26th August to
2nd September 2012
I
left Chester bound for Mull at 5am on 26th August 2012 and calling at Glasgow
to pick up Pia and Kirstin, arriving there at 9.25am (without getting lost in
the city). At the back of 10am we were
on our way to Oban and had a brief stop for coffee in Tyndrum. At 1pm we were in Oban to do our big shop in
Tesco and to fill up the car with fuel.
While waiting for the ferry to Mull we had fish and chips by the harbour
only for our meal to be constantly attacked by seagulls. We sailed at 4pm taking us three quarters of
an hour to cross to Craignure. It was
then a 32 mile journey to Bunessan and to Traigh Mhor Cottage for the week,
arriving at 6pm.
Our
cottage, excellent in every way was on the sea front so it was a short walk to
the headland point in the middle of Loch Na Lathaich (sea loch). Here we were fortunate to see our first otter
or was it a small seal? Light was fading
so it was difficult to be certain. It
was a delightful new quiet world for the three of us and a full week of
discovery lay ahead.
After
a long day (for me - I had driven 368 miles!) we all enjoyed a lovely evening
meal. We were all happy with the lovely
cottage Kirstin had chosen with excellent facilities – I was given the best
bedroom.
Monday
27th saw us wake up to a very wet morning but after breakfast we
went on a 11km circular walk from the cottage round the peninsula to Carraig
Chorrach and then onto Achnahard and into the main village of Bunessan before
returning to the cottage for a light lunch.
Thereafter I went sea fishing for an hour but alas no luck. One of the attractions of Mull and in particular
Ross of Mull (where we were located) is the fantastic beaches. In the late afternoon we were bound for
Ardalanish Bay which turned out to be a lovely location. We enjoyed a walk along the golden sands and
we sat in the dunes just to enjoy the clarity and quietness of all our
surroundings and all the bird activity on the tide line. Having shopped at the nearby Organic Farm we
were going to sample the local produce in our evening meal that evening.
Tuesday
turned out a dry but breezy day and after debate around the breakfast table as
what to do and I was out voted 2-1, we were bound for Iona which was a key
location on our agenda. We left at 9am
for the short journey to Fionnphort, parking in the village car park and then
taking the short ferry crossing at 9.55am to the Island. Vehicular access is not allowed for
non-residents. The sound of Iona was
indeed choppy to say the least but we stayed on deck to watch gannets all
around us dive like white spears into the ocean. They were catching fish being the master
fishers they are.
We
firstly visited the Nunnery ruins, with its tranquil cloister gardens which was
established in 1203 as a Benedictine convent.
Then we visited the famous Iona Abbey and joined a tour to be shown
round which we all very much enjoyed. We
had discussed walking round this small Island, renowned for its tranquillity
and natural beauty and this we did reaching the north of the Island and looking
across to Eilean Annraidh. Coming across
the west coast we passed over some lovely beeches. Near Shian we cut inland and went over the
Island’s golf course before climbing up to Loch Staoiheig. From here we reached the wild pebble beach at
Port an Fhir-Bhreige. Massive waves
rolled in from the Atlantic so we sat and watched with fascination. It was then a walk back across small hills
and moor land areas coming in at Sligneach.
We had coffee in the St Columbus Hotel where we met a very interesting
Lady from Edinburgh who had been coming to the Island since she was a girl
guide at the age of 14 years. She is a
member of the Iona Community and has a great liking for the Island. At 6pm we were on the ferry once again on our
way back to Mull. We all had a most
fantastic day which will never be forgotten.
We
were all looking forward to Kirstin’s organic beef which was being cooked in a
slow cooker. It turned out wonderful as
was our pre dinner drinks on a bench outside the cottage.
We
had allocated Wednesday 29th to do an Island tour and we did find
that Mull was indeed a large Island.
Once again we were away at 9am and at Loch Beg we turned left onto the
B8035 and stopped on the west side of Kilfinichen Bay to see if we could spot
any otters. Here we watched two
peregrine falcons having a squabble on telegraph poles, 200 yards or so from
us. Before reaching Balnahard we spotted
a sole eagle high above us. Was it a
golden or a sea eagle, we could not be sure?
