Storr The Storr is a rocky hill on the Trotternish peninsula of the Isle of Skye. The hill presents a steep rocky eastern face overlooking the Sound of Raasay. The Storr is prime example of the Trotternish landslip, the longest such feature in Great Britain.

Coll is a small island (about 21 km long and 5 km wide) in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, west of Mull. It has a population of less than 200. The island has a small village, Arinagour, from which ferries sail to Scarinish on Tiree and to Oban on the mainland. Coll is known for its sandy beaches, which rise to form large sand dunes, for its corncrakes, and for two castles, both named Breachacha Castle. The older dates from the fifteenth century.

Old Man of Storr

Coll was home to a branch of the Clan MacLean for 500 years, not all of which were peaceful. "Gillean of the Battleaxe" is said to be the founder of the clan and he fought at the Battle of Largs against the Vikings in 1263. The name MacLean, Scottish Gaelic: MacGille Eoin or "son of the servant of St John". The first of the name on record, Gillean, lived in the reign of Alexander III of Scotland (1249-1286), and fought against the Norsemen at the Battle of Largs. His great-great-grandson settled in Mull and in 1390, Donald, Lord of the Isles gave land to his two brothers-in-law, thus starting the two main branches of the clan - MacLean of Duart and MacLaine of Lochbuie (both on the island of Mull where the name is still frequently found). The clan extended its influence to other Hebridean islands such as Tiree and Islay and onto the mainland. "Red Hector of the Battles" from Duart fought for the MacDonald Lord of the Isles at the Battle of Harlaw in 1411 and Lachlan of Duart was killed at the Battle of Flodden.

The Battle of the Western Isles 1586 was fought between Clan MacDonald and the Clan MacLean. Donald Gorme Macdonald of Sleat was travelling from the Isle of Skye, to visit his cousin, Angus Macdonald of Kintyre. He landed with his company on an island called Jura or Duray, which partly belonged to Maclean and partly to Angus Macdonald, and by chance he landed in that part of the island which belonged to MacLean. Two outlaws, Macdonald Herrach and Hutcheon Madgillespick who were had fallen out with Donald Gorme MacDonald arrived also with a company of men; and understanding that Donald Gorme was there, they secretly took away, by night, a number of cattle out of that part of the island which appertaineth to MacLean; and so they retire again to the sea; thereby thinking to raise a tumult against Donald Gorme, by making the Clan MacLean to believe that this was done by Donald Gorme MacDonald's men, who, lying at a place called Inver-knock-bhric, were suddenly invaded unawares, under silence of the night neither suspecting or expecting any such matter by Sir Lauchlan MacLean and the enitire Clan MacLean. The MacLean's killed more than 60 of the Clan MacDonalds that night Donald Gorme MacDonald himself escaped in a ship that lay in the harbour. Angus Macdonald of Kintyre hearing of accident and falling out between his brother-in-law, MacLean (whose sister he had married) and his cousin, Donald Gorme Macdonald, travelled Skye to visit Donald Gorme MacDonald, and to see by what means he could work a reconciliation between him and MacLean for the slaughter of Donald Gorme MacDonald's men at Inverknock-bhric. After a lot of political arguing the two sides were made to make peace by the King. In 1590 the MacLeans of Duart invaded their cousins on Coll with the intention of taking the island for themselves. A battle was fought at Breachacha Castle where the Coll clan overwhelmed the Duarts and chopped off their heads and threw them in the stream which is still known as ‘the stream of the heads’.