Eilean nan Ròn Island On Visit To The North Coast Of The Highlands Of Scotland

Tour Scotland travel video, with Scottish music, of Eilean nan Ròn Island, Scottish Gaelic: island of the seals, on visit to the North Coast of the Scottish Highlands. Eilean nan Ròn was populated for many years. 73 people lived there in 1881 and 30 in 1931 but it has been uninhabited since 1938. The final evacuation list contained nine people from the Mackay family - Christina Bella Mackay, Hector Sinclair Mackay, Jessie Ann Mackay, Willie John Mackay, Hugh Campbell Mackay, Donald Mackay, Ina Mackay, Chrissie Dolina Mackay and Christina Mackay. The island is mainly sandstone with steep cliffs on the north and east coasts and a natural sea arch at Leathad Ballach. which is 150 feet high, and 70 feet wide. There are many abandoned crofters cottages and houses on the island. The island was prone to being cut off completely by storms in the Kyle of Tongue. In 1950, the abandoned cottages were taken over by medical researchers who identified Eilean nan Ròn as a perfect setting for their study into transmission of the common cold virus. The Duke of Sutherland granted permission for the island be used with it sealed off to visitors from early July with those who kept their flocks of sheep on Roan going early to shear their animals to clear the way for the island lockdown. Scientists had noted for a long time that many people infected with a cold virus who were then exposed to sudden drops in temperature by getting wet and sitting in draughts failed to take the cold, or had it only very mildly. On the other hand, those who routinely experienced harsh weather but lived in isolation for long periods, such as Arctic explorers, enjoyed a high degree of immunity. Selected for the experiment were seven students from Aberdeen University, one from St Andrews in Fife, another from London University in England and a student of forestry. For 10 weeks, the students lived isolated from the rest of the world with their quarantine broken by the arrival of six students from Aberdeen who had been infected with the common cold in a lab at the university. The experiment may not have made a breakthrough on the island but the team of research scientists became known for being able to create the common cold in their university laboratory on the mainland. They called it Rhonavirus which went on to fuel waves of further research around the world. All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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