Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => Rides and Touring => Ride Reports => Topic started by: billplumtree on 12 June, 2016, 02:21:10 pm
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Having been out of action for the past 2 years, I was looking for a nice gentle tour to ease myself back into it. No enormous distances, or big hills, but without skimping on scenery either. 's obvious, innit. Small Isles. Muck, Eigg, Rum, Canna. There's 5 miles of road on Eigg, and about the same of off-road rideable track, and a lot less on all the others put together; the highest track on Rum tops out at 250m. Even in my present reduced state I could manage that. In fact, I could afford to carry luxurious(-ish) stuff I wouldn't otherwise: heavier camera kit, tripod, bigger tent, extra sleeping bag 'cos it's always cold in Scotland at this time of year.
Fri 27 May
So, CalMac timetable deciphered (Have you seen the Small Isles timetable? Convoluted isn't the word. Two people, independently, told me they were reduced to phoning CalMac to confirm their understanding of it) and Pendolino bike-bookings surmounted (sigh), and after a short ride to Kendal New Walter and I were on the train north with an entirely fortuitous forecast of magnificent weather already raising hopes for the gitness level.
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7322/27528760691_173c54e5a9_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWC6t2)
Heading north (https://flic.kr/p/HWC6t2)
The journey was uneventful, although Glasgow Queen Street station was a bit chaotic. The upper level seems to be being entirely rebuilt, so all trains are using the two low-level platforms - instead of the usual relaxing cup of coffee next to the platform, we ended up in the bowels of the station
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7308/27010891294_c7e4ee6b84_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/H9RSWj)
Glasgow Queen St station (https://flic.kr/p/H9RSWj)
And instead of having plenty of time to load bike and luggage, we had a couple of minutes - that's to get the bike on and hanging from its dangly hook, and two trips with assorted bags left on the platform. Not that that's stressful at all, oh no, no, no. So when a big tour group barged onto the platform a few minutes before the train was due and stood right in front of me+bike+pile of bags - well, some of 'em now have more of an appreciation of how many sticky-out bits there are on a bike. And, while I'm moaning: No, people, cycletouring really is not as toe-curlingly brave as you think it is. It's as easy as, oh never mind.
The lovely, lovely ride up the West Highland line to Fort William was up to the usual standard, and the encore to Mallaig - well, what can you say? Bloomin' gorgeous. I hopped off at Arisaig at about 5.30 pm - there's a string of campsites along the old Back of Keppoch road from there, and I planned to stay at one of those. That plan looked in danger of falling through when every single one of 'em had Site Full notices up, so at Camusdarach I tried the "Onna bike, just a tiny tent" line. I've stayed there before, they're nice folk and they didn't let me down this time. Big up for Camusdarach campsite. Maybe next time I won't travel on the Friday of a bank holiday weekend with a forecast heatwave...
Couldn't find the Smidge that I'd carefully packed somewhere handy, so put the tent up in a cloud of midges and got a bit chewed by them (then found it, obvs). Pasta inna mug for tea, in the sanctuary of the tent, then a quick walk down to the beach
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7745/27521690542_43ac3bf1d5_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HVZRKU)
Camusdarach (https://flic.kr/p/HVZRKU)
Drizzle drove the midgies away, though not unfortunately the screaming children. Four lads arrived late, in a chavved-up Golf, and began their barbie at around midnight. And you know what? I'm still lovin' it. Two years out is a bloody long time.
Total riding for the day: a heady 14 miles :-)
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Sat 28
Lovin' it slightly less this morning, as one of the chaveed-up Golf lads turned out to be a snorer. But it's still good, I'm moving on today, and being wide awake and getting up at 6 am just means that I'll be in Mallaig all the sooner and be sure of getting a ticket for the ferry.
So I was fuelled up, packed, tent still wet as it was, and away by 8, leaving the bleary-eyed children in their dalmation-spotted onesies behind and off up the old road to Mallaig. Morar was peaceful, with the by-pass taking what little traffic there was at this time of morning. Lichenous fenceposts testified to the clarity of the air,
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7558/27344846560_71b279811a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HEnucJ)
Fencepost lichen, Morar (https://flic.kr/p/HEnucJ)
and the sun was already high in a clearing sky
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7366/27549188221_b11c54413c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYqMRP)
Loch Morar (https://flic.kr/p/HYqMRP)
Into MLG by 9, I bought my ticket for the Eigg ferry first. The harbour was already busy, with queues of cars for the Skye ferry, and those turning up without tickets were being told that the ferries were booked up for the rest of the day and they should either book for one tomorrow or make the 3 hr drive round by the Skye Bridge. With my own booking in the bag, I then spent a pleasant few hours on a delightful sunny day doing the classic Mallaig mooch - I mean, I can't be the only one, surely? Watching boats come and go, coffee, paper, boats, chips, boats,...
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7473/27012052114_fb826c4baf_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/H9XQ1s)
In Mallaig harbour (https://flic.kr/p/H9XQ1s)
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7323/27622152075_ea23b14afc_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J5SKti)
CalMac! (https://flic.kr/p/J5SKti)
Eventually, it's time to board the tiny Loch Nevis ferry. Entertainingly, cars & vans have to reverse on, which I suppose makes her a RERO ferry. Busy, an'all; I don't know if they were turning folk away, but it must have been close. Today's route is round all the islands, Eigg-Muck-Canna-Rum, so some are going further than Eigg and some aren't getting off at all but are just on for the non-landing cruise. I can think of worse things to do on a sunny afternoon in MLG.
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First stop Eigg, and off the boat into all the intense hustle and bustle that the ferry arrival entails. Relatively speaking, obviously. I didn't need the wee shop as I'd already stocked up, or the bike hire (likewise), and I resisted the bar. There was nowt else, so I headed off to the campsite. The ferry docks at Galmisdale, in the SE corner of the island; Eigg Organics campsite is at the NW end, 4 miles away, so to get there I'd be riding over almost the entire road network on Eigg.
Even with a humongous load, it was over in no time. A swine of a climb out from the bay, over a plateau with views back to the mainland, a plummet down to Cleadale at the other end, and that was it. The site is wonderfully situated, high up above the sea with a view across the Sound of Rum,
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7286/27344878630_6770cdb4eb_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HEnDJE)
Eigg Organics campsite - view of Rum (https://flic.kr/p/HEnDJE)
and below the distinctive cliffs of the northern end of Eigg,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7611/27622142795_5bb2893c70_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J5SGHi)
Eigg Organics campsite - view of Beinn Bhuidhe cliffs (https://flic.kr/p/J5SGHi)
Flat pitches are a tad hard to come by, but hey. Location, location, location.
I pitched and ate, then wandered down to the beach and along the shore, looking for some geology
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7439/27549225561_55980a394f_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYqYXB)
Geode(?), Laig bay (https://flic.kr/p/HYqYXB)
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7290/27549238091_9c67ba433f_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYr3FD)
Concretions, Laig bay (https://flic.kr/p/HYr3FD)
and stayed out rather later than I'd planned watching the sun set over Rum
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7687/27622124685_e9cf1598a2_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J5SBk4)
Yet another Rum sunset (https://flic.kr/p/J5SBk4)
Mileage for the day: 9. Even less than yesterday, but a few miles walked too.
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You know what I'm going to say. don't you?
Will there be bridges?
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You know what I'm going to say. don't you?
Yep.
Will there be bridges?
Ah - no, that's not what I was expecting you to say! Modom already has bridges, in her very own eponymous thread. Those were the first ones I posted - I know teh rulez...
