The Old Man of Stoer and the Point of Stoer

The walk starts from the car park on the lighthouse road, shortly before the last climb to Stoer Head lighthouse, on the Stoer peninsula in Assynt. A grassy coast path runs north along the clifftops, with the lighthouse behind, past deep geos and gullies to the high cliffs near the Point of Stoer. It ends on the grass above the Old Man of Stoer, a sandstone sea stack standing off the cliffs, and a path goes on towards the Point itself. The return climbs the low hill of Sìthean Mòr, where the mountains of Assynt stand along the horizon, then follows a path and a track down to the lighthouse road.

It is 7.2 km round with 312 m of ascent; allow about 2½ hours. The grade is Moderate: a rough coast path, mapped as a mountain path, that is wet underfoot and not clear everywhere, with a climb of over 300 m in all.

The cliffs are high and the path runs close to the edge in places: keep well back from it, take care in wind, and look at the Old Man from the grass above it, not from the cliff edge. NatureScot's access guidance asks you to keep your dog close to you while ground-nesting birds are breeding, usually from April to July. The Northern Lighthouse Board, which runs Stoer Head lighthouse, does not allow public access to it.

The car park is listed as free in OpenStreetMap. There is no station near.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.