Reasons to Go Back to Scotland

Grad school not required.

89 Items

Isle of Staffa, Scotland

Fingal's Cave

This astonishingly geometric cave has inspired everyone from Jules Verne to Pink Floyd.

Dylan

East Lothian, Scotland

Bass Rock

This tiny island is home to the world's largest colony of Northern gannets.

Dr Alan P Newman

Added by Dr Alan P Newman

Craighat, Scotland

Devil's Pulpit

A strange rock with a sinister reputation lurks within the crimson waters of this Scottish glen.

Added by Ryan Ebejer

Glenfinnan, Scotland

Glenfinnan Viaduct

Now famous as the "Harry Potter bridge," this impressive concrete viaduct has long been an icon in its own right.

Dr Alan P Newman

Added by Dr Alan P Newman

Outer Hebrides, Scotland

Hirta Island Ghost Town

The last inhabitants of one of the U.K.'s most remote islands were evacuated in 1930.

Capemarsh

Added by Capemarsh

Drymen, Scotland

Buchanan Castle

This castle was established by the 4th Duke of Montrose and is connected to the Buchanan Clan.

Added by chowker

Sandwick, Scotland

Skara Brae

Amazing and mysterious Neolithic settlement on Scotland's Orkney Islands.

Edinburgh, Scotland

Gilmerton Cove

This series of Scottish caves has no clear purpose other than baffling historians.

Added by rebeccaorr74

Stonehaven, Scotland

Dunnottar Castle

The ruins of this gorgeous clifftop castle look like something from a fantasy novel.

rumbelievable

Added by rumbelievable

Orkney, Scotland

Ring of Brodgar

The true age of this ancient stone circle is unknown, but its stunning vista isn't in question.

tyler

Highland, Scotland

Clootie Well

A pagan tradition of draping trees with rags eerily lives on.

Allison

Added by Allison

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Iona Abbey

A small island abbey is the final resting place of many medieval Scottish monarchs, including the real Macbeth.

Added by rayodiorne

Cardross, Scotland

The Ruins of St. Peter's Seminary

One of Scotland's most important modern structures, it just made the '100 Most Endangered Sites' list.

jamesb

Added by jamesb

Fortingall, Scotland

The Fortingall Yew

Possibly the oldest living thing in Europe, more likely a pagan survivor.

Melissa Marshall

Added by Melissa Marshall

Dunino, Scotland

Dunino Den

A site of pagan worship which still attracts people looking for fairies.

pieofthemonth

Added by pieofthemonth

East Lothian, Scotland

Yester Castle

Ruined castle with subterranean vaulted Goblin Ha' or "Goblin Hall."

johnreppion

Added by johnreppion

Orkney, Scotland

The Stones of Stenness

Possibly the oldest of Britain's ancient henges is also one of its most stark.

tyler

Shetland Islands, Scotland

Broch of Mousa

A remarkably well preserved tower dating all the way back to the Iron Age.

AaronNetsky

Added by AaronNetsky

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Ascog Hall Victorian Fernery

A fernery hidden by neglect is uncovered, and an ancient specimen along with it.

Added by duncanchappell

Scottish Borders, Scotland

Scott's View

This picturesque view of the Scottish Borders was beloved by Sir Walter Scott.

Added by christianisgroovy

Edinburgh, Scotland

Cramond Ghost Island

Accessible only at low tide, the deserted island is dotted with World War II ruins.

Rory Steabler

Added by Rory Steabler

Scottish Borders, Scotland

Great Polish Map of Scotland

This huge concrete map of Scotland was built as a thank you gift from a Polish soldier.

stevied

Added by stevied

Pittenweem, Scotland

St. Fillan's Cave

This tiny little cave was said to have been a refuge for a saint with a glowing arm.

pieofthemonth

Added by pieofthemonth

Edinburgh, Scotland

Dr Neil's Garden

A secret garden in a picturesque Edinburgh village has inspired artists for centuries.