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Sun 29
I'd walked a lot further than I planned yesterday, and was late to bed, so - in the absence of screaming dalmation onesies - I slept well, and reluctantly got up around 8 to a gorgeous day, the cloud just clearing from Rum. Sat out in the warm sun having breakfast, then walked the mile or so to Camas Sgiotaig, the Singing Sands beach, across the great green bowl of Cleadale below the cliffs
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7347/27550201861_d2b0f2526d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYvZbn)
Cleadale, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HYvZbn)
Inevitably, there had to be a fine view of Rum from above the beach
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7423/27589621306_fabae34c99_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J312cY)
Rum across the sound (https://flic.kr/p/J312cY)
and the odd bit of geology to look at on the beach
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7292/27014162923_046d111631_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Ha9DtH)
On Singing Sands beach (https://flic.kr/p/Ha9DtH)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7349/27345951190_ff422445db_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HEt9z5)
Camas Sgiotaig, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HEt9z5)
That burdensome task out of the way, it was back to the tent for a cheese and oatcake lunch and a general loll about for a bit.
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I do have form (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=58889.msg1920881#msg1920881) for poking around in abandoned Hebridean crofts, so the fact that there was a Museum of Crofting Life in Croft 6, an old blackhouse literally next door to the campsite, was a very happy find indeed. Not that there was much formal museum-ness about it: it is, effectively, a minimally-managed but actively-preserved not-altogether-completely-abandoned croft. There's a sign outside saying Open, which appears to be permanent. No-one there, just a key in the lock, and you're asked to lock it after you to keep the sheep out.
That afternoon just flew by.
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7336/27014241553_4f44717b86_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Haa3Rp)
Bedroom, old croft, Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/Haa3Rp)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7314/27589673126_e279a33ac2_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J31hBq)
Bedroom, old croft, Eigg III (https://flic.kr/p/J31hBq)
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7295/27523912012_e0be638841_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWcf87)
Bedroom, old croft, Eigg II (https://flic.kr/p/HWcf87)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7781/27623223445_aa0663a61b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J5YeXc)
Hallway, old croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/J5YeXc)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7429/27523873162_0c1a554884_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWc3zh)
Attic bedroom, old croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HWc3zh)
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7302/27550276671_2564906c33_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYwnqc)
Living room, old croft, Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/HYwnqc)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7331/27523925602_dc827f279d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWcjaq)
Garden, old croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HWcjaq)
I eventually tore myself away. Tea and a leisurely evening by the tent, then nipped down to the beach just to watch the sunset under a clear sky at around 10pm
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7603/27601843475_693ca146a6_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J45Er2)
Sunset over Rum from Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/J45Er2)
Miles ridden today: 2, in nipping down to the beach...
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Well, she might not be predictable, but I am...
Git.
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You are :-* Knew you'd be along at some point
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Great stuff, Bill - I stayed ay Camusdarach a couple of years ago and they were lovely - the dotty old dear told me they were full, but just as I was leaving to try and find some space somewhere (I'd already ridden 100 miles and chased a stray dog off the roads near Arisaig - I was knackered), but the site owners chased me down and told me to pitch wherever I wanted.
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I think on the Git scale, this is a 9.
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Yebbut... he hasn't finished yet!
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Mon 30
Set the alarm last night for 0415 this morning, 'cos I wanted to catch the early light on Rum. Just nip out of the tent at dawn, take a quick snap and back into the snug and warm again; how hard could it be? Well, the principle was fine, but my timing was a bit off :-/ I had to hang around for nearly an hour, waiting for the light to arrive and gradually getting colder and colder in the pre-dawn... Got there in the end though,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7617/27552124971_030de64096_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYFQRr)
Dawn light on Rum (https://flic.kr/p/HYFQRr)
Then I went back to bed and slept through until almost 9. While I had my ridiculously late breakfast, the other 4 campers packed up their 2 tents and left for the ferry in the owner Neil's pickup. It seemed to be part of his working day, meeting the ferry to collect or deliver campers, bothy inhabitants, yurt-dwellers or other guests. Visitors aren't allowed to bring cars onto any of the islands (one of their great attractions), so residents pickups are in big demand. There's also a taxi - which is, incongruously, an actual black cab, driven by a friendly bloke, in a stetson, called Charlie.
So I waited until the ferry traffic (the pickup, two taxi trips, and I'm sure I saw another car go past) died down, then headed off towards the other end of the island. By bike! There's a track around the south end, to Grulin, an old long-abandoned township, which I thought would be rideable, plus I wanted to get some fresh milk and the like in the shop at the pier. Up the steep ramp out of Cleadale then, and across the plateau, past the primary school and the former post office in the centre of the island. I picked up the track as it forked off to the right, fortunately without losing too much height by that point, and headed off below An Sgurr and round to its less fashionable south side
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7307/27015050384_fef59f14b6_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HaechL)
An Sgurr, Eigg, from the Grulin track (https://flic.kr/p/HaechL)
The track was perfectly rideable on Walter: he's a sturdy chap with 26" wheels, discs and 1.5" tyres, but I'm sure Uncle Peter would have managed happily on 25mm. The old Grulin bothy was, I believe, tarted up by Keith Schellenberg, the somewhat controversial one-time owner of the island (now famously - big cheer - community-owned),
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7375/27625198545_983d86c608_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J69n5D)
Grulin bothy (https://flic.kr/p/J69n5D) and Muck beyond
It being well past lunchtime, I turned here and headed back to Galmisdale bay, taking the steep shortcut directly down to the pier rather than going all the way back to the road. Which was a good move, scenically speaking, since it took me past Galmisdale House directly below the Sgurr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7310/27347774160_ce02fb3382_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HECutA)
Galmisdale House below An Sgurr (https://flic.kr/p/HECutA)
Lunch was a baked spud and a pint in the cafe bar, taken sat outside by the sea in the hot sun, and was delicious. Highly recommended. I sat there for a while, watching boats. The lifeboat arrived at one point, at speed. Apparently someone had collapsed with heatstroke, and been found semi-conscious: a first responder attended and called in the lifeboat to get her to - I dunno, Mallaig? Fort William?
I carried on boat-watching, and the afternoon ferry arrived
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7643/27525771152_1cc88b21a9_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWmLMf)
At the pier, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HWmLMf)
In fact two of 'em arrived. The timetable had two visits to Eigg today, 5 hours apart, so a lot of folk took the opportunity of a day-visit. So many folk that CalMac called the 'spare' ferry, Loch Bhrusda, into service, and the two were shuffling about taking it in turns to get to the pier
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7501/27347791580_46d92fcf2d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HECzDW)
L Nevis and L Bhrusda, dancing (https://flic.kr/p/HECzDW)
While the first ferry loaded, I had a ride round the bay to the unofficial campsite where 5 tents were pitched right next to the sea. No facilities, use the toilets (and shower) at the pier 5 mins walk away. It looked rather pleasant - certainly didn't have the views that I did, but there was otoh more boat action.
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7529/27347798140_a022cf9604_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HECBB3)
The pleasingly-symmetrical L Bhrusda (https://flic.kr/p/HECBB3)
Back to the pier, did my shopping, and bumped into Neil in the shop who kindly told me to just bung it in the back of the pickup rather than carry it myself. Which I did. A leisurely ride back, tea (ratatouille & couscous, peach slices and rice pudding - well, I've ridden a long way today), and a lazy evening sat in the tent in the full sun and out of the buffetting wind,
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7191/27589700526_95308ab385_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J31qKQ)
View from the tent (https://flic.kr/p/J31qKQ)
Mileage: 8 on-road, 4 off-road. Off-road miles, like winter ones, count double, so 16 miles for the day.
