Stop 2 – The Clootie Well Mileometer will be around 10 miles

The Clootie Well is, how can I say it? A bit weird. It all started out fine enough. There is a rich tradition of “healing wells” around the country and that is not surprising. They all started at a time long before we had any understanding of medicine or the causes of disease. It must have been a comfort for the ailing that they could visit a magical place where their pains and diseases would be cured by the supernatural powers of healing waters. Attached to many of these wells are rituals that include depositing coins or making other offerings. This might have been a good source of added income for the folk on whose land the well stood but whether there were any actual healing powers I will leave to your judgement. But the ritual at the Clootie well was a bit different. It is said that if you are suffering you should bring a piece of cloth, or cloot in Scots, and rinse it out in the well. You then hang the cloot on a tree overhanging the well, and as the cloth dries out whatever ails you will evaporate away.

Yes, well, as they may say down at the well of science. The Clootie Well is situated above Munlochy Bay where in the late 18th Century there was a huge quarry where the stone to build Fort George was hewn. Many of the local residents will undoubtedly have suffered from strained muscles, twisted knees, cut hands, bad backs and probably hearing loss from the blasting. Many of these ailments are debilitating and cause misery but will, in time, cure themselves. We heal. So in the time that it takes for a cloth to dry out when hanging outside, on a tree, in the north of Scotland I am sure quite a few folk started to feel better… and clearly the story grew.

Some 50 years ago when I first visited this site there were a few bleached rags hanging close to the well. There was no car park, so you took your life in your hands parking on the road. But as you will soon see, the pace of cloot hanging has grown exponentially. On the grounds of taste I am not going to describe all of the different “cloots” you will see hanging there but be prepared to be amazed at people’s ingenuity. Some items are poignant, others spooky. Then there’s the bizarre and a few downright disturbing.

Wander at your leisure. Hang your own cloot on a tree and I genuinely hope you are feeling better in the morning.

If you want a laugh look at the trip advisor reviews of this particular site. I don’t think I can say any more.

From the Car Park at the Clootie Well turn right and continue for another mile or so and you will see a small carpark on your right overlooking Munlochy Bay. Pull in and listen to stop 3.