ScottishRose

Added by ScottishRose

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Ecopod

Geodesic dome luxury retreat in the Scottish Highlands.

Lerwick, Scotland

Up Helly Aa

During this Shetland Islands celebration, hundreds of torch-carrying "guizers" lead a procession to burn a viking longboat.

EricGrundhauser

Added by EricGrundhauser

Orkney, Scotland

Old Man of Hoy

A red sandstone freestanding monolith rises out of the sea in northern Scotland.

rachaelcosta

Added by rachaelcosta

Orkney, Scotland

Tomb of the Eagles

This Scottish burial tomb once held hundreds of ancient eagle bones.

Added by embentley1

Orkney, Scotland

Brough of Birsay

This tiny island featuring 9th-century Viking ruins is only accessible at low tide.

wmorden

Added by wmorden

Orkney, Scotland

Cuween Hill Cairn

Enter the world under the hill at this ancient UK burial chamber.

AlexKohan

Added by AlexKohan

Orkney, Scotland

Maeshowe

Thanks to both terrific preservation and historic vandalism this ancient site is known as the "Heart of Neolithic Orkney."

Added by DuncanGibson

Burghead, Scotland

The Burning of the Clavie

Even after the church tried to wipe the practice out, this pagan festival lives on each year in a small Scottish village.

EricGrundhauser

Added by EricGrundhauser

Outer Hebrides, Scotland

North Rona Island

This remote Scottish isle is only inhabited by seals, birds, and the memory of a tragic settlement.

The Minx

Added by The Minx

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Wallabies of Inchconnachan

An eccentric aristocrat brought these Australian natives to their current Scottish home.

Kerry Wolfe

Added by Kerry Wolfe

Perth and Kinross, Scotland

Meikleour Beech Hedges

The Guinness Record holder for largest hedge in the world is a verdant Scottish bulwark.

Added by jondhunter

Stenness, Scotland

Ness of Brodgar

The discovery of this Neolithic settlement, which contained a Stone Age "cathedral," threw archaeologists for a loop.

sholcroft

Added by sholcroft

Blantyre, Scotland

Blantyre Carvings

These mysterious religious carvings were once thought to be thousands of years old but are actually the work of modern eccentric.

stevied

Added by stevied

Elie Chain Walk

The only fixed chain and post trail in Scotland snakes its way along the base of a towering seaside cliff.

Added by Anita Squared

Glenfinnan, Scotland

The Leaning Tower of Glenfinnan

A close look reveals that the Scottish monument is just slightly off-kilter.

thewanderlustscot

Added by thewanderlustscot

Outer Hebrides, Scotland

Flannan Isle Lighthouse

What happened to the three lighthouse keepers who vanished from this place remains a mystery over a century later.

jbartlett2000

Added by jbartlett2000

Machrie, Scotland

Machrie Moor Standing Stones

More stones than Stonehenge, all scattered within a windswept landscape sure to enchant 'Outlander' fans.

kirstenalana

Added by kirstenalana

Anstruther, Scotland

Anstruther Model Solar System

Bronze plates placed around this Scottish fishing village form a true-scale model of the solar system.

Added by duncanchappell

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

The Tinkers' Heart

A rare permanent monument to the Scottish Travellers.

Added by emacp1

Saint Monans, Scotland

Wellie Garden of St Monans

Some cheeky plantings brighten an old slipway on Scotland's Firth of Forth.

Added by duncanchappell

Isle of Skye, Scotland

Calum's Road

One man spent 10 years building a spectacular section of road because no one else would.

Capemarsh

Added by Capemarsh

Highland, Scotland

Cairngorm Reindeer Centre

Britain's only herd of free-ranging reindeer.

Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Kildalton Cross

This 1,300-year-old marker is one of the finest and most complete early Christian crosses in Scotland.

Added by mbmackenzie

Edinburgh, Scotland

General Register Building of the National Archives of Scotland

Every birth, death, and marriage is recorded in these color-coded leather-bound books.

natashafrost

Added by natashafrost