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Mileage: 8 on-road, 4 off-road. Off-road miles, like winter ones, count double, so 16 miles for the day.
Here's a tour I can relate to!
Great stuff, and as ever, pictures to fuel my envy.
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Tue 31
Mmm, that buffetting wind. Kept up all night, and even intensified its buffets, so despite an early night I didn't get much sleep. The wind seemed to come in discrete lumps: the rushing in the trees upwind gave a second or two's warning of each lump, and you'd brace yourself for it hitting the tent. I'd planned another early morning, but around 1am I gave up and switched my alarm off and eventually slept in until 9.
I did have to leave the tent briefly early on, having not had the foresight to keep an empty milk carton handy, which at least had the bonus of catching the early light on Bidein An Tighearna, the Finger of God immediately behind the campsite,
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7314/27552174561_7a19fb58a8_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYG6Ar)
Bidein An Tighearna, god's finger I (https://flic.kr/p/HYG6Ar)
which later on, in full sun, looks like this:
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7470/27552240181_068d0fef2e_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HYGr6P)
Bidein An Tighearna, god's finger II (https://flic.kr/p/HYGr6P)
I'd earmarked the morning for derelict croft photos. Not only was there an actual Museum of Crofting Life right next door to the campsite, but I'd also scoped out a genuine, non-museum non-preserved honest-to-goodness derelict abandoned croft only a laal bit further down the road. Very much in the style of those I'd photographed on Harris and Lewis, simply walked away from and the door tied shut with string.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7288/27525817752_92c3c7e45a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWn1CG)
Abandoned croft, Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/HWn1CG)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7045/27525879032_7c3de0e7f8_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWnjRf)
Abandoned croft, Eigg II (https://flic.kr/p/HWnjRf)
At some point, unfortunately, the door hadn't been tied with string: hence the sheep's skeleton in the back bedroom. A couple of the windows were out too, and a few house martins had found their way in and nested, and the second law of thermodynamics was generally being enacted. So, all in all, a bit further gone than I'd have liked - but hey, let's not be fussy about these things eh? It still holds, and will for a while yet (I made sure I tied the door up again), some wonderful scenes, sharpened in places to the most poignant point.
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7765/27591463246_3f0d222e5f_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J3asKy)
Bedroom, abandoned croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/J3asKy)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7739/27347815870_a61d039826_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HECGSJ)
Sideboard, abandoned croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HECGSJ)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7780/27591475286_c77998a142_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J3awk9)
Gas lamp, abandoned croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/J3awk9)
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7331/27525831052_80122224d2_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWn5A1)
Attic bedroom, abandoned croft, Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/HWn5A1)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7383/27591468006_f8e3cd8792_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J3auaC)
"Bedroom Image" duvet box, abandoned croft, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/J3auaC)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7399/27591485546_ea586595bc_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J3azo3)
Attic bedroom, abandoned croft, Eigg III (https://flic.kr/p/J3azo3)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7121/27571147016_e37bef024e_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J1nkrJ)
Abandoned croft, Eigg III (https://flic.kr/p/J1nkrJ)
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A wonderful eye, and a wonderful record.
Thank you.
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Wonderful.
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An enjoyable and productive morning, then. Back to the tent for lunch, eaten while gazing up at god's finger again and thinking it must be a great viewpoint... I knew there was a path along the clifftop, but wasn't aware of a way onto it other than trekking right the way to one end or other of the cliffs. Scanning the ground below the cliffs, however, revealed something that might just be a zigzag path heading up behind the finger. And, an oatcake or two later: Yes! Two people, descending that very path. Blimey, how lucky was that?
While I continued with my lunch, they disappeared from view behind an intervening slope, which was a bit annoying cos I couldn't then see where the path came down to the road. So I snaffled the last oatcakes up and headed off down the road to look for them.
The handy thing about there being hardly anyone about: they weren't difficult to spot. They were, very obviously, the ones sitting in Charlie the taxi driver's garden having tea and cake; couldn't possibly be anyone else. And so it turned out - a very pleasant German couple, who confirmed that the path did indeed wind its way up behind the finger, and described where to find the start. Just past the post box,
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7270/27015107194_922703c91d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Haeubf)
Island life (https://flic.kr/p/Haeubf)
Sensible, eh? Post is collected an hour before the ferry. And, presumably, delivered an hour or so after the ferry. Path located, I headed upwards at a fairly sharp angle. And it was well worth the trouble, a delightful mountain path zigging and zagging through a hillside tinted indigo by swathes of bluebells, studded with primroses, orchids, patches of heather. My cuckoo was in constant attendence, as it had been since I arrived on the island (I think the Scottish Tourist Board have a stock of 'em, trained up; each time a visitor arrives off the boat, they get a cuckoo assigned to them for the duration of their visit. I was expecting to be handed a feedback form, Rate My Cuckoo, when I got on the boat to leave), and a bunch of corbies near the top,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7177/27039941684_b4bdc94e7c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HcqLB7)
Corbie (https://flic.kr/p/HcqLB7)
The path did, as promised, wind up and onto the cliffs close to and round the back of god's finger,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7709/27616898356_513ebf11d6_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J5pPHW)
God's finger, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/J5pPHW)
which I suppose makes this the back of god's hand (oh, that brings back memories. "Pack that in now, or you'll feel the back of my hand, me lad!"). The views were as spectacular as predicted:
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7542/27651362095_2e20ac93ea_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8ssAk)
Rum and Cleadale from behind God's finger (https://flic.kr/p/J8ssAk)
and the rest of the clifftop path proved irresistible. Having come this far, it seemed daft not to carry on to the high point, Sgorr an Fharaidh, about a mile or so further along. So I did, and again was rewarded by fantastic views.
The panorama from, roughly, south east to north west includes the cliffs themselves, Ardnamurchan in the distance, the southern half of Eigg with, of course, An Sgurr, Cleadale, Laig Bay, and (as always) Rum,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7291/27039945124_8165f33436_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HcqMCq)
Cleadale, Laig Bay and Rum from Beinn Bhuidhe (https://flic.kr/p/HcqMCq)
The narrower view shows the settlement of Cleadale, in its big green bowl, and the way that the island divides into two characteristic halves with that plateau between them,
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7318/27651402015_3aa4169078_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8sEsB)
Beinn Bhuidhe cliffs, Cleadale, Laig bay (https://flic.kr/p/J8sEsB)
Topographical excursion over, I returned by the same route to find that it was time for tea and biscuits. And I have no idea where the rest of the evening went.
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Wed 1 June
Another windy night, but without all the buffeting so I slept a lot better. The light, or cold, or both, still woke me at 5, and a quick poke of my head outside confirmed that it was worth getting up, at least for a while.
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7561/26955371333_0c2d1f3f51_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/H4XjMB)
Morning light, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/H4XjMB)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7410/27491442561_f6945ced38_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HTjQ5Z)
Morning Light, Rum II (https://flic.kr/p/HTjQ5Z)
Half an hour of that and I was a damn sight colder, so back to bed until I woke again at 9. There was no-one else camping, so at least my late-morning breakfast was free from embarrassment this time. I thought of making a badge, "I was up at 5 taking photos of an astonishing sunrise. Where were you?" (rather like the one I want to show to the cyclists who ride past with disdain when I'm sat outside my house drinking tea, that says "I rode 200km yesterday. Where were you?").
