Looking north towards Eilean Traighe
Looking south from Eilean Traighe
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| This is one boat, which won't be going anywhere any time soon! |
Looking east from Eilean Traighe
Monday, 29 December 2014
Island 271 - Eilean Traighe, Argyll and Bute
Eilean Traighe is a very small tidal island located on the south side of Loch Etive, which is a sea loch, about halfway between Connel and Taynuilt. It is about 50 metres long and 30 metres wide and is only cut off for a short while at high tide. The area between the mainland and the island is almost all covered in grass but there was seaweed strewn across all of it, so it must get cut off at some high tides. The island itself is covered in grass and is obviously sometimes grazed by cattle, judging by all the cow pats around but that is about all there is to say about it! There is a handy layby on the busy A85 road and a stile over a fence to enable easy access to it.
Island 270 - Eriska, Argyll
Eriska is located 12 miles north of the town of Oban and 3 miles north of the village of Benderloch on the west coast of Argyll and Bute and at the end of a no through road. It is linked to the mainland by a bridge.
Eriska is home to a 5 star luxury hotel. I wasn't sure about how Scottish access rights apply to private bridges, so I emailed the hotel a few weeks before my holiday asking for permission to visit the island. However they never bothered to reply. I made the assumption that if they wanted to refuse me permission, they would have replied. I parked my car at the end of the public road, ate a few blackberries off the bushes nearby, put on my smartest coat. so that I might possibly look like a paying guest and walked purposefully down the drive. A few cars drove passed me but no one stopped and asked what I was doing.
The bridge is covered in planks of wood, which were quite loose and made a loud noise as cars drove over them - not a very grand way to access a posh hotel!. It was also impossible for me to walk across it without making a noise. I didn't venture far onto the island and didn't see the hotel, which is in the middle. I spotted a lady walking towards me and decided it was time to go in case there were any awkward questions.
Should you happen to have a seaplane or helicopter at your disposal, you can land both at or near the hotel! The prices for rooms and meals are way out of my price range. Dinner is £50 but afternoon tea is a more affordable £15. Self-catering accommodation is also available and there is a spa and a 6 hole golf course, both of which are open to non-residents.
The public road ends here
The notices say Private Property and Access for Residents Only. As the entrance to a luxury hotel, I thought the entrance wasn't very grand or welcoming and perhaps a tub of flowers on either side would have been an improvement or maybe a coat of white paint on the walls?
Eriska is home to a 5 star luxury hotel. I wasn't sure about how Scottish access rights apply to private bridges, so I emailed the hotel a few weeks before my holiday asking for permission to visit the island. However they never bothered to reply. I made the assumption that if they wanted to refuse me permission, they would have replied. I parked my car at the end of the public road, ate a few blackberries off the bushes nearby, put on my smartest coat. so that I might possibly look like a paying guest and walked purposefully down the drive. A few cars drove passed me but no one stopped and asked what I was doing.
The bridge is covered in planks of wood, which were quite loose and made a loud noise as cars drove over them - not a very grand way to access a posh hotel!. It was also impossible for me to walk across it without making a noise. I didn't venture far onto the island and didn't see the hotel, which is in the middle. I spotted a lady walking towards me and decided it was time to go in case there were any awkward questions.
Should you happen to have a seaplane or helicopter at your disposal, you can land both at or near the hotel! The prices for rooms and meals are way out of my price range. Dinner is £50 but afternoon tea is a more affordable £15. Self-catering accommodation is also available and there is a spa and a 6 hole golf course, both of which are open to non-residents.
Looking east from the Eriska side of the bridge
Drive to the hotel
Looking towards the mainland from Eriska
Looking west from the Eriska side of the bridge
Looking towards Eriska across the bridge
Wednesday, 17 December 2014
Island 269 - Eileanan nan Gad, Kentra Bay, Highland
Eileanan nan Gad is a tidal island located in Kentra Bay, which is located at the north east end of the Ardnamurchan Peninsula. The island is shaped like a backwards letter C and the highest point on the island is 10 metres above sea level. The island is approximately 400 metres from north to south and 300 metres from east to west at the widest point.
There is a small and somewhat potholed car park at the end of the road at Arivegaig. The car park was full on the day I visited but there was no sign of any people. From the car park a track heads west along the shore and it is about half a mile walk to the point on the mainland opposite Eileanan nan Gad. The Ordnance Survey map shows that the 250 metres between the mainland and the island is mud and sand, which didn't sound very promising. However Peter Caton had reported no problems with soft mud in his book No Boat Required: Exploring Tidal Islands and in reality there is about 220 metres of flat and very firm salt marsh grass and only a 20 metre gap between this and the island and the mud was firm. However the mud to the east of the island by the channel made by the river Allt Beithe looked much softer.
Eileanan nan Gad is covered in rough grass, heather, juniper, moss and bracken and when I visited in late September 2014 most of the island was quite boggy, except for the low ridge, which forms the highest part of the island. I found the remains of a manmade stone wall.
Eileanan nan Gad is obviously visited by other people, as I found this dinghy on the eastern side of the island by the channel of the Allt Beithe.
