Date & Time: Wednesday and Thursday, 23rd / 24th Sept 2009.

Location : Bunessan to Dervaig on the Isle of Mull

Places visited : Bunessan, Balnahard, Ulva Ferry, Calgary Bay and Dervaig.

Walk details : Several local walks including one at Calgary Bay.

Highest point : It's got to be the Bellachroy Menu.

With : Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Sunshine and showers with a south westerly breeze.

 Bunessan to Dervaig at EveryTrail

 

We move on from Bunessan to the village of Dervaig in northern Mull for the next part of our holiday.

The weather is changeable and the first part of the journey was punctuated by heavy rain showers.

A wet but very stylish mile post.
Over the pass and down to Loch Na Keal.

Inch Kenneth island at the entrance to Loch Na Keal as another rain shower passes through.

The steep cliffs leave little room for the road alongside the loch.

The rain has overtaken us but deep in that cloud is Ben More . . . I don't think we'll be climbing it today !

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Someone up there is also suffering

from the rather blustery breeze.

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Above us was a Golden Eagle

searching for lunch !

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Further round the coast we pass another of Mull's secondary islands . . . the Island of Ulva.

The ferry across the short crossing will also take you over to the Boathouse Restaurant.

If you want to cross there's no radio or regular timetable . . .

so just slide the white board to expose the red square

and with a bit of luck the ferryman will notice

and motor over to fetch you.

The simplest options are often the best !

From our slight diversion down to the ferry jetty we could look up Loch Tuath to the next part of our coastal drive.

Half way up the next stretch there seems to be a rather nice waterfall.

Close up to the top falls of Eas Fors . . .
. . . which then cascade over the cliffs to the sea.

Just below the road, the centre cascade of the falls, partially hidden by the oak tree.

It finally tumbles over the edge . . .

Don't look down if you can't stand heights.

Standing back and regaining our balance we could look out on the northern most Treshnish Islands.

A short distance further north and before we turn into Calgary Bay

we get a view of the low lying islands of Coll and Tiree some fifteen miles across the sound.

At the head of the inlet is the famous sandy beach of Calgary Bay, one of Mull's finest beaches.

The name comes from the Gaelic "cala ghearraidh" which means "meadow by the bay".

The official "wild camping" site ( if that's not a contradiction in terms)
Well maintained local services, complete with flower baskets.

Our next stop, at the end of the afternoon, was Dervaig . . . thought to be the oldest village on the island of Mull.

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We had booked in for three nights at the Bellachroy Inn and next morning . . . the weather let us down again !

Nevertheless we enjoyed a day exploring locally. This is the view of the village as seen from the river.

The old part of Dervaig is a classic double row of houses facing each other across the main street.

Built in 1898 as a Reading Room, it served as the village hall until a new one was built recently at the top of the village.

It is now a busy little general store and Post Office. The brown stacks by the front door are modern compressed peat for your living room fire.

The Kilmore Church in Dervaig looks really old but it in fact has just celebrated it's first centenary. Built in 1905, it replaced an earlier church built on the same site. The inspiration for the tower and the design probably came from Irish Celtic influences, reflecting the ancient church towers of Cashel and Enniskillen.

Inside it has a much more modern feel . . .
. . . with rough stone walls and wonderful red pine ceilings.

The Bellachroy - the oldest continually inhabited building in Mull.

Don't panic, it has been well maintained over that time and provides comfortable accommodation and excellent food.

A fine selection of articles adorn the window ledge in the lounge bar . . .

. . . but we were rather distracted when our Seafood Platter arrived . . . " Bon appetite"

Our fine meal was rounded off with a wee dram of local whisky and we slept well that night.

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Next day we returned to Calgary Bay for a walk out towards the headland.

This little boathouse may just sell refreshments in the high season but now just serves as an advert for the local restaurant.

The track led out to the pier which was built to unload local supplies

and also to accommodate boats visiting the adjacent Treshnish Islands.

Unfortunately it may also have served as a jetty for boats leaving for America at the time of the Clearances in the 1800's,

an unhappy time in the history of the Scottish people.

Treshnish Point flanks the southern side of the bay

and the islands of the same name can just be seen through the grey mistiness of the sea air.

The area is a geologist's delight, with this horizontal volcanic lava forming a bold layer of strata on the headland.

We climb up for a better view.

A vertical wall turns out to be a narrow volcanic intrusion of rock, complemented by a dry stone extension at it's base.

Time to head back to Dervaig and the Bellachroy.

I wonder what's on the menu tonight ?

 

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Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's Canon 75 or my Canon G10 digital camera.

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . . plenty of time to enjoy our seafood platter.

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A previous time up here - 13th to 23rd May 2006 A Scottish Island Holiday