Breakfast over, it was time to start thinking about lunch. The partial views of Skye from the summit yesterday had inspired me: there must surely be a good view of the Cuillin from the northern end of Eigg. So, I took my cheese and oatcakes for a ride up to the end of the road (half a mile or so) and on up the track (ditto), then ditched Walter and carried on on foot. Remember when you were a kid, you used to ride to somewhere (the river, or the beach, or Auntie Eileen's) and, when you got there, just drop the bike and carry on without breaking stride? It was like that, and oh the feeling of freedom!
Anyway I left Walter, without even the thought of locking him up, among today's flowers, fuschia hedges and yellow flag irises just coming into bloom, and walked northwards up the path towards the tip of the island as today's birds peewitted around my head. And a splendid path it was too, using the rocky remains of the stone walls of old houses and enclosures to keep above the boggy marshland,
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7495/27574013282_6918b6e10c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J1C2u7)
Old walls, now a raised pathway (https://flic.kr/p/J1C2u7)
as it climbed, gradually at first and then steeply up to the bealach, to finally a fine view back over Cleadale and the rest of Eigg,
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7271/27324584890_dbf320f245_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HCzD7A)
Cleadale, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/HCzD7A)
And, on the bealach, my objective: Skye, in the finest weather I've ever seen it,
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7447/27674697865_807c554083_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Jaw4vc)
Blue Skye (https://flic.kr/p/Jaw4vc)
Oatcake time.
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Sorry billplumtree, but you've earned another.
Git.
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Makes it all worthwhile ;D
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Oatcakes eaten, I headed back down the path, found Walter, and on down the track until we regained the tarmac. That's 2 miles ridden already - 3 if we play the offroad-double rule - and it's still only early afternoon! Obviously in the mood for a big mileage day, I continued south past the campsite, grimped up onto the central plateau (accompanied this time by a pair of mewing buzzards) and, daringly, took the left fork for Kildonan on the mile or so of road I hadn't yet ridden.
The road helter-skeltered down to a bay below fluted basalt cliffs
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7438/27447125490_4660da3e09_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HPpGay)
Kildonan Bay (https://flic.kr/p/HPpGay)
and a track wound round and back up to the old graveyard
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7686/27639577826_82603f910b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J7q4xh)
Kildonan, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/J7q4xh)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7384/27624479722_bdb31702c1_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J65Fp9)
Kildonan Cross (https://flic.kr/p/J65Fp9)
After a wee wander around here, I skelter-heltered the mile back up to the "main" road, then continued on to Galmisdale for coffee and gingerbread, followed by a swift half, all the while sat outside watching the sunlight sparkle on the sea. And a few supplies from the Spar, which was what I actually came for. By the time I'd ridden the 4 miles back home, well that was a full day's riding in and it was time for tea - rice inna mug (Mug-Shots: brilliant for camping!), then peach slices and rice pud. Followed a bit later by yet another (yawn) rather fine sunset.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7652/27434607800_25e0a8ea18_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HNix6j)
Crepuscular sunset over Rum I (https://flic.kr/p/HNix6j)
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7334/27600190631_840065d192_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J3Wc6H)
Crepuscular sunset over Rum II (https://flic.kr/p/J3Wc6H)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7666/27529036201_80d4a762b3_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWDvnc)
Sunset over Rum from Eigg IV (https://flic.kr/p/HWDvnc)
High-mileage day today, covering every inch of road on the island: call it 13 miles.
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Bill this is marvellous. Thank you.
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Thanks Ruth - my pleasure. As you might have gathered ;D
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Thu 2
Back to a wild windy buffetting night, and the day that followed was much the same. I think the wind eased for a couple of blissful hours shortly after midnight, at which point I was too hot in my two sleeping bags. Then it returned, and I was right on the borderline of being too cold again until the sun reached over the cliffs and down to the tent at 8 am.
I sat in my now-warm tent, out of the wind, while I had breakfast, and I pondered whether or not I should pack up and leave for one night on Muck, as originally planned. It would be nice to collect the whole set of small isles, and to go to somewhere called Muck obvs, and on consulting the ferry timetable it was now or never (well, now or not this trip at least). But there were too many reasons not to: all that packing up and unpacking, just for one night; I hadn't even been down to Laig beach yet, all of half a mile away; and Muck didn't sound all that inspiring, tbh. So laziness won out over aspie collecting compulsion, for once: I'll leave tomorrow, for Rum, and not get Mucky this time round.
That decided, I headed down to the not-yet-even-visited Laig beach. On Walter - we've already established my laziness. Staying on Eigg was, I pretty quickly concluded, the right decision. The wind was relentless, but the views I could make out through my bleary teary eyes were well worth it.
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7089/27103898623_ccc237445c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5yLX)
Laig bay (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5yLX)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7402/27613548782_28cbe8510c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J57E1E)
Rum from Laig bay (https://flic.kr/p/J57E1E)
There was geology galore, like these concretions
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7411/27714223905_304e036da0_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Je1DdD)
Concretion, Laig, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/Je1DdD)
and dykes
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7306/27103886593_734fff158d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5vcx)
Dyke, Eigg (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5vcx)
The latter provided some respite from the wind for a wee while, but the patterns on the beach, made by silt swept down streams on a falling tide, drew me back out irresistibly,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7718/26995985603_5e12ff1774_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/H8xtZD)
Patterns in the sand, Laig beach, Eigg I (https://flic.kr/p/H8xtZD)
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7115/27103915363_91fd574592_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5DKz)
Patterns in the sand, Laig beach, Eigg III (https://flic.kr/p/Hi5DKz)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7317/27639671701_a5f5d44e5c_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J7qxrP)
Patterns in the sand, Laig beach, Eigg V (https://flic.kr/p/J7qxrP)
Eventually though, I had to give up. Not just the unceasing wind, but I'd also had too much sun and was starting to feel distinctly off. To be fair, I had walked quite a few miles in the midday sun - and this was the nearest it got to cloudy all day:
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7380/27120125433_878ef4ef96_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HjvJrx)
Sunny afternoon, Laig (https://flic.kr/p/HjvJrx)
I wobbled back to the campsite weakly on Walter for a cool shower and a mid-afternoon lunch taken in the tent out of the sun. In fact I stayed in the tent for the rest of the afternoon, comfortably sheltered from both the sun and wind, and read, dozed, drank tea. Yep, I'd definitely had too much sun. Wasn't expecting that when I set off a week ago...
Today's mileage: 1, to save the walk to the beach.
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Fri 3
Up at 7 to the alarm, after the usual gusty wind most of the night and another poor sleep. The campsite on Rum is on the east side of the island at the head of a bay, so I'm hoping it'll be a bit more sheltered. Ate breakfast, packed up, away by 9. The grind up out of Cleadale was tough fully-loaded, but once done it was easy going for the whole of the 4 miles down the main road to Galmisdale and the ferry,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7290/27656974451_b2d58d0dce_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8XdX6)
The Eigg road (https://flic.kr/p/J8XdX6)
Coffee at the cafe, phoned parents to confirm to them that I was still alive (and to me that they were likewise), and onto the punctual boat at 11. There was an announcement over the tannoy to the effect that dolphins had escorted the boat into the harbour, so we might want to keep a lookout on the way out too. Cue big rush to the bow...
