South Fearns
South Fearns is a deserted township on the east coast of Raasay, south of Hallaig, on the narrow strip of land between the cliffs and the Sound of Raasay. Its ruined houses, field walls and lazy beds are among the remains of the crofting communities that once lived along this side of the island.
History
Like Hallaig and the other townships of southern and eastern Raasay, Fearns was cleared in the 1850s, when the island’s owner, George Rainy, turned the land over to sheep farming. The people were moved to poorer ground in the north of the island or emigrated overseas. North Fearns, where the public road now ends, was later resettled.
Visiting
The path from the end of the road at North Fearns leads past the old township towards Hallaig, through birch woodland beneath the cliffs of Beinn na Leac, with views across to the mountains of Applecross. Raasay is reached by ferry from Sconser on Skye.
About island abandoned villages
All abandoned villages →All over the islands of Britain and Ireland stand the roofless houses, overgrown fields and empty streets of villages whose people left. Some were cleared by landlords to make way for sheep, some emptied slowly as the young went to find work, and some, like St Kilda, were evacuated when life became too hard to…
