Hestikelday Farm Steading

Hestikelday Farm Steading is a late 18th and early 19th century farm complex, with later alterations. The core of the farm is a derelict, two-story, asymmetrical house with three gables and crowstepped gables. A single-bay lean-to projection is attached to the west gable and the north wall. To the rear (north) of the house is a detached, two-bay, single-story rectangular barn/byre, forming an L-shaped complex. A rectangular-plan store with a circular kiln attached to its north gable is situated to the west of the L-shaped complex.

The house is constructed of roughly coursed rubble with harl pointing, and features rough, long and short quoins. The south (principal) elevation has a window offset to the left of the centre at ground level, another window in the bay to the outer right, and a small window at the first floor above. A boarded door is located to the left at ground level, and another boarded door is in the lean-to projection to the outer left. The north (rear) elevation has a window offset to the right in the lean-to projection and a blank wall to the left. The east (side) elevation has a blocked window at ground level in the bay to the right of the centre, a window at the first floor in the bay to the left, and a gablehead stack above. A wide, square-headed opening is set back to the outer right of the lean-to projection. The west (side) elevation has a blank lean-to wall at ground level and a blank gablehead above. A single timber-framed window remains. The roof is corrugated iron at the west end, with old Orkney grey slate and a Caithness stone easing course at the east end. Caithness stone tiles cover the lean-to projections, and replacement cement skews are visible in the centre. A central corniced rubble ridge stack and a gablehead stack are located at the east end.

The interior of the house is ruinous, with timber-framed doorways and a collapsed timber staircase at the west end. Floors were divided by timber joists and boards. A large central fireplace remains, including a fixed cast-iron pot rack and chins, and a large stone chimney breast is at the east end. A fireplace with a timber-framed press is located on the first floor to the east end, and timber boards cover the canted ceiling. A finely laid transverse cobbled floor remains in the west end lean-to projection, now used as a hay store.

The barn/byre is constructed of harl-pointed rubble and has boarded doors in each of its two bays on the east (principal) elevation. It has a graded Caithness stone tiled roof with small rooflights to the east pitch, a stone ridge, and replacement concrete skews.

The store and kiln are built on ground sloping to the east. The store has a boarded door centred on the west elevation and another, offset to the right, on the east elevation. The south elevation is blank, and a circular-plan, bellied kiln is attached to the west gable. The roof is purple Welsh slate with a Caithness stone tiled easing course and a stone ridge (some sections replaced). The interior of the store and kiln is well preserved, with exposed timber rafters and tie beams. A low, square peat store is located to the left of the kiln at the west end. The kiln has a typical rectangular entrance set high above the floor-level fire space, a small fuel feed hole to the right of the entrance, and a narrow stone ledge that once accommodated a timber drying floor. A small circular smoke hole/chimney is at the top of the kiln.