A couple of dolphins did indeed turn up,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7097/27697597396_f613fde91e_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JcxqJG)
Shark! (https://flic.kr/p/JcxqJG) Well, dolphin, actually
but they were distinctly camera-shy, unfortunately. The crew on the boat got the best views from right out on the bow,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7345/27118960484_14d4681c42_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HjpL9d)
Calmac crew watching the dolphins (https://flic.kr/p/HjpL9d)
Still, a beautiful voyage in the accustomed fantastic weather, and all for the bargain price of £3.80. Thanks, yet again, CalMac.
So we headed back to Mallaig, there not being a ferry directly from Eigg to Rum today, and I had lunch (leek & tattie soup) onboard while in the harbour. Overheard conversation in the cafe:
Boiler-suited CalMac engineer - "Have you finished the lambing and calving yet?"
Passenger - "Couple of ewes left. You?"
BsCe - "Aye, just this week, thank god"
Lunch over, and a mug of tea out on deck as we approached Rum on a flat calm sea. I'm not sure it gets much better than this.
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7296/27630802042_bc3f3d038a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J6D5NE)
Heading for Rum (https://flic.kr/p/J6D5NE)
I'd kept a book handy, seeing as going via Mallaig made this a 3 hour journey. Complete waste of time, didn't even think about picking it up - and it was a good'un an'all.
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Must ... not ... :-X
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Where's the perpetual cloud over Rum?
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Where's the perpetual cloud over Rum?
Top right :-*
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Your photos are stunning Bill. Really excellent. This is the 3rd time I've browsed through these
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Bill this is marvellous. Thank you.
What yon Ruthie said ^. :)
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Nice weather
Nice write up
Beautiful photies
Git ^multigit
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Where's the perpetual cloud over Rum?
Top right :-*
That's over Sleat!
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I hope the tourist board have got you on commission.
Fantastic photos and really inspiring for a potential tour.
Enjoying your write ups enormously.
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Fantastic photos and really inspiring for a potential tour.
Marcus, there are 5 miles of road on Eigg. I've seen your trip reports. You'd die of boredom.
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That's over Sleat!
Nah mate, no way. Definitely beyond Sleat and over northern Rum. Absolutely.
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Bill, I've just found time to give this the attention it deserves. It's absolutely superb. Thank you! (Surprised and thrilled to get a mention!)
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Another here who's been enthralled by the photos and commentary. Thank you, Bill!
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Great photography and interesting reading, thank you. :thumbsup:
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Fantastic photos and really inspiring for a potential tour.
Marcus, there are 5 miles of road on Eigg. I've seen your trip reports. You'd die of boredom.
Not with that scenery!
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So, Rum, then. Well, not quite yet. Ferry took ages to dock, couldn't seem to get quite close enough. I dunno why, it was high tide or thereabouts, but the ramp kept falling short and ending up under 6" of water,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7393/27731520875_594e6ff27a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Jfxi1g)
"Well, they'll just have to wade through it" (https://flic.kr/p/Jfxi1g)
This went on for a good while, to the consternation of those of us supposed to be getting off,
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7209/27697627106_0cf32a4607_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JcxzyW)
"Surely the don't expect us to just wade through it?" (https://flic.kr/p/JcxzyW)
but we did eventually make it onto dry land without having to paddle. It's half a mile along a rough track round the shore of the bay to the campsite, where there are also a few discreet pods in the trees and the new, stunning, hostel,
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7394/27137210114_9d9c2dcfa2_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm2i81)
The new Kinloch hostel (https://flic.kr/p/Hm2i81)
- which is dead handy, as the hostel manager told me to feel free, seeing as it was quiet, to use the toilets and showers in the brand new building rather than walk up the track to the 'official' camping ones. "Hostel" doesn't do it justice, it's like summat off that Grand Designs, with feature woodburner and floor-to-ceiling windows out onto the bay. If the weather had been any less fantastic than it was I'd have booked in there like a shot.
But as it was, I was more than happy to camp. And, on the campsite on the shore in front of the hostel, there were 3 other tents in various stages of being packed up. One of the campers told me that they were leaving together on the next ferry (ie the one I'd just got off, after it had been to Canna and back), so rather than pitch I sat on a rock for a while and enjoyed the view. I'm not as green as I'm cabbage-looking, you know! After they left, I had a good look round and chose the best, only-just vacated, pitch for myself.
Tent up, I trundled off the further half-mile up the track along the shore, past Kinloch Castle (of which more later),
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7128/27137352154_de4901088b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm32kY)
Kinloch Castle II (https://flic.kr/p/Hm32kY)
to the shop and picked up the usual supplies plus a bottle of Colonsay beer in lieu of going there (Colonsay, Islay and Jura were another possibility for this trip, but I decided their roads were far too long and well-developed). Back to the tent then, to write up my diary, and this is what I wrote at the time:
So here I am, sat by my tent ten feet from the lapping sea in the hot sun, writing my diary. There's just enough breeze to keep the midgies at bay; a view back to Knoydart beyond the pier; silence apart from the waves and the seabirds calling (my cuckoo seems not to have been assigned yet). I'm drinking my beer and thinking, Where's the catch? There's got to be one, surely?
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7181/27697630686_17060a27e2_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JcxACE)
Campsite, Kinloch, Rum. (https://flic.kr/p/JcxACE)
I found the catch when the wind dropped for a few minutes. Rum midgies have a particularly fearsome reputation, which I can now say is well-justified. A head-net kept them away though, at some cost to the enjoyment of the view; and the breeze shortly returned, having seemingly warned me not to take it for granted. I didn't, and had my tea in comfortable breezy midgie-free peace, watching the Lochboisdale ferry head out on a calm sea and remembering being on it on just such an evening on my first Hebridean trip <mumble> years ago. Happy days.
Tea over, I washed up at the best washing-up sink in the whole world ever, about 10 yards away
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7389/27630797552_6ab18db3ae_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J6D4tf)
Washing-up sink, Kinloch campsite (https://flic.kr/p/J6D4tf)
and then had a quick spin down to the otter hide on the far side of the pier. The otters were, indeed, hiding, and I saw nowt, but it was a lovely bit of singletrack through the woods to get there,
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7551/27630788302_f84f710c28_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J6D1HL)
In the woods, Carn-an-dobhrain-Bhig, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/J6D1HL)
Back to the tent then, and just sit, soaking it all up. Until the wind died down at 8 pm, when after the earlier lesson I knew exactly what to do and retired to the tent for the night.
Mileage: 8, or 12 with the offsideroad rule.
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Sat 4
In the absence of hammer blasts of wind on the tent, I slept soundly and peacefully. Until bladder pressure woke me, and the awful realisation dawned. Oh Bill, you've let yourself down. Stupid, fundamental, elementary cabbage-looking error: no empty milk bottle, or anything similar. I was going to have to get out of the tent...
I made sure I was covered as much as I could, including head net, but the ferocious little bastards were waiting for me, and they knew there was only one reason I'd be leaving the security of the tent at that time of morning. It was horrific, it was carnage. I dread to think how much blood I lost. Not only that, but getting back into the tent again meant bringing, unavoidably, hundreds of the buggers with me on my clothes (mostly...).
The only effective way I found, and still highly inefficient at that, to decrease their number inside the tent was to lure them into one corner of the inner tent with my head torch and squash them against it with a tissue. This got maybe a few per cent of them each time, so I asymptotically cleared the tent of 'em, the bloody streaks on the tent gradually becoming longer over the 20 minutes or so it took. Had to be done, otherwise I had visions of my skeleton being found in the morning, stripped to the bone by the voracious bloody things. And anyway, I used a different corner to last time I had to do the same thing, so I have distinct reminders of different memorable trips to Scotland.
