Isle of Soay

Soay (meaning Sheep island) lies to the south of Skye but is sometimes considered part of the Small Isles. the island is about 3 miles by two and is home to perhaps half a dozen families. The islanders were evacuated to Mull in June 1953, since which the island has been sparsely inhabited.

It's most famous for author Gavin Maxwell's failed efforts to set-up a factory to process shark oil from basking sharks, which he wrote about in his book 'Harpoon at a Venture'. This 'conservationists' efforts lead to a serious drop in the numbers of these sharks living in the surrounding seas from which they appear only now to be recovering.

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