have one thing in
common: they were all built from the most ancient rocks in Britain -
Lewisian gneiss, which reaches back almost to the beginning of
geological time.
In this book Alan McKirdy explores these islands, together with the
volcanic rocks that build the outposts of Rockall, St Kilda and the
Shiants, tracing their extraordinary journey through time and across the
globe.