old man of hoy

The famous 500 foot high pillar of sandstone rock on the West side of the Island of Hoy in the Orkney Islands lying just North of the Scottish Mainland. It was illustrated on the front endpaper of Parish Life on the Pentland Firth by Morris Pottinger taken from a map circa 1600 drawn by Timothy Pont, then Minister of Dunnet Church in Caithness. On his map he described the Old Man as Rora Head Stour, lying on the west cliffs of the Island of Hoy, where he said the Lyer bird builds it's nest and rears it's young. These were taken by our ancient forebears and salted down for winter food, no doubt eating a few while still fresh. The practice is carried on to this day off the North of Lewis in the Hebrides on a small island with the Guga, or young of the Gannet. The Old Man is a magnifent pillar, regarded as unclimbable until a few years ago when the BBC filmed live it's climbing by a team of skilled mountaineers doing what mountaineers do best. It is also a must see and must photograph by myriads of visitors to Orkney, and Orkneymen themselves no doubt. It can be viewed at close quarters by going to Hoy and taking a hill path of some three miles along the cliffs to view this natural red sandstone phenomenon.