In Search of Tigh na Cailleach with Alison Campsie
- 12 days ago
After around ten miles on foot through Glen Lyon, the shrine to the powerful Celtic goddess of Cailleach came into view, at last. Amid a shock of May sunshine and a warm wind that blew me along the path by the loch, there it stood in powerful isolation.
To see it there, cradled by the mountains and decorated with recent offerings of fruits, nuts and flowers, was more than worth the walk, which I had daftly extended due to a mishap on the map. By the shrine, the clock on the long, hot day suddenly stopped as hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years of belief and respect for this mythological figure made their presence felt.
Tigh Na Cailleach, or House of the Old Woman, is where the giantess of Celtic folklore is remembered in the place she is said to have lived, bringing great prosperity.
To see it there, cradled by the mountains and decorated with recent offerings of fruits, nuts and flowers, was more than worth the walk, which I had daftly extended due to a mishap on the map. By the shrine, the clock on the long, hot day suddenly stopped as hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years of belief and respect for this mythological figure made their presence felt.
Tigh Na Cailleach, or House of the Old Woman, is where the giantess of Celtic folklore is remembered in the place she is said to have lived, bringing great prosperity.