We invite you to join us for a wonderful adventure that combines hiking in spectacular locations with a wealth of fascinating history, archaeology, and local culture. Leaving from Inverness, our tour takes us in three minivans through the remote North Highlands to the beautiful island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. We return to Glasgow on a one- hour flight.

The north of Scotland is a glorious coastal region of glittering sea lochs (fjords), islands, mountains, and glens just waiting to be explored. Scotland’s coastline stretches for thousands of miles and includes everything from rocky cliffs and shorelines to secluded island beaches, all of which are home to many different species of flora and fauna. The tour will be off the well-beaten Highland tourist trail through some of Scotland’s most magnificent scenery. We will visit several archaeological and historical sites and enjoy superb walks in rugged hill terrain, through enchanting glens, and on coastal paths and beaches.

Some of the highlights of our tour include the standing stones of Calanish and a boat trip to and hike on Handa Island with 100,000 breeding seabirds, including puffins. We will explore ancient cairns and the ruins of an Iron Age village. In the Northwest Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark, we will see striking geographical formations, such as the dramatic mountain Suilven and the grand crags of Assynt. The Isle of Lewis, where Gaelic is still spoken alongside English, is steeped in history and culture ranging back thousands of years. You will experience daily the interest and variety woven into the story of Scotland.

John will provide optional readings and lead discussions on Celtic Christianity, rituals of walking in the world’s religions, and the philosophy, psychology, and pleasures of walking. Judith will facilitate workshops using guided meditation, animal oracle cards, and other modalities, along with integrated movement experiences to explore and attune to the spiritual nature of this magical place. Together, we will reflect on and deepen our connections to the Scottish landscapes we traverse.

See more details below and use the Register Now button above to join us. Don’t hesitate – every time this program has been offered, it has sold out quickly.

When we talk about spectacular scenery, not everyone thinks of Scotland. But you should. The peaks may not be of the piercing, cloud-shattering variety. Instead, the landscape is diverse, craggy, and sometimes shrouded and moody.

This interesting landscape means there’s no need to worry about altitude training. You’ll be making ascents, for sure, but you needn’t worry about altitude sickness.

Moving about outdoors is highly encouraged through Scotland’s excellent right of way access. You’re not allowed to just tromp across someone’s garden, but you do have the option to roam the hills whether a path exists or not.

Scotland has some interesting wildlife. Besides the farm animals you may encounter that don’t look like any you’ll see in the US (just glance at the photo to the left), you may see red deer, the Golden Eagle, and otters.

This is the fourth time we’ve offered ​a hiking program in Scotland, always with the same faculty leader and experienced tour operator and guides, who have received highest marks from previous travelers. You’ll be in great hands, led by people passionate about hiking in Scotland.

This program was custom designed to combine hiking in spectacular locations with a wealth of fascinating history and archaeology.

This itinerary is subject to change. Travel demands flexibility. We will strive to balance adaptability with remaining on schedule. Please trust that, when it is not possible to follow the plan laid out below, your program leaders will work to find substitutions that retain the quality of this Study Travel program. Various details may be added or changed due to information obtained while making reservations, or perhaps on site, especially because of the weather. All meals are included from dinner on June 29 through breakfast on July 9.

Wednesday, June 28                 Departure United States
Individual departures from your home town.

Thursday, June 29                      Inverness – Brora
We will meet at Inverness Airport and in Inverness city center at 3 p.m. We’ll drive north along the east coast of Sutherland to Brora, our base for the next three days. Overnight at the Royal Marine Hotel for three nights. (D)

Friday, June 30                            Brora – Dunbeath
We travel further north to Dunbeath in south-east Caithness. We hike into Dunbeath Strath along Dunbeath Water. The path runs along a gorge through fine woodland of lichen-encrusted downy birches, rowans and hazels before reaching open ground. There is a lot of historical interest along the walk, including an old mill built in 1850/1860, the site of a monastery, an Iron Age broch, a deserted settlement from around 1800, various chambered cairns and a Neolithic quarry. (B,L,D) 6 miles and 230 feet of ascent

