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Here we see Sheena on the eastern coast of the
tiny island of Raasay, which is situated between the Isle of Skye and the
Scottish mainland. We were hiking to Hallaig, one of the better-known sites
of the Highland Clearances. Hallaig is famous because Sorley MacLean (1911–1996), arguably the greatest poet
ever to write in Gaelic, gave that name to his most celebrated poem -- a work that treats one of those infamous Clearances. Most of the people cleared from Raasay journeyed
to the colonies that eventually became Canada. Sheena and I, having travelled the
other way, from Canada to Skye and Raasay, left our car when the road ran out and followed a dirt-grass track
slowly upwards. The hike seemed a tad longer than the sign-promised 3.2 kilometres.
But I had best come clean as the mundane truth emerges in this photo to the left. We are back in the Highlands and Islands in imagination only. In truth I am hard at work writing captions. This shot of Sheena at the cairn is one of 60+ images that turn up in Flight of the Highlanders: The Making of Canada. I toil in the belief that all these photos and images mightily enhance the book. Either I'm right or the devil makes me do it. You'll be able to judge for yourself come September.
