Daingean lies on the south facing slopes above Loch Garry, once part of the clan lands of the MacDonnells of Glengarry. The original Daingean settlement extended right down to the loch side on the old road which ran via Tomdoun to the west coast at Kyle of Lochalsh. Daingean in gaelic means "fort" but any evidence of this was erased in the 1960s during the construction of the present "new" road to Skye.
Along Glen Garry, small clusters of houses, barns and kailyards, perhaps with a cow tethered close by, would have been surrounded by arable fields with an accessible burn for water. Other animals would have ranged farther afield away from the growing crops. In summer they grazed on the lush grass of the higher slopes, the black cattle being driven south for the sales at the end of the summer.
Following the introduction of sheep in 1785, families were evicted from Daingean and other settlements as far west as Glenquoich although Daingean is one of the few places with evidence of continuing occupation. For over a century after the evictions, shepherds, and later gamekeepers, working on the estate, lived on at Daingean. Buried within a plantation after the Second World War, the settlement was rediscovered during a forestry clearance in 1999.
The green grassy area below you, about 50 metres to the east, is a small area of rig-and-furrow. The rigs, here about 3m wide, show up best when vegetation is low and light casts long shadows. The fields were divided up into narrow strips of ground, the rigs (or ridges) developing as the relatively poor and thin soils along with manures were constantly turned in the centre.
Small horse-drawn ploughs were used or the soil was dug by hand, using a chas-chrom or foot plough. Crops, such as oats, barley and later potatoes, would be planted along the top of the rigs, the furrows enhancing drainage. The run-rig system, which characterised Highland agriculture prior to the clearances, ensured that the rigs were shared out so that no one family held all the best ground.
On the level platform to your right would have stood a long-house, the door facing you. The Daingean people would have lived in these houses, built of turf walls and stone footings around arched tree trunks, known as "crucks", which supported the roof of thatch or heather.
There were usually two rooms, one with a central hearth for the family, the other for animals. The house may have had wattle partitions and a hole in the roof for smoke to escape. The single door faced roughly south-east to allow as much light as possible.
The platform to the left may have been the stance for a barn . It was built on a north/south axis with opposing doors in the long side walls so that if the corn was winnowed between the doors the prevailing winds would blow away the chaff. A third door may have allowed access when winnowing was taking place.
To the left and a little below are two rectangular or sub rectangular enclosures. These are outlined on the ground by large boulders and so appear to be of far more substantial construction than the features in cluster B. This may be because they are later in date, but is more likely to reflect differences in their function. Being so close to the barn, at least one of the enclosures may have been a stack yard for grain or hay.
To the left of the path is an indistinct platform, possibly the stance for a cottar's house associated with the long house in cluster B. To the right is a sheep fank, one of three upstanding structures on the site. The walls may have had a large number of gaps between the stones, since this was thought to discourage the sheep from jumping out!
The projecting arms on the north and east sides of the fank are not fully understood. When sheep farming was first established in the Highlands, each shepherd would have brought his flock back to the fank at night. If so, the sheep could have taken shelter behind these projections, their sleeping place determined by the direction of the wind. The fank may post-date the clearance of Daingean, although it has clearly grown in size over time.
The west end may be earlier in date, with the large enclosure added later. It may not have been in existence at the same time as the buildings at B, C, D and F.
Opposite, across Loch Garry, is the cone-shaped mountain, Bein Teigh (Tee), height 904m (2965 ft) from where the Laddie burn runs down to the loch side where lie the remains of the Laddie settlement some of which is now beneath the water. The smoke from Laddie and the settlements of Bolinn, Munerigie and Achadhluchraich would have been clearly visible from the viewpoint at Daingean.
To your left is a long-house, with the door at the far side. Note the boulder footings and rectangular shape, suggesting a later date for this building than that of the platforms at B. Even though it may be more recent in date, people and animals seem still to have shared the same space.
This substantial structure contained a stone-lined circular pit at the east end for drying grain. Warm air from a fire set outside the kiln was drawn into the bowl along a low passage. This then rose up through a platform of timbers on which the grain was laid. Sometimes, as here, the kiln would be enclosed in a small barn.
Drying grain was essential in this wet climate, where harvesting often took place late in the autumn. The kiln might also be used for malting barley, before it was turned into whisky. Once lit, the fire would have to be stoked all night, perhaps also providing a warm place for a ceilidh.
Below, to your right, is a level platform on which stood a substantial long house. This appears to be the most westerly building at Daingean. It would have lain close to a pack-horse road (shown on an 18th century map) which now underlies the present line of the road to Skye. As in other Highland settlements, the water supply would have come from two or three adjacent burns.
This structure, a cottage, probably dates from the mid to late 19th century, but continued to be occupied by gamekeepers and their families well into the 20th century.
The cottage was originally built around crucks and a cruck slot can be seen by a window to the right of the door in the centre of the south wall. The crucks would have supported the weight of the roof, while the walls simply provided shelter.
However, the building was clearly modified over time and the walls are now mortared. This made them load bearing and allowed the central hearth to be replaced by a fireplace created within the thickness of the gables. The house also had glazed windows, while a garden lies on the down slope side.
To the left of and slightly below the cottage is a platform, perhaps the site of an earlier structure, which was later replaced by a cart shed. Beyond the cart shed is a barn/byre, also built around crucks. A slot is visible beside the door in the east wall.
On the way to H the trail crosses the remains of an old turf and stone dyke (wall) which runs down the side of a shallow valley from near the corn kiln.
You may be standing in the garden of this house. Note the boulder foundations, the remains of a dividing wall ear the door on the south side and a possible drain running out through this door. The east (downhill) end would have been used for animals.
Documentary evidence indicates that, in chronological order, the long-houses at E and H and finally, the cottage, were the last houses to be occupied at Daingean.