HebWay 2026

07/06/2026

Hebridean Way Route Part Five Benbecula onto North Uist

After the Dark Island, Alasdair Iain will run along the beach to Aird, where he will run back toward the east side of Benbecula through Sliabh na h-Airde up to the top of Benbecula’s highest hill Ruabhal.

He will then come down from the hill towards Gramsdale/ Kyles Flodda and back onto the road to cross the causeway to Grimisay, across Grimisay and onto North Uist.

map from Walkhighlands

06/06/2026

HebWay Route Part Four South Uist and Benbecula

At Drimsdale, Alasdair Iain will cross over to the East Side of South Uist and run along the route to Loch Drudibeg to the RSPB Nature Reserve. After this he will run back towards the road and to the Statue of Our Lady of the Isles. This Statue looks down over the village of Geirinish where Dad spent his summer holidays as a boy at his Grannie’s house.

Alasdair Iain will then go off road again at the bottom of the road to the rocket range, where dad’s Grandfather and Uncles worked. he will then run across the moor until he joins the road again at Ardmore and from there he’ll head across the causeway to Linicleit on the Isle of Benbecula.

We will be setting up a rest point at the Dark Island Hoteland anyone who wishes to come and cheer him on is more than welcome to join us there. We’ll know nearer the time when that’ll be and feel free to let us know if you would like to be kept up to date on this rest stop.

map from Walkhighlands

05/06/2026

HebWay Route Parts Two and Three - Eriskay and South Uist.

Alasdair Iain will arrive in Eriskay at 14:00 on the ferry that Dad spent almost 20 years working on. He’ll run across Traigh a’ Phrionnsa through a’ Bhaile and across the Eriskay Causeway.

He will then run through Lùdag and past the pier where the old ferry from Barra used to arrive, in the days before the Eriskay Causeway. It was a ferry that Dad also worked on, a distant but fond memory for us as it was a little boat that only took foot passengers and it was, more often than not, quite a bumpy crossing.

He’ll then run through West Kilbride and Smerclete where he will then head for the beach/Machair and run along the machair to Howmore.

map bellow is from Walkhighlands

03/06/2026

HebWay Route - Part One BARRA

Alasdair Iain will set off on his mammoth challenge from Vatersay Hall 10:00 am Monday 22nd of June. Vatersay Hall Cafe have kindly agreed to open early from 09:15 for anyone who would like to see Alasdair Iain off.

Once he’s run over Vatersay causeway, he will head up and over Beinn Tanghabhal onto Tràigh Thangasdail. This area has been recently diverted so we will keep an eye for updates on it nearer the time.

He then follows the road from Tangasdale through to Craigston. He’ll pass Borve road end, the first village he ever lived in. He will then head into Craigston and onto Barra General where the path then leads into Gleann Dorcha. He will come down at Loch an Dùin and cross the road onto Beinn Erival and then come back to the main road between Ardmhor and Vasalin and head for the ferry terminal.

The latter part of that route is very sentimental to us as a family, as Ardmhor is where our Gen was from and where we spent a lot of time as children.

Joining the road beside the Tràigh Mhòir is also going to be very poignant as both Dad and Gen often spent time picking cockles there when we were little. We have lots of fond memories of joining them there and, sadly, both are no longer with us. They are buried just up the road from here in Cille Bharra.

the map bellow is from Walkhighlands website.

29/05/2026

Alasdair Iain and Hebridean Ultra Marathon LEGEND Ally K MacPherson after the Skye Ultra last weekend.

Ally’s running achievement are no mean feat.

He has ran around Skye in 2014 - 125 miles 35 hours

In 2016 he ran from Skye to Inverness -120 miles 30 hours two nights with no sleep.

In 2018 he ran 10 Islands - 125 miles 30 hours

And in 2021 he ran from Glasgow to Inverness - 180 miles in 62 hours 4 days and 3 nights - Running the West Highland Way, Part of the Great Glen way and coming off at Fort Augustus to run the Inverness Marathon route home…7 marathons while rasing over £100k for cancer charities.

….and they can still smile after all that 🤯.

