Carloway Visitor Information and Accommodation Guide for your visit to Carloway at the head of a narrow sea inlet on the north west coast of Lewis some 15 miles from Stornoway and 4 miles north from Callanish, and 1 mile north west of Doune or Dun Carloway, named after a dun, broch or Pictish fort on a prominent hill.
This is one of the best preserved Iron Age brochs in the Western Isles.
Much oft he broch has vanished, but what remains is impressive and indicates how secure a refuge it must have been for the Picts or Celts who built it as an impregnable retreat.
Part of the double wall rises to 30 ft and is ll ft thick, and it's slabs of unhewn stone are bedded to form an internal staircase to the top.
The outer, with loop holes at regular intervals, slopes inwards while the inner wall is perpendicular. The courtyard is 25 ft in diameter and the structure’s narrow entrance was easily protected by a guardroom placed between the walls.
Opinions differ on whether the broch was a defence against Roman slave raiders or against Norsemen, but whatever its origin it is remarkable evidence of the architectural defensive talents of the earliest historical inhabitants of these islands.
A little south is one of the most picturesque villages in Lewis, Tolsta Chaolais.
Exploring Carloway Visitor Information and Accommodation Guide
- Carloway Latitude 58.2835° N Longitude -6.7677° W
- Carloway Postcode HS2
- Carloway WOEID 28835951
- Carloway Map
- Carloway Weather Forecast
- Carloway Reviews
