Activity
Midhowe broch and tomb
Dog walk
21 May 2026
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Photos
1.8 miles
Distance
1h 3m
Moving time
1.7 mph
Average speed
3.1 mph
Max speed
- Description
- If you like your history or archaeology, Rousay is a simply stunning place! Known, apparently, as "the Egypt of the north" for the concentration of ancient sites, a few miles along the south west coast of Rousay is full of archaeology. First up, the "Westness walk" and the stand outs of the Midhowe Broch and the Midhowe Tomb. The broch is one of Scotland's best preserved and dates from about 200BC to 200AD. Right next to it is Midhowe chambered cairn which is about 5000 years old. It is now housed in a "warehouse" with gantries that allow you to walk above the cairn. It housed 25 bodies in their own "stalls" (leading to the nickname the "great ship of death"). A wealthy local distiller in the 1930s excavated and "preserved" a lot of the Rousay tombs with steel and concrete which has its pros and cons. With all the places we visited on Rousay we could walk right into the sites and were the only people there. The "Westness Walk" continues through sites with iron age, pictish, viking and later origins. For example, it was great to know we were walking through the site where Earl Paul the Silent was abducted by Swein Asleifsson while hunting for otters. Tye was strictly on the lead as he was hunting for otters in the same spot a 1000 years later.
- Start
- 21 May 2026 at 10:49:15
- End
- 21 May 2026 at 12:27:56
- Participants
- Aidan and Liz
- Tags
- Midhowe Broch Midhowe Tomb Orkney Orkney and Shetland Rousay Skaill Farm