EHG5998 - DBA and walkover survey - Woodland creation scheme, Couldoran Estate, Applecross

An archaeological desk based assessment and walkover survey were carried out by West Coast Archaeological Services in 2023 on behalf of The Woodland Trust and Scottish Woodlands Ltd in advance of a proposed woodland creation scheme. The survey area included wild, upland moorland terrain located between the A896 single track road in Glen Shieldaig and the southeast shores of Loch Lundie, and north and northwest of Couldoran House, on the Applecross Peninsula, Wester Ross. The walkover survey recorded 39 archaeological sites comprising a total of 63 individual structures. These included a wide range of structures relating to transhumance activities in the landscape including shieling settlements, stone-built storage cells, boulder shelters, stock pens and enclosures, and twinning pens. These structures would have been used in association with summer pastures and the management of cattle and sheep, and for the droving of livestock between different communities and to seasonal markets. Several boundary dykes were also recorded, these most likely providing major land divisions between townships and their associated lands, but also providing larger enclosures for livestock management. Areas of old peat cuttings relate to economic and subsistence activities in the area, while roadside quarries attest to more industrious activities during the construction of the Lochcarron to Shieldaig road – a vital link to the isolated settlement at Shieldaig prior to the construction of the road along the southern shore of Loch Torridon. It was recommended that where possible, the relationships between structures within their respective shieling groups should be retained within the tree planting for future research and the conservation of the wider historic environment. Planting recopmmendations were made for specific areas, including exclusion/buffer zones. <1>