The three isles for today’s outing were Mull, Staffa and Iona. We were up with the chickens to get the early ferry to Mull. Speaking of chickens, there are a lot of small backyard flocks. But they are not really back yard chickens, they range widely, we saw a rooster and a few hens on Mull foraging on the beach.
After getting off the ferry on Mull we took a bus to the far west end of Mull, a long ride on a single track road. Then we boarded a boat to go to Staffa, aka, Fingal’s Cave. Mendelssohn was inspired to compose the Hebrides Overture by the sound of the waves crashing inside Fingal’s Cave. Staffa is an amazing little island of basalt columns.
The wind was light today for a change so the plan was to dock the boat by a jetty at Staffa and we could then walk along the basalt edge to the large cave. The boat manoeuvred between some rocks and John and I thought they were crackers for doing this. But then they had to back out because the boat was rolling too much in the large waves. There was no way they could get in there and get people off onto the jetty. This was a real drag as we were really keen on getting into the cave. Instead, we had to settle for a trip around Staffa and backing up toward the cave for pictures.
We saw a few puffins in the water, but it is too early for the puffins. When the puffins come in, they coast in the water in large groups called rafts, then they move onto the small Treshnish Islands to nest. They only lay one egg and raise one chick. You can go on a boat to the Treshnish Islands and hang out among the puffins which would be a terrific thing to do as they are tame and quite comic.
After we left Staffa the boat headed for Iona. Iona is place of pilgrimage among Christians and they come in droves to the old abbey founded by St. Columba. Columba was exiled from Ireland, legend has told us that he landed in Kintyre first but since Ireland is visible from Kintyre, he moved on.
He landed on Iona in 563 AD and brought Christianity to the Scots. Supposedly the Book of Kells was created by the monks on Iona. When Iona was invaded by the Norse, the Book of Kells was moved to Ireland for safekeeping where it has remained ever since.
Since John and I have zero interest in the abbey and all that, we set off for the south end of Iona after getting off the boat at the jetty. It was a fantastic walk over to the west side of the island to a fine beach where we could see the ‘Spouting Caves’ which spew up sea spray. We continued to the south end of the island after walking through the golf course which was more of a sheep pasture today.
Iona really is an idyllic place, the beaches are beautiful and it is very quiet. There were only a few other people at the south end. After basking in the sun on the rocks and having our lunch we walked back to the tiny village.
As there are 48 Scottish kings buried in the graveyard we walked over to it and through the ruins of the nunnery on the way back. By this time there were a lot of people flocking to the abbey, I cannot imagine the place at the height of tourist season. Supposedly they get 140,000 visitors on this tiny island annually.
We had to get the 3:00 ferry from Iona back to Mull to catch the last bus back to the next ferry terminal to get the next ferry back to Oban. It was a great day out despite not getting to visit Fingal’s Cave.
After getting off the ferry on Mull we took a bus to the far west end of Mull, a long ride on a single track road. Then we boarded a boat to go to Staffa, aka, Fingal’s Cave. Mendelssohn was inspired to compose the Hebrides Overture by the sound of the waves crashing inside Fingal’s Cave. Staffa is an amazing little island of basalt columns.
The wind was light today for a change so the plan was to dock the boat by a jetty at Staffa and we could then walk along the basalt edge to the large cave. The boat manoeuvred between some rocks and John and I thought they were crackers for doing this. But then they had to back out because the boat was rolling too much in the large waves. There was no way they could get in there and get people off onto the jetty. This was a real drag as we were really keen on getting into the cave. Instead, we had to settle for a trip around Staffa and backing up toward the cave for pictures.
We saw a few puffins in the water, but it is too early for the puffins. When the puffins come in, they coast in the water in large groups called rafts, then they move onto the small Treshnish Islands to nest. They only lay one egg and raise one chick. You can go on a boat to the Treshnish Islands and hang out among the puffins which would be a terrific thing to do as they are tame and quite comic.
After we left Staffa the boat headed for Iona. Iona is place of pilgrimage among Christians and they come in droves to the old abbey founded by St. Columba. Columba was exiled from Ireland, legend has told us that he landed in Kintyre first but since Ireland is visible from Kintyre, he moved on.
He landed on Iona in 563 AD and brought Christianity to the Scots. Supposedly the Book of Kells was created by the monks on Iona. When Iona was invaded by the Norse, the Book of Kells was moved to Ireland for safekeeping where it has remained ever since.
Since John and I have zero interest in the abbey and all that, we set off for the south end of Iona after getting off the boat at the jetty. It was a fantastic walk over to the west side of the island to a fine beach where we could see the ‘Spouting Caves’ which spew up sea spray. We continued to the south end of the island after walking through the golf course which was more of a sheep pasture today.
Iona really is an idyllic place, the beaches are beautiful and it is very quiet. There were only a few other people at the south end. After basking in the sun on the rocks and having our lunch we walked back to the tiny village.
As there are 48 Scottish kings buried in the graveyard we walked over to it and through the ruins of the nunnery on the way back. By this time there were a lot of people flocking to the abbey, I cannot imagine the place at the height of tourist season. Supposedly they get 140,000 visitors on this tiny island annually.
We had to get the 3:00 ferry from Iona back to Mull to catch the last bus back to the next ferry terminal to get the next ferry back to Oban. It was a great day out despite not getting to visit Fingal’s Cave.
Staffa
Yeah! A Puffin.
Great Rocking Waves
Fingal's Cave
The Dutchman's Cap
Iona
View from our lunch spot
South Iona
Iona War Memorial
Garden Critter
Iona near the jetty
Yeah, that's too bad you couldn't get to go inside Fingall's cave but wow what a great day - the pictures are specatular.
ReplyDeleteagain some totally fab photos and such clear love and respect for the land and its people
ReplyDeletea great blog
diane