That done, I returned to my lovely sound sleep, until 0730 when my newly-assigned cuckoo turned up and proceeded to make up for any lost time. Well, it was time to get up anyway, as I was planning on joining the 10 am tour of the castle - there's only one a day, timed so that ferry passengers can make it, so I thought this one might be quiet, what with it being the early ferry an'all. So breakfast, a luxurious power shower over at the hostel, and a wander up to the castle to join about half a dozen others and a stand-in guide (the usual guides working all hours on an inventory, apparently). This was no loss: I'm sure we got more informal gossip from the stand-in about the goings-on of the aristocracy, the royal connections, infamously short kilts and butch ghillies...
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7398/27471575730_245a4dc104_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HRz1nq)
Kinloch Castle I (https://flic.kr/p/HRz1nq)
Quick (and possibly biased) historical summary: George Bullough, an Edwardian playboy, built Kinloch Castle. Rum was, in its entirety, his plaything, he having inherited it along with the rest of his Victorian father George's fortune (made, in Accrington, from the automation of spinning looms). George didn't like the colour of Rum sandstone, so had it imported from Annan instead; he had glasshouses built to keep alligators, so that he could eat alligator meat when he visited Rum for six weeks of the year. Had tracks built so he could race his Bentley over the island. On top of the everyday huntin' fishin' shootin'. You get the picture. The island and, hence, the castle are owned by Scottish Natural Heritage. SNH hate it, vehemently: it's a money pit, costing millions to maintain, and it's Grade A listed so they have to - but it has no merit whatsoever other than its social significance, which really isn't what SNH do.
a monument to… colossal wealth and ego and acquisitive greed… It is a building without a redeeming feature.. a loathsome edifice. It perpetuates only the memory of the worst kind of island lairds… a hideous affront, but nothing that a good fire and subsequent demolition couldn’t rectify
That said, photographically it's an absolute bloomin' paradise...
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7420/27137496354_57d7cd26b7_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3Ldb)
Main hall gallery, Kinloch Castle (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3Ldb)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7412/27649153322_7c9f348efc_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8g913)
Dining room (https://flic.kr/p/J8g913)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7342/27675194661_6a59fc9259_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JayBbD)
Stags foot candlestick holders (https://flic.kr/p/JayBbD) Delightful, no?
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7397/27649247142_c7ef47e6ce_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8gBTC)
Billiards room (https://flic.kr/p/J8gBTC)
In places, you can't move for dead animals stuffed and mounted,
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7210/27675374561_1ea1bb17c4_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JazwEn)
Divers stuffed animals, Kinloch Castle (https://flic.kr/p/JazwEn)
The Orchestrion, a whole-orchestra equivalent of a player piano, is reputedly one of only two working ones in the world, and was built for Queen Victoria. It lives in a "cupboard under the stairs" the size of my house,
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7378/27675217691_cf78458ec6_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JayJ2H)
The orchestrion I (https://flic.kr/p/JayJ2H)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7571/27137320754_6643f870f9_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm2S1A)
The orchestrion II (https://flic.kr/p/Hm2S1A)
I could happily have spent all day in there. As it was, our 45 minute tour ran, happily, to more like 90. More than one of my co-tourists had indeed spent days there in the past. A Swiss woman had stayed there, when the castle itself used to be the hostel. Honestly, it really did. She said they used to eat at that dining table, wander freely around the place - one reason an inventory is now needed... And another bloke said his last visit had been 40-odd years earlier - as a ghillie, in rather different times. A really interesting bunch.
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Wow! Stunning thank you Bill.
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I think this is one of the most interesting threads I have ever seen on this forum. Thank you so much for creating it.
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Castle visited, lunch eaten, and it was time. Time for, believe it or not, a bike ride! There are no roads whatsoever on Rum, not an inch of tarmac, but there's a total of about 11 miles of good 4x4 tracks that head up from Kinloch into the mountains and back down to the shores on the opposite sides of the island. These are kept maintained by SNH, for use by red deer researchers and stalkers alike. They were originally Sir George's Bentley tracks, and it is gratifying to report that they are now a cyclist's paradise: very easily rideable, well-graded, traffic-free apart from maybe a land rover, and magnificent scenery in the heart of the mountains.
Having said that, the first mile out of Kinloch alongside the burn is a tad rocky and sandy in places, but don't let that put you off. Once you leave the river behind and go through a gate, the going gets much easier and the surface better.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7343/27649231592_6eba1d0b2f_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/J8gxgw)
Looking back to Kinloch (https://flic.kr/p/J8gxgw)
Another mile or so further on, with around 100m of height gained, the track forks. The left fork carries on climbing, for a good couple of miles, through the middle of the mountains to 250m, then descends to Harris bay on the west coast. I was saving that one for tomorrow, it being the longer of the two. I took the right fork, for the 3-mile brake-free freewheel down Kilmory Glen, with views across to Skye
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7441/27137408814_a7c7c9ed25_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3jbS)
Kilmory Glen, Skye beyond (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3jbS)
There's a red deer research unit down at Kilmory, and as I was wandering down to the beach I found a deer hide. Like the otters yesterday, the deer were indeed hiding apart from the odd one in the distance, standing on a crag and looking all deery; so I carried on down to the wide sandy beach, with some interesting sandstone formations around
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7432/27675248911_4627a2ac81_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JayTiZ)
Folded sandstone, Kilmory (https://flic.kr/p/JayTiZ)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7282/27675256901_21d2407bdf_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JayVFK)
Folded and faulted, Kilmory (https://flic.kr/p/JayVFK)
Climbing up behind that last one, I set off to walk back over the cliffs backing the beach, heading back to where I'd left Walter, only to find this little sweetie,
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7522/27471675960_e7f5fe8805_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HRzwaw)
Red deer, Kilmory I (https://flic.kr/p/HRzwaw)
I don't think she was expecting visitors - she seemed a bit grumpy about being disturbed
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7104/27137384744_6e2b88c33d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3c2S)
Red deer, Kilmory III (https://flic.kr/p/Hm3c2S)
so I took a couple more pics and left her to it.
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7579/27715683756_ab63dc090b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Je98bu)
Red deer, Kilmory IV (https://flic.kr/p/Je98bu)
I found Walter, just where I'd abandoned him by the track, and headed back up the glen. Comfortably in the middle ring, Walter could lap ths sort of stuff up all day long. Glorious riding. The descent into Kinloch was a bit more technical, but just as enjoyable, and I was back just in time for tea and shortbread at 4.30. It had been a bit cloudy for most of the day, but the sun was out now and there was that gentle but vital breeze. Just perfection, sitting there by the shore outside the tent.
I made the most of the breeze, and had an early tea in case it died down (it didn't, I needn't have worried. That's the thing about perfection). While I ate, I wondered why I hadn't seen any other bikes. Ok, Walter's a sturdy chap who likes a bit of rough, but anyone on a half-sensible tourer would have a whale of a time on these short and hugely rewarding tracks.
Retired to my tent at 8.30 with Sarah Hall, before the midgies arrived. Slept very well, best night yet. There was no way, after last night, I would have been without the empty milk bottle; I even felt a bit smug when I used it, that the wee bastards wouldn't be getting their teeth into me tonight.
Mileage: 10, 5 each way to Kilmory. The surface was so good that I can't really invoke the offroad rule.
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Wonderful! What a beautiful deer. I'm really enjoying your journal, thank you.
