Eilean Bàn

Eilean Bàn is a small island in the Highland region, lying between the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye. The Skye Bridge crosses the mouth of Loch Alsh using the island as a stepping-stone. Its name means ‘White Island’ in Scottish Gaelic, a reference to the pale granite that shows through the turf. The writer Gavin Maxwell lived here after his home at Sandaig was destroyed by fire in 1968. He invited John Lister-Kaye to help build a zoo and write a book about British wild animals. The island is best known as the last home of Gavin Maxwell, author of Ring of Bright Water. Maxwell’s friend Lister-Kaye later wrote The White Island about their time together. Since 1998 the island has been run as a nature reserve and holiday lets by the Eilean Bàn Trust. The 2001 census counted two residents, but by 2011 no one lived there permanently. Kyleakin Lighthouse stands at the south-western tip of Eilean Bàn. Built in 1857 by David and Thomas Stevenson, it was automated in 1960 and decommissioned in 1993. The lighthouse and its pair of keepers’ houses are now a Category B listed building. Visitors can walk to the lighthouse and look across to Skye. The island’s quiet paths lead past patches of wild flowers and views of the surrounding sea.