Saturday, July 1                          Caithness Archaeology
Today, we drive even further north into Caithness to explore the wealth of archaeological sites in this part of the north Highlands. Most of Caithness is now uninhabited, but the remains show that has been highly populated in the past. There are a large number of Neolithic and Iron Age sites. Short walks will take us to some of the sites, including the Grey Cairns of Camster: two Neolithic tombs – a long cairn and a round cairn – built more than 5,000 years ago and the Hill o’Many Stanes, consisting of about 200 small stones arranged in rows running down a low hill. They were erected about 4,000 years ago, possibly for gatherings and religious ceremonies. Large arrangements of stone rows like this are rare. (B,L,D) Up to 5 miles, limited ascent

Sunday, July 2                              Brora – Scourie
We will leave the east coast and travel across the north Highlands to the west coast. There will be short walks along the way and since we will be in the North West Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark some of the walks during this part of the tour are geology themed, starting with the Knockan Crag interpretative geology trail on our way west. Suilven, the showpiece of Assynt dominates the landscape on our way north from Knockan Crag. This is a hill of many shapes. From the south it is a long, drawn-out sugarloaf, with an obvious depression in the middle, from the east it can look like the Matterhorn, rising from its bedrock plinth of Lewisian Gneiss to a narrowing spire. From the north it forms a huge rounded bastion of quartzite capped sandstone. Our last stop will be a visit the ruins of the fifteenth century Ardvreck Castle on the shore of Loch Assynt, built by the MacLeods of Assynt. Overnight in Eddrachilles Hotel for four nights (B,L,D) Total of 4.5 miles and 885 feet of ascent.

Monday, July 3                            Little Assynt
An easy relaxing day after our long journey to Scourie. We’ll enjoy the remote and scenic location of our hotel and maybe go for a short morning walk at Scourie Bay. In the afternoon we’ll go for a walk in Little Assynt, which is owned and managed by the community of Assynt. A very pleasant hike with great views of the Assynt mountains, lots of wild flowers and many remains of old settlements including farmsteads, shieling huts, a corn mill and field systems. (B,L,D) 3 miles and 500 feet of ascent.

Tuesday, July 4                            Handa Island and coastal walk                U.S. Independence Day
Handa Island is a short boat ride from the mainland. More than 100,000 seabirds breed on the island, including puffins. The island also has a fascinating history with the last 64 residents forced to leave the island for Nova Scotia following the potato famine in 1847. The islanders grew crops but also harvested eggs and seabirds from the cliffs. We will pass the remains of the village and the old burial ground. After returning to the mainland we have various options, but it will probably a coastal walk visiting beautiful sandy bays with rough headlands in between. (B,L,D) Total of 6.5 miles and 815 feet of ascent.

Wednesday, July 5                     Durness
On our last day in Sutherland, we’ll travel to the north coast to explore the Durness area visiting the Ceannabeinne Township, which residents resisted being cleared by their landlord. We then continue to Smoo Cave, one of the largest sea caves in Britain. It is a series of three caves, the first made by the sea and the other two by the river Allt Smoo.We’ll fiinsh the day with another coastal walk with great beaches and views of Cape Wrath. (B,L,D) 5.5 miles/9 km, 395ft/120m of ascent

Thursday, July 6                          Scourie – Isle of Lewis
We will travel south to Ullapool for the ferry across the Minch to Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. On arrival we will visit the Museum nan Eilean in a modern wing of the restored Lews Castle, which was built in the mid 1800s. The museum offers an interactive explanation of the history and culture of the Outer Hebrides alongside an exhibition of unique objects dating from prehistory to the present day including six of the famous Lewis Chessmen. Our next stop is at a Harris Tweed weaver for whom weaving is a good means of earning a living at home. Overnight at the Borve House Hotel for three nights (B,L,D)

Friday, July 7                                Calanish Standing Stones, Carloway broch, Arnol
Begin the day with a visit to the magnificent, 5,000-year-old Standing Stones of Callanish (Calanais in Gaelic). The main stone complex contains around 50 stones. A ring of large stones about 12 meters in diameter surround a huge monolith at its centre and the remains of a chambered cairn. There are lines of stones running north, south, east, and west from the stone circle, and two other stone circles are nearby. Continue on to Dun Carloway, one of the best-preserved Iron Age brochs in western Scotland. The broch was probably built in the 1st century B.C., Radiocarbon dating shows that it was last occupied around A.D. 1300. We end the day with a visit to the Arnol blackhouse. Once the home of a Hebridean crofting family and their animals, the thatched house is preserved almost as the family left it when they moved out in 1965. The double drystone walls, low profile, and insulating thatch made blackhouses well suited to the Hebridean climate. From Arnol we’ll walk across the moor to the stunning coastal Loch Mor Bharabhais. (B,L,D) Total of 4.5 miles, limited ascent.

