Mull

Loch Spelve lying on the east coast, is one of the most sheltered anchorages on Mull, and is particularly good as a place to spot otters!!  We generally anchor in the bay seen here to the left, however a short walk up Cruach Ardura, a nearby hill, rewards you with spectacular views.

On top of the hill is this stone, placed at the last millennium and which reads  "God climbed here with you - may he take you safely down again"

Coming around the corner into the sound of Mull it is impossible to miss on one side the imposing mass of Castle Duart, ancestral home of the Maclean family. On the other side lies Lismore light, a safe beacon for seafarers.

And of course, its impossible to miss Tobermory with its' colourful houses and lively pubs.

Leaving Tobermory, the light at Rhubha nan Gall (point of the strangers) lies just before Bloody bay - a place of great massacre during the days of the Vikings.

On the west side of Mull are many islands - one particularly nice one is Ulva, a great place for seeing golden eagles and deer.

Staffa, with Fingals' cave is a popular visitor attractions with ferries coming across regularly from Iona and Mull.

But for me the best of the small islands has to be Lunga, one of the Treshnish Isles.

Loads of people travel to Lunga to see the puffins and other sea birds nesting on the cliffs.  being independent we are able to time our visits to avoid the crowds and generally manage to have the place to ourselves and the birds!

Of course not all our visits to the islands are just to see the wildlife.  Iona is interesting for its history and its beaches. Sometimes just to sit in peace and quiet, reading a book, is a high point of a holiday. 

The Nunnery Iona

Just twenty minutes easy walk away is the west beach where tranquillity of a different sort is to be found.

On the south shore of Mull are some fabulous isolated beaches only reached by a long walk or by boat.

And finally we come around the south east corner of Mull by enormous and very spectacular cliffs to arrive back at where we started - Loch Spelve.