At Scarisdale Point we stopped for a picnic lunch and here I picked some
common periwinkles as a starter for our evening meal. At Salen we stopped for coffee and cakes in a
cafe. It was then on to Tobbermory and a
look round this lovely small town. At
Tort we had perhaps our best sighting of eagles. Two golden eagles were hovering above us for
a few minutes and we watched their every move.
They had appeared from nowhere and just as quickly these majestic birds
vanished from site. Calgary Bay was
another place we wished to visit and here we stopped and walked on the
beech. It was busy with people and Pia
decided to go for her annual Scottish swim.
She did ever so well swimming for half an hour or so and not feeling the
cold. From here the single track road
twisted up and down, around blind corners but the good thing was that there was
little traffic. At Ballygown we stopped
to watch red deer. Two young deer some
how or other had got caught on the opposite side of the fence from the rest of
the small herd and were trying hard to rectify the situation. Alas while watching we did not see this
happen.
At
the Sound of Ulva we looked across to the Isle of Ulva but alas not enough time
to visit. The road then winds its way
along the north side of Loch na Keal until it meets the B8035 once again. At 7.30pm we arrived safely back at our
cottage for our evening meal and afterwards we watched the Olympics on TV.
The
weather forecast had forecasted that Thursday 30th was to be a good
sunny day and this turned out to be correct.
We had the ascent of Ben More 966m planned for today. We were parking our car at Traigh Doire Dhubhaig
at 10.30am and we were taking the recognised path past the dwelling house at
Dhiseig to the top. At times there were
very strong winds and we had to be careful on the high ridges. Two golden eagles again circled above us as
we made our way to the top at1.45pm where we stopped in the stone shelter for a
short lunch break. It was then a
scramble down a steep and rocky ridge and then up to A Chioch at 867m at
2.15pm. It was our original intention to
also climb Beinn Fhadar at 702m but by mutual consent we turned left and
descended down Gleann na Beinne Fada and back to our start point at 5pm. We were back to the cottage at 7pm and being
a sunny evening we once again had pre dinner drinks in the garden. Another glorious day and we were all to sleep
well.
Friday
was a wet day so we were all dressed in our waterproofs and boots and after
doing a small shop in Bunessan we were on our way to Ardchiavaig and the beech
at Port Uisken where once again I gathered common periwinkles but again failed
to find the mussels I was looking for.
Alas
Saturday came all too soon so the last day of our holidays. After debate over breakfast as to which beech
we went for, we decided to head for Pottie (1 & 2) where we would park the
car and then walk to Toba. Once there we
would walk to Cut-a-Bhaile and reach the extensive bay at Bagh a’Chnoic
Mhaoileanaich where I must have a chance of finding mussels. It was also the opportunity to visit another
small Island – Erraid – as the tide would be fully “out” as we reached it. Walking along the water edge we spotted a
number of what I call “mussel graveyards”.
On finding mussels in mussel beds, seagulls drop the shell in flight
onto rocks 20/30ft beneath them which break the shell and they thus avail them
selves with the desired and enjoyable contents. Thus I knew mussel beds were around and it
was just a case of finding them. It did
not take us long to find them and we left with a plastic bag full for our last
evening meal. We then crossed the narrow
stretch of sand to Erraid and walked on its north shore. It was then back to the main land and up a
narrow track that took us to Knockvologan and back to Toba. I walked back for the car while Pia and
Kirstin walked to Fionnphort for coffee and here I would pick them up. The skies above me were getting greyer and
greyer as I reached the car and at the back of 3pm it got very wet and this set
in for the rest of the afternoon/evening.
Pia
took on the task of cooking the mussels after I had cleaned them. We had cold white wine kept for the occasion
which was also enjoyed.
Alas
Sunday was to be the drive back to Glasgow (Kirstin and Pia were catching the
3pm train from central station to Euston) so it was time to do packing and
leave the cottage for our early morning departure at 9am. We all enjoyed a great time on Mull. Memories and laughs will always be vivid.
May
2013
