Stein, Waternish

The village of Stein on the Waternish peninsula.

Stein is an extremely pretty village of white painted stone buildings. In the 1790s the British Fisheries Society commissioned Thomas Telford to build a fishing port on Loch Bay. Delays in construction were compounded by the remote location and a lack of enthusiasm from local crofters and potential incomers alike. The BFS cut their losses and sold their lands in the area to the MacLeods in 1837 for £3000. But while Stein never quite became another Ullapool it has probably benefitted as a result. It is quiet, picturesque, and home to the Stein Inn and the Loch Bay Seafood Restaurant, both of which are excellent.

As its origins suggest, Stein is also the main harbour on the Waternish Peninsula original pier stood a little to the north of the village. The one in use today, which is at the south end of Stein, was built late in the 1800s.

I had a pint of cider at the Stein Inn and thoroughly enjoyed it as you don't get cider in the States; which we had along with the usual bag of crisps (potato chips)

Christy