Saturday, July 8                          Great Bernera & Traigh Uige
We’ll spend our last day in Lewis in the south-west corner of the island. Our first stop and walk is on Great Bernera. In 1993 a severe storm cut away the dunes at Bostadh to leave a series of stone structures projecting through the sand. The archeological department of the University of Edinburgh excavated the site in 1996 and found evidence of a Norse settlement. Underneath the Norse levels was a series of five Pictish ‘jelly baby’ or ‘figure of eight’ houses dating back to the 6th-9th centuries AD, that were remarkably well preserved. What you see today is a reconstruction in a spot free of archeological remains; the excavated houses having been reburied for preservation. We will hike across the moor from the Iron Age village to the museum at Breaclete that has a display of finds from the excavations. Our last walk of this tour will be at Traigh Uige – Uig Sands – one of the most beautiful beaches in the Outer Hebrides. The famous Lewis Chessmen – a collection of 93 pieces dating from the 12th century – were found here in the dunes in 1831. We will walk across the sands to the historic Bailena Cille burial ground. (B,L,D) Total of 6 miles and 870 feet of ascent.

Sunday, July 9                              Isle of Lewis – Glasgow
We travel to Stornoway for a one-hour group flight to Glasgow, arriving at 2:50 pm to connect with independent flights homeward (which should depart Glasgow no earlier than 5 p.m.). (B)

Professor of Religion Emeritus John Barbour led St. Olaf’s Global Program in 2001-02, Term in Asia in 2008-09, and seven January interim courses in Rome, Mexico City, Chicago, and Holden Village. In all these places he has been an enthusiastic walker! This will be his fourth Alumni Program devoted to hiking in Scotland, each time with a new and different itinerary. John’s teaching and research interests center on ethical and theological issues raised by works of fiction and autobiography, for instance their exploration of the nature of sin, grace, or community. He is the author of five scholarly books and Renunciation: A Novel (2013). The grandson of a Scottish geologist, John spent his junior year in college at the University of Aberdeen and has visited Scotland many times.

Judith Nelson, MFA, of New York City and the Hudson Valley, NY, is a master teacher of dance with over 35 years of experience in higher education, public schools, and community programs. She danced with the Jose Limon Dance Company, among many others, and toured the US and Europe as a solo artist and in musical theatre. Judith has directed dance programs and taught at a number of colleges, including St. Olaf and Carleton. She taught for many years in NYC, frequently leading professional development workshops for dance and arts educators. A frequent visitor to the Findhorn Foundation in the north of Scotland, Judith completed teacher training in Sacred Dance as well as training in animal communication. Judith incorporates the BrainDance and other modalities to create a safe space where all may feel welcome and free to express themselves through the joy of movement. With John, she co-led the 2022 St. Olaf program “Hiking Scotland’s Northern Islands: Orkney and Shetland.”

This active land tour features daily hikes that are moderate in difficulty. To fully enjoy the experience, participants should be in good walking condition and enjoy hiking. We will enjoy three walks of about six miles, five walks of about four miles, and two walks of two miles, sometimes over rough paths with several hundred feet of ascent.

Three minibuses, each with a local driver/guide, will accompany our group, which is limited to only 16 participants. Our guides will explain in advance the difficulty of each day’s hike and, if you prefer, you can opt out of any hiking excursion. Some days require several hours of driving—past spectacular scenery, and with breaks for meals, ferries, and sightseeing.

Weather these days can vary dramatically. July is one of the warmest months in Scotland, but you need to be prepared for rain and wind. The average July daytime high is 61 Fahrenheit, and the average low is 49. (Keep in mind that averages are just that, and that most days temperatures can be as much as 15 degrees higher or lower.) The days will be long with a late sunset and extended twilight: what locals call the “simmer dim.”

