Rua Reidh Lighthouse stands close to the entrance to
Loch Ewe
Loch Ewe ( gd, Loch Iùbh) is a sea loch in the region of Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The shores are inhabited by a traditionally Gàidhlig-speaking people living in or sustained by crofting villages, the most notab ...
in
Wester Ross
Wester Ross () is an area of the Northwest Highlands of Scotland in the council area of Highland. The area is loosely defined, and has never been used as a formal administrative region in its own right, but is generally regarded as lying to the ...
, Scotland.
History
The name "Rua Reidh" is a semi-anglicisation of "Rubha Rèidh" meaning a flat headland.
A lighthouse on Rubh'Re Point was first proposed by
David Stevenson in 1853. Building was started by his son,
David Alan Stevenson
David Alan Stevenson (21 July 1854 in Edinburgh – 11 April 1938) was a lighthouse engineer who built 26 lighthouses in and around Scotland.
Life
He was born on 21 July 1854 the son of David Stevenson and his wife, Elizabeth Mackay. His ...
in 1908 and the light was first lit on 15 January 1912. The light came from a paraffin lamp, subsequently converted to electricity. The original
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens developed by the French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788–1827) for use in lighthouses. It has been called "the invention that saved a million ships."
The design allows the c ...
is now in the nearby
Gairloch Heritage Museum. The fog siren gave 4 blasts every 90 seconds. The fog siren was discontinued in 1980 as well as all the fog sirens in Scotland. The red fog siren trumpet, along with its clockwork timing mechanism were removed and were donated to the Gairloch heritage center and put on display. The siren's tower and engine room were partially demolished. All that is left is the first floor of the siren's tower and the front facade of the engine room. The fog signal equipment was auctioned off and the pressurised air tanks were removed and sold for scrap.
To the north, a quay and ramp provided access from the sea at high tide. This was the only access for supplies until the road from Gairloch was built in 1962 and can still be seen. This new road was first satisfyingly driven on by Iain Bain (1922–2011). Paraffin was pumped from the quay and other goods were transported on a small trolley on rails.
In recent years the road has been the subject of an access dispute, as the operators of the Bed and Breakfast operating at the site have erected barriers and challenged drivers on the road. The local council maintain that there is a public right of access along the road, and are seeking to resolve the situation, and claim that attempts to resolve the situation amicably have been met with intransigence and aggression on the part of the owners.
Lighthouse buildings
Since automation of the light in 1986, the adjacent accommodation is no longer required for keepers and was sold into private ownership. Since 2004 the lighthouse has been protected as a category B
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. Several of the outbuildings have since been in use as
Bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...
and self-catering tourist accommodation.
Wildlife
The sea around the point contains
basking shark
The basking shark (''Cetorhinus maximus'') is the second-largest living shark and fish, after the whale shark, and one of three plankton-eating shark species, along with the whale shark and megamouth shark. Adults typically reach in length. ...
s and
Atlantic seals.
fulmar
The fulmars are tubenosed seabirds of the family Procellariidae. The family consists of two extant species and two extinct fossil species from the Miocene.
Fulmars superficially resemble gulls, but are readily distinguished by their flight on ...
s,
European shag
The European shag or common shag (''Gulosus aristotelis'') is a species of cormorant. It is the only member of the monotypic genus ''Gulosus''. It breeds around the rocky coasts of western and southern Europe, southwest Asia and north Africa, mai ...
s and
kittiwake
The kittiwakes (genus ''Rissa'') are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the black-legged kittiwake (''Rissa tridactyla'') and the red-legged kittiwake (''Rissa brevirostris''). The epithets "black-legged" and "red-le ...
s nest on the steep cliffs.
See also
*
List of lighthouses in Scotland
This is a list of lighthouses in Scotland. The Northern Lighthouse Board, from which much of the information is derived, are responsible for most lighthouses in Scotland but have handed over responsibility in the major estuaries to the port aut ...
*
List of Northern Lighthouse Board lighthouses
This is a list of the currently operational lighthouses of the Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB). The list is divided by geographical location, and then by whether the lighthouses are classed by the NLB as a 'major lighthouse' or a 'minor light'. F ...
References
External links
Northern Lighthouse Board
{{Authority control
Headlands of Scotland
Tourist attractions in Highland (council area)
Category B listed buildings in Highland (council area)
Category B listed lighthouses
Landforms of Highland (council area)