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Sun 5
Up by 8, once there was enough breeze. It was a bit cloudy while I had breakfast, and almost verging on cool, but the forecast was good: clearing, and warming up to 20C. And, by the time I'd got myself ready, cloudy had improved to hazy, it was no longer anywhere near cool, and the loch looked like this:
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7376/27749700165_de16f6604b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Jh9t5i)
Loch Scresort, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/Jh9t5i)
I set off at 9.30 for Harris, with 2 water bottles and a full Camelbak: at 13 km - each way - it was going to be a long day...
Off then, up the same beautifully-graded climb as yesterday, as far as the fork. I rode alongside a walker, Nick, for a while on the steep section, where I wouldn't have gone much faster anyway, and we nattered away. I tried to convince him of the ease, comfort and joy of riding, and he me of striding freely over the trackless hills. We called it a draw, and I rode off ahead of him gracefully, effortlessly and speedily when the track levelled off a bit and made, irrefutably, my point. At least, that's the way I saw it.
The climb steepened after the Kilmory fork, and the granny ring came into play a few times, but the high point at 250 m was still reached very comfortably (are you listening, Nick?) in less than an hour, even with lots of photo stops. From there, it's a magical 5 km descent all the way back to sea level, on a broad well-surfaced looping track. First, the gentle shelf of Hugh's Brae,
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7608/27693726301_fbbc72e786_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JcczZF)
The long and winding road (https://flic.kr/p/JcczZF)
then, once round that shoulder, the track falls away steeply into Glen Duian and takes a huge great loop to the right as it contours away up round the glen; finally, it plummets down into the glorious wide sweep of Harris bay. Sheer joy.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7388/27502275352_654849974b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HUhmif)
Harris, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/HUhmif)
So, what's at Harris then? Well, you can't really miss the Doric temple, can you?
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7338/27693766631_3b75cea624_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JccMZ2)
The preposterous Bullough mausoleum I (https://flic.kr/p/JccMZ2)
Sir George's tribute to his father, who made him a vastly rich man, was to bury him in the preposterous Bullough mausoleum he had built here. Later on, his tribute to himself was to join Pater here in his own tomb. Ho hum.
Harder to find, because Sir George had it blown up and buried, is the original mausoleum tribute, but a fragment of it is still visible,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7378/27489818060_5798837f48_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HTbvbm)
The previous preposterous Bullough mausoleum (https://flic.kr/p/HTbvbm)
George had this one demolished after hearing one of his guests say it looked like a gents lavatory. Personally, I can see their point.
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What else is at Harris? There's a shooting lodge - the white building. Locked, unfortunately. Peering in through the window, it's not exactly glamorous anyway, especially not once you've been in the castle,
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7328/27768063385_035d14cb06_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JiLzPx)
Harris shooting lodge, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/JiLzPx)
There are Rum ponies, a native breed of highland pony, used by stalkers to carry deer off the hills,
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7089/27157053463_580270bdce_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HnLZRH)
Rum pony I (https://flic.kr/p/HnLZRH)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7644/27157049893_97dd50ba36_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HnLYNa)
Rum pony II (https://flic.kr/p/HnLYNa)
and a bit scary if you're as unhorsey as I am.
And there's an amazing raised beach across the bay from the mausoleum/lodge/ponies,
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7301/26992662453_560a634c14_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/H8fs8X)
Raised beach, Harris, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/H8fs8X)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7289/27210928133_c1ce70a8bf_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Hsx7Vk)
Raised beach, Harris, Rum II (https://flic.kr/p/Hsx7Vk)
a good 30 m above and 100m behind the present beach.
There's tons of other stuff there as well, but I was hot and tired and hungry by this point, so I returned to the mausoleum (where I'd parked Walter) and had cheese and oatcakes in the shade of Sir George (he does have some use then).
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7100/27733871696_16e7061bb6_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JfKkPE)
The preposterous Bullough mausoleum II (https://flic.kr/p/JfKkPE)
The shade was particularly welcome (not that the oatcakes weren't, obvs), since the thermometer on the outside north-facing wall of the shooting lodge read 23C at this stage. While I was sat there, two people arrived on mountain bikes. Cyclists! The only other ones I'd seen, to date (or subsequently, as it turned out). These two were the former ghillie from the castle visit, staying at the hostel, and his mate, on rented MTBs, visiting Harris for old times sake. Unprompted by me, they swore at the ridiculous scar on the land that is the mausoleum. What can you say? they asked me, despairingly, and they seemed to find Preposterous acceptable as something you can say.
Late lunch over, I left them sitting on the clifftops having theirs, woke Walter up, and faced up to the 5 km 250 m climb back out. As an average gradient that's nowt to write home about - but the first 200m are probably contained in a single 1 km or so, shortly after entering the windless depths of Glen Duian. Having said that, a solid 30 mins of effort saw me to the top, even with good use made of Walter's 24x32 bottom gear. That was the hardest effor I've put in on a bike for over 2 years now, and it didn't half feel good. Oh, I enjoyed that! I was being a tad cautious, and even stopped to measure my heart rate at one point when I realised that, with my cardiac history, the arse-end of nowhere on the remote side of a remote island off a remote bit of the mainland of northern Scotland probably isn't the best place for your first max heart rate test after a two year layoff...
From the top, a further good solid 30 minutes of idleness, virtually no effort at all, saw me back down at Kinloch and back to the tent again. Water (I'd drank all I took), tea, bics; luxury hostel power-shower; more tea and bics. Diary-writing in a reassuring, comfortable breeze off the sea under a cloudless sky. My cuckoo calling, non-stop. Bliss.
I nipped to the shop when it opened at 5, for tomorrow's milk, a 5-minute ride round the bay in flipflops. Back for tea - rice pudding and fruit cocktail, 'cos I was on holiday and that's what I felt like having. Wandered over to the hostel and chatted to the Swiss woman, reviewing our respective days - she hadn't walked the entire Rum Cuillin ridge, but certainly a big chunk of it. I managed to introduce Preposterous to her english vocabulary. Then sat reading until either the wind or the sun went down, whichever was the first, to a pleasant gentle musical accompaniment from a fellow-camper
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7646/27768070315_b41ac2bc4b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JiLBT2)
Kinloch campsite, Rum (https://flic.kr/p/JiLBT2)
Mileage: 16, all offroad. Woo-hoo! How about that, eh?
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Mon 6
Last day :-( Had another good sleep, and woke to the warm sun on the tent at 7 but resisted until 7.30 when the midgies had mostly gone away. There were quite a few boats on the loch this morning, the result (presumably) of a fine weekend.
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7442/27721484442_9bdea1b914_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JeDRwj)
Loch Scresort, sunny morning (https://flic.kr/p/JeDRwj)
Breakfast, sitting there in the sun by the shore, was disturbed by a surprisingly loud bark - well, more of a watery snort really - and there, watching me, was a seal just a few yards away. It turned out to be just as camera-shy as t'other day's dolphin, unfortunately,
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7243/27788301446_bb597edc4b_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JkyiTC)
Seal! I (https://flic.kr/p/JkyiTC)
and the bloomin' thing retired to what it judged to be a safe distance after that rude interruption,
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7560/27746889591_394fa376f1_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JgU4A8)
Seal! II (https://flic.kr/p/JgU4A8)
leaving me to return to my now-soggy muesli. By the time I'd finished, it was even hotter than yesterday, so I took my time packing away and taking the tent down, then frittered the morning away drinking tea (having not packed the stove away - I'm no amateur, you know!), eating bics, nattering with the hostel-dwellers and taking photos. Finally, I loaded Walter and rode the 10 minutes down to the pier, where I had lunch at noon prompt. And a cup of tea.