Ally says he would have managed none of it without the support he was shown and we are very grateful for all the support Alasdair Iain has been shown in his challenge especially from Coimhearsnachd Bharraidh agus Bhatarsaidh Ltd - Barra & Vatersay Limited

Only 25 days left until Alasdair Iain’s Hebway Challenge where he will run the Hebridean Way in less than 48hours while raising money for Lucky2BHere SCIO

Just Giving -https://www.justgiving.com/page/alasdair-iain-elder-5

Alistair MacPherson Humanist Celebrant

27/05/2026

Third Place Photo 🥉

24/05/2026

🏃Skye Ultra Marathon 🏃

Yesterday Alasdair Iain Elder took on the Skye Trail Ultra . 75miles from Duntulm in the North all the way down to Broadford in the South.

Alasdair ran Quiraing, Bodach an Stòr, Trotternish Ridge, Braes, Sligachan then down on to Strath Aird Peninsula back to Broadford.

For 60 of the 75miles he was running along side Ultra Marathon Runner Thomas Atkinson and at the finish line it all came down to Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide on who was to take 2nd 🥈 and 3rd 🥉 place.

Well Done Tom on completing it in 16.33.02
and our very own Alasdair Iain at 16.33.05

29 days left until he takes on 155 miles of the Hebridean Way for Lucky2BHere SCIO

https://www.justgiving.com/page/alasdair-iain-elder-5

13/05/2026

🏃 40 days to go till the Hebway 2026. 🏃

That also means 40 days until Dad would have turned 64.

It’s dawned on me recently that I don’t know everyone that my Dad knew. It’s obvious, really but it was funny to meet a man fairly recently who commented on me being like my Dad. Now, this man was a regular on the ferries and I’m sure there are many more people like him who knew Dad in a work capacity that we still haven’t had the pleasure of meeting. I definitely look forward to meeting them and hearing more about Dad, because we all miss him so much.

Alasdair Iain is running the Hebridean Way on Dad’s birthday to raise money for Lucky2BHere to raise funds for more defibrillators in Barra - an island that means so much to us as a family because it’s there Mam and Dad brought us up.

That isn’t the only island in the Western Isles that Dad had connections with, though.

As a young boy, Dad often spent time with his Granny in Gernish in South Uist - and we would go and visit his aunties and uncle in Uist when Dad was on his time off. I think island life was something Dad loved from a young age, despite growing up in Fort William.

Dad’s work took him to many a place over the years. He worked on the small ferry between Eoligarry and Ludag, before they took cars.

He worked on the Northern Lighthouse Boats, that he enjoyed so much we had a dog named Fingal, after one of their ships!

He worked for CalMac in the small ferry “pool” which had him work across the small ferry network and gave us kids the chance to go and visit him in Mull.

He also spent a lot of his time working on the Sound of Harris ferry, staying with a lovely lady in Berneray when he was on shift. This was back in the days when there wasn’t a sailing on a Sunday, and many a time we went to visit Dad on his day off. It has to be said, the beaches there aren’t all that bad…

Once our littlest brother was born, Dad worked on the Sound of Barra ferry so he could come home every night. It was also a ferry he could keep a watchful eye on - from the comfort of his own living room chair!

So, this run will no doubt be an emotional one. Not just for us, but for people the length of the islands who knew Dad.

Alasdair Iain will no doubt feel love and support from his own friends and colleagues from his time working in Harris for SSEN and from living and working in Lewis.

The Outer Hebrides has a special place in our hearts and as a family and we thank you all for your kind support on this mission to raise funds, awareness and to break the fastest known time record in memory of our Dad.

As much as he’d hate all this fuss about him, and I’m sure he’d have a joke or two for Alasdair Iain about running the distance when he’s got a perfectly good car, he’d be proud of Alasdair Iain’s hard work and determination up to now and appreciate the love and support we’ve been given since his passing.

He will however be cursing us, as his go-to phrase was “now, don’t be posting that on Facebook!!”

-Aileen.

Donald Roderick Michael Elder ❤️

https://www.justgiving.com/page/alasdair-iain-elder-5

08/05/2026

🏆🥇🏃

​A runner from Barra and living in Stornoway is celebrating after winning one of the biggest trail ultra races in the country.

20/01/2026

Alasdair Iain giving his cousin Jamie MacLeod chase down the hill at the Barra Games: Heaval Race 2025