Cill Chriosd or Kilchrist meaning Christ’s Church is a ruined pre-Reformation parish church of Strathaird, Isle of Skye, Scotland. The first written record of the church located at this site is from 1505 when Kenneth Adamson succeeded John MacGillivray as chaplain. The parish was used by the community until 1840 when a new building was established in the near-by town of Broadford.

The path leading up to Cill Chriosd

These ruins are so very quiet and calm, the only noise that one will hear is the bahs of lambs calling to their moms.

The ruins are located next to a single-track road, surrounded by the omnipresent sheep.

To enter the ruins, one passes through a small iron gate that is often left open, as can be seen by the neatly trimmed grass, a hallmark of the free-range sheep of the area.

Iron gate leading to the ruins of Cill Chriosd

Here you can see the meticulously maintained grass, thanks to the sheep

Sheep are not the only visitors to the ruins, this bird watched us while we explored the grounds

Bird taking flight from the ruins

We loved the way this tree has become part of the ruins

Looking towards the burial enclosure

East end of Cill Chriosd,showing the burial enclosure

The burial enclosure of the parish looking toward Beinn na Caillich (Red Hills)

Looking through the entrance to the burial enclosure up to Beinn na Caillich

The Red Hills and the sheep add a comforting and strangely desolate feeling to these ruins.

Cill Chriosd, solemn and serene

This little lamb was perfectly at home in the shadows of the ruins of Cill Chriosd

Cill Chriosd is an understated attraction, the only reason that we stumbled upon it was because we were staying just a few minutes up the road from it at Swordale House, a delightful bed and breakfast that I would recommend to anyone staying on the Isle of Skye.

This picture was taken from just outside the ruins, the building in the distance is Swordale House

While Cill Chriosd does not offer the most spectacular of ruins, it is an impressive monument to hundreds of years of religious island life. You will not have to fight the crowds to explore this wonderful site, so be sure to stop by.

Cill Chriosd is about two miles from Broadford village on the B8083 road to Elgol.