IV27 4PX
Spectacular sandy beach
Huge sand dunes with marram grass
Spectacular Sunsets for Photographers
Small car park at southern end
Walk to Faraid Head to see the Puffins
Craft village nearby
Cocoa Mountain
If you are travelling from Durness you will pass the Balnakeil Craft village on your way to the beach. I would recommend you stop there after visiting the beach or doing the walk to Fairaid Head. That way you can treat yourself to something delicious from Cocoa Mountain!
The Craft Village was originally built as an early warning station against nuclear attack, but became obsolete before coming fully into use. The site was taken over by the local authority who initiated the craft village. You will find a variety of crafts here and it is definitely worth a stop on the NC500.
North from Durness lies the rocky headland of Faraid Head projecting two miles straight out into the Pentland Firth. On on the western side of the neck of land leading to it are the magnificent beaches and dunes of Balnakeil Bay. Balnakeil Beach is a spectacular, clean beach which is large and accessible and offers endless opportunities to discover and explore. The sand dunes are the most obvious feature of this magnificent beach and they represent a large range of habitats. The sandy bay is crescent shaped and faces west. The beach is known for its spectacular sunsets.
The first thing you will see on arrival at the car park shown above is Balnakeil House on your right. This was built between 1720 and 1744, on top of the remains of the earlier summer palace of the Bishops of Caithness.
It was later used as the occasional home of the Lords of Reay and Lady Barbara MacKay who lived here in the mid 1600s.
There used to be a water mill in the grounds of the house, and the 1863 walled garden remains today.
On the other side of the road to your left is a gate leading into the churchyard and remains of Durness Old Church. With views extending over Balnakeil Bay to Faraid Head, there can be few more spectacular final resting places on earth.
The church itself was built in 1619 on the site of a much older church that is recorded as having supported the Crusades in the 1100's. Durness Old Church is now roofless and ivy-clad.
Donald McMurdo (AKA Domhnull MacMhurchaidh)
A skull-and-crossbones within the church marks the ambiguously positioned tomb of one Donald McMurdo, whose exploits as a highwayman 400 years ago included murdering eighteen people. In later life he funded the church generously, in return, it is said, for a burial here. The details of the life of Donald McMurdo seem hard to track down after so many centuries, even the spelling of his name seems to be in some dispute.
What remain of the facts are his reputation as a “highwayman and contract killer.” Back in the 1600's the narrow roads of Sutherland would have been a soggy horse track through bog, peat and deadly moorland.
Legend has it that McMurdo killed 18 people, often tossing them down the “blow hole” at Smoo Cave near Durness. McMurdo is buried in the churchyard at Balnakeil, his grave indicated on the south wall by a skull and crossbones.
The harsh highland elements are slowly wearing away the ruins of the 17th century church so if you don't know where to look you might miss it. Look inside the alcove shown here, It reads "Donald Makmurchou here lies low/ Was ill to his friend, and worse to to his foe/ True to his master in prosperity and woe. DMMC 1623" It is said that the clergy of the church had not wanted to bury such an evil man in sacred ground. They were persuaded by payment. Some say it was his employer who paid, others say McMurdo himself arranged his burial in the churchyard to guard against those who might desecrate his grave. McMurdo’s grave was positioned “half in and half out” of the ground, protecting him within the church walls but leaving his eternal soul partially exposed. If you have a wander around this old graveyard you will find moss-covered skulls.
The churchyard also contains the mass grave of the crew of a ship that sank off Faraid Head with all hands in 1849. Their bodies are buried in an unmarked mass grave, their combined bulk creating a small raised area in the south corner of the churchyard.
Another notable burial is the Sutherland Gaelic poet Rob Donn. Born at Aultnacaillich in Strathmore, he never learnt to speak English or to read and write. He was influenced by the poetry of Alexander Pope, which he heard in Gaelic from the local minister, the Rev. Murdo MacDonald
Walk to Faraid Head
There is a walk to Faraid Head which will take you around 2 hours to complete and covers about 4 miles in total. It Starts in the car park by the old church, runs across the beach and tracks through the sand dunes. There is a Puffin colony at Faraid Head and Grey seals and other seabirds are abundant too. The local Caithness and Sutherland countryside rangers run guided walks here which you can find out more about through their Facebook Page. 
This page is under construction and was updated on 3rd March 2019
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