You need to be fit and an active walker by the time of departure. You should plan on seeing your family physician or a travel doctor at least four to six weeks prior to departure, preferably earlier, to talk about routine vaccinations. For more information on travel health, visit cdc.gov or who.int.

COVID INFORMATION

As a condition of participation in this program all attendees must have received a COVID-19 vaccine and received a booster shot at least 2 weeks prior to attending the program. (A 2^nd booster is recommended by the CDC for individuals over 50 years of age.] Because changing conditions may result in additional or different participation restrictions, we will strive to keep you promptly informed of any changes resulting from the ongoing pandemic.

What happens if you develop symptoms or test positive for covid while traveling on the St. Olaf program?

• We will expect everyone to follow the isolation and other protocols of the host country and will provide those to you, to the best of our knowledge, closer to departure, as they may be updated frequently in the next several months
• our itinerary cannot be altered, so if it calls for the group to move to a new city/hotel, we will do so
• group leaders cannot stay back with sick or covid-positive individuals
• the injury and illness coverage provided with your program fee includes covid-related illness

Here is the language from the latest FAQs:

Is there coverage for COVID-19? (new as of 5/1/21)
Yes, participants diagnosed with COVID-19 would have the same coverage as if they had any other illness.

Is there coverage for pandemic quarantine? (new as of 5/1/21)
Yes, if the participant is required to quarantine while on a covered trip due to exposure to, or a confirmed case of a virus/illness due to epidemic/pandemic not requiring hospitalization, the policy would provide up to $5,000 of benefits for food and lodging. If the participant requires hospitalization, the basic emergency medical coverage would apply.

You can read more, including the full FAQ and a Summary document, on our Travel Insurance page.

Inclusions and exclusions vary from program to program. Please read the following details closely.

The program fee is $6,846 per person. Based on double occupancy, it includes discussions led by John Barbour and Judith Nelson, full-time walking guides, accommodations, ​all meals from dinner on June 29 through breakfast on July 9, admissions for group activities, ground transportation during the program, gratuities to group guides, drivers, and meal servers, and limited medical coverage while overseas. There is no single supplement for this program, but single rooms are limited to four available spaces.

Airfare to and from Scotland is not included. Participants are solely responsible for all expenses not specifically included in the program fee. Examples of excluded expenses are: International Airfare • Airport transfers • Any passport and visa fees • Any recommended immunizations or vaccinations • Baggage and trip cancellation insurance • Beverages, including at group meals • Laundry • Dry cleaning • Phone charges • Room service or other items of a personal nature • Expenses incurred during free time or non-group activities • Lunch and dinner, unless specifically included on program itinerary.

A $500 per person deposit is required upon registration. View the full Payment & Refund Schedule below.

This schedule is based on payments St. Olaf College must make to program vendors to guarantee group rates. We highly recommend that you purchase additional trip cancellation insurance at the time of registration to recover your payments should you need to withdraw from the program.

Because of ongoing uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, it is possible that a program could be postponed. In such a case, while we will strive to make full refunds when we can, there are certain expenses that may not be refunded to either St. Olaf or the participant.

Payments and Refunds:

Deposit due:                          $500 upon registration
Refund if you cancel:          Full refund ($500) until November 30, 2022. If the deposit is made after November 30, 2022 there is no refund.

Interim payment due:        $2,500 by December 1, 2022
Refund if you cancel:         $1,250 until March 31, 2023

Final payment due:             April 1, 2023
Refund if you cancel:         None, unless the program is full and your place can be resold

Cancellations must be in writing.

Some travel insurance for international Alumni and Family Travel programs is included with your program fee. Visit our Travel Insurance page for full details.

Read the Terms & Conditions and Release & Waiver.

Review the latest information on recommended immunizations, visit the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Check your passport: no entry visa is required for the UK (nor is the UK part of the Schengen Zone that will start requiring in January 2021 a Travel Authorization for US visitors). However, you should look at your passport now and ensure that it has at least 6 months’ validity past the program return date. Should you need to renew, visit the U.S. Department of State for instructions.

Prepare for your adventure by checking out a variety of resources, including frequently asked questions, general health information, included travel insurance, safety overview, and more.

Save the dates of June 28–July 9, 2023, but do not book flights until we can call the program an official go. Meanwhile, check out some tips on Booking Your Flights.