Today's ferry route was Mallaig - Eigg - Rum - Canna - Rum - Eigg - Mallaig, so I could have caught it on the second visit at 3pm - but who's gonna turn down a (free!) 2 hour cruise around the N coast of Rum to Canna and back in absolutely perfect conditions? Not me. Nor many others - the boat was packed! Conditions really were perfect, the views of Rum were hazy but magnificent. I took the opportunity to take some pics of some of the folk I'd met. This is the ghillie and his mate,
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7668/27788312656_e63866118f_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JkyndU)
Fellow Rum visitors (https://flic.kr/p/JkyndU)
(I'll leave you to guess which is which)
and the Swiss marathon walker,
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7343/27788317356_98a0b059fe_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JkyoBW)
Fellow Rum visitor (https://flic.kr/p/JkyoBW)
I really wish I'd taken one of Nick, on a week off from his family in urban Reading, playing to the full the part of Wild Man of the Mountains: unshaven, unwashed and unchanged for a week ("But I sprayed a ton of deodorant on every morning"), and just bouncing with delight at the wonder of it all.
Canna, when we got there, looked... well, manicured, especially after Eigg and then Rum in particular. Beautiful still, but less wild, so I had no regrets about not staying there this time round (though I was still thinking about getting off and staying for a couple of days, all the way until we actually docked at the pier). I think I'd want to stay there before going on to Eigg or Rum, it wouldn't work (for me) t'other way round.
So back to Rum again, by the scenic route
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7405/27746915911_13f99ddcc0_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/JgUcpV)
Rum from the Eigg ferry (https://flic.kr/p/JgUcpV)
Calling at the pier in Loch Scresort again was quite amusing, somehow; calling at Eigg again and seeing the cafe-bar and the shop was a bit weird. I'd been out on deck the whole time, watching the scenery go by, but it seemed only right to go inside for the final leg back to Mallaig rather than watch Eigg recede into the distance.
And so into MLG and the usual Scotrail fiasco trying to get Walter booked onto the train for the following day. I bagged a single room at the Steam Inn for not very much, had beer and pizza, and slept in a bed in a room with walls and a roof.
Mileage: 0.5 :-)
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Tue 7
Home. The end.
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Gorgeous.
The photos, the writing. Everything.
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I have spent a wonderful lunchtime looking at these photos and reading the account. Thank you for sharing.
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More thanks from me, too. Wonderful pics, great write up.
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Really boring technical type of questions:
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7322/27528760691_173c54e5a9_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/HWC6t2)
Heading north (https://flic.kr/p/HWC6t2)
What's the bike: Salsa Vaya?
Are those chainstays really as long as the top tube?
Are your front panniers actually rears which you've used up front? They look ginaggerous!
Thanks for the answers – or the silence!
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Thanks all for the kind comments. And the other ones an'all ::-)
What's the bike: Salsa Vaya?
Are those chainstays really as long as the top tube?
Are your front panniers actually rears which you've used up front? They look ginaggerous!
Cudzo, yep it's a Salsa Vaya. It has made previous appearances, in Fully loaded - Touring Bikes (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=61057.msg1265088#msg1265088) for instance:
Bike is a Salsa Vaya, new this year. Basic Shimano kit mostly, apart from a gorgeous Middleburn jewellery-like chainset, 46-36-24. The 24 ring saw plenty of use, in conjunction with the 32 sprocket. Tubus racks, Altura panniers. Downtube shifters, which it took me all of 10 minutes to get used to again after 15 or so years of Ergo levers. 26" wheels, with BB7 cable discs and 1.5" Marathons. His name's New Walter.
...
Salsa Woodchipper bars - shallow drop, highly flared, extremely comfy. Cane Creek brake levers, cos they're the same shape as Campag ergos, and as a bonus you can get 'em with retrotastic gum-coloured hoods.
Comfortable, stable, lovely. And orange.
The chainstays are long, but that's a bit of a hoptical delusion there. The 26" wheels probably exaggerate the effect.
And the front panniers really are front panniers, honest. The one you can see is particularly bulky cos it's the bedding bag: two sleeping bags, Synmat, inflatable pillow, towel,... If anything, it's the rears that are a bit too small, they're only 23l. Hence the tent, tripod and Helinox chair on top of the rear rack - I don't normally do that, but this trip was specifically aimed at comfort and photography and not much place-to-place riding so I put up with it for once.
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Tue 7
Home. The end.
Not 'the end' the end I hope billplumtree. Reading through your trip has been really wonderful and your photographs are excellent. I think my favourite is... well, actually that is too difficult. I was going to say the postbox with a collection time... but actually Rum from Laig bay is stunning. Do the Scottish Tourist Board know what you're doing for them.
Thank you for writing this and sharing it - stunning.
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Thanks Graeme, that's very kind. As for the tourist board - well, after the show Scotland put on for that fortnight, I think I owe them.
Besides, they've got more than enough on their hands keeping up with the Cuckoo Assignment Scheme.
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I have an idea for next May...
Inspiring stuff! And wonderful photography! Thank you!
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Fri 27 June
Either you've mixed up May and June, or (less likely) you've mixed up 2015 and 2016 :)
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Ta ;D Well, it definitely wasn't 27 June this year:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ru4hSBSYSHw/V2-M1M4hAKI/AAAAAAAAJXA/vw5SoDFpH1QAn_1K4rG90gQXcpxCmFNlwCCo/s912/MLG27Jun.jpg)
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I was wondering less about the bike and more about the photographic equipment? Also, did you have a tripod, some shots look like they'd have needed one...
Its such a good read, I've just read it again. :thumbsup:
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Absolutely fantastic. Love the pics, love the writing.
And the place! Wow! I've never been to Scotland (well, apart from airport-taxi-dockyard day trips to Rosyth) but from your pics it looks more like a CGI creation from a video game ("Homeland of the Gods - No Rain", or something) than a real place. I *hate* travel but your trip report has almost got me clicking away on the National Rail website.
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Just wonderful, thank you so much for posting. :)
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Thanks all - though I do still feel a bit guilty about the minimal cycling content :-\
I was wondering less about the bike and more about the photographic equipment? Also, did you have a tripod, some shots look like they'd have needed one...
Camera kit: a pair of Fujis, an X-Pro1 and an X-E2. Lenses: 18mm & 35mm, mostly on the former, and 55-200 mostly on the latter. These were a source of great pleasure, I really enjoyed using them; often in slow-yourself-down fully manual mode.
Tripod: yep, used it a lot. Bit of a departure for me, I'm usually too lazy, but I made myself use it and definitely benefited from it - partly, again, from the slow down and think more aspect. It was essential for the shots inside the old crofts (they were pretty dark), and more than useful at either end of the day.
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Yet more delectable fruits from the plumtree.
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The end? Noooooooo!
Lovely lovely lovely. And those ponies are just beautiful. Thanks for the entertainment!
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Aww, thanks both!
And those ponies are just beautiful.
Peli, you appear to have mis-spelled absolutely terrifying
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8657/28299162304_910734d915_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/K7GB2s)
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He's just having a gentle yawn!
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Really lovely read while 'off games' with a cold! Beautiful photography and a true adventure; thankyou
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Just found this thread, not sure why it took me so long.
As a friend of the islands (living in Embra) that was tremendous.
I chose the 1st weekend in June to do a 400km DIY audax between hoe and Stonehaven and it was indeed very warm. I recall stepping out of the McDonalds at Forfar and it being warmer outside,
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Having read this many times now, we've planned time to take the tandem and travel the small isles. Earlier as in April so we'll probably get wet but you never know.
D.