There are lots of warning notices at the beginning of the track leading from the car park. They warn about unexploded munitions, shooting during the deer stalking season and theft from cars but reassuringly not soft mud or quicksand.
There is a small and somewhat potholed car park at the end of the road at Arivegaig. The car park was full on the day I visited but there was no sign of any people. From the car park a track heads west along the shore and it is about half a mile walk to the point on the mainland opposite Eileanan nan Gad. The Ordnance Survey map shows that the 250 metres between the mainland and the island is mud and sand, which didn't sound very promising. However Peter Caton had reported no problems with soft mud in his book No Boat Required: Exploring Tidal Islands and in reality there is about 220 metres of flat and very firm salt marsh grass and only a 20 metre gap between this and the island and the mud was firm. However the mud to the east of the island by the channel made by the river Allt Beithe looked much softer.
Eileanan nan Gad is covered in rough grass, heather, juniper, moss and bracken and when I visited in late September 2014 most of the island was quite boggy, except for the low ridge, which forms the highest part of the island. I found the remains of a manmade stone wall.
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| Looking east from Eileanan nan Gad |
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| Looking north up Kentra Bay from Eileanan nan Gad |
Eileanan nan Gad looking south towards Acharacle
Looking north up Kentra Bay across the salt marsh to Eileanan nan Gad
Friday, 5 December 2014
Island 268 - Eilean Mor, Glenborrodale, Ardnamurchan, Highland
Eilean Mor is a tidal island located at Glenmore a couple of miles west of Glenborrodale on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula. The hardest thing about getting there is the long and very winding single track road from Salen. When I visited the road was quite busy and the locals seem to drive along it quite fast, so you have to concentrate very hard.
Eilean Mor isn't cut off for long at each high tide and it is very easy to pick your way through the bog to get to it. The name means Big Island and it is reasonably large - 1 kilometre long by about 500 metres wide at the widest point and 40 metres high at the highest point in the south of the island. It is obviously grazed by cattle, as there were lots of cow pats but I saw no cows. The northern part of the island is covered in rough grass, heather, scabious and bracken. There is an area of woodland in the south east corner of the island.
The Nadurra Visitor Centre (formerly known as the Ardnamurchan Natural History Centre) is located half a mile to the north of Eilean Mor. As well as an exhibition about the natural history of the area, they have a gift shop and an excellent tearoom. I was very pleased that their cream tea is served with clotted cream. Living as I do in the south west of England a cream tea is only a genuine cream tea if it is served with clotted cream but quite often outside the SW it is served with squirty cream.
Eilean Mor isn't cut off for long at each high tide and it is very easy to pick your way through the bog to get to it. The name means Big Island and it is reasonably large - 1 kilometre long by about 500 metres wide at the widest point and 40 metres high at the highest point in the south of the island. It is obviously grazed by cattle, as there were lots of cow pats but I saw no cows. The northern part of the island is covered in rough grass, heather, scabious and bracken. There is an area of woodland in the south east corner of the island.
The Nadurra Visitor Centre (formerly known as the Ardnamurchan Natural History Centre) is located half a mile to the north of Eilean Mor. As well as an exhibition about the natural history of the area, they have a gift shop and an excellent tearoom. I was very pleased that their cream tea is served with clotted cream. Living as I do in the south west of England a cream tea is only a genuine cream tea if it is served with clotted cream but quite often outside the SW it is served with squirty cream.
Looking north towards Glenmore and the Nadurra Visitor Centre from Eilean Mor
Looking west from Eilean Mor along the Arnamurchan Peninsula
Looking south towards the island of Oronsay
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| Looking east towards Glenborrodale. Eilean Mor is on the right hand of the photo. |
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| Looking south towards Eilean Mor from the mainland at Glenmore |
Thursday, 20 November 2014
Island 267 - Rubha Da Chuain, Highland
This is another island that I cannot pronounce! Rubha Da Chuain is a low lying rocky tidal island in 3 parts located 50 metres of the beach at Camusdarach, which is 1.5 miles to the south west of Morar in Highland Region. Some scenes in the film Local Hero, which is one of my favourite films, were filmed here.
It was a low spring tide when I visited and all 3 parts of the island were accessible. The inner most part is covered in heather, scabious and a few small rowan and birch trees. The middle section is covered in grass interspersed with pools of dark brown water.
It was a low spring tide when I visited and all 3 parts of the island were accessible. The inner most part is covered in heather, scabious and a few small rowan and birch trees. The middle section is covered in grass interspersed with pools of dark brown water.
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| Rubha Da Chuain |
The beach at Camusdarach from Rubha Da Chuain
Rubha Da Chuain looking west
Looking north west towards Rubha Da Chuain
Looking south from Rubha Da Chuain
Wednesday, 19 November 2014
Island 266 - Eilean Toigal, Morar, Highland
Eilean Toigal is a small round tidal island in Morar Bay a couple of miles south of Mallaig. I was informed by the owner of the B&B in Arisaig where I stayed that it is pronounced to rhyme with Dougal. It can be accessed off the A830 Morar Bypass. There is a large layby on the northbound carriageway and just to the north of it there is a sign saying To the Beach, which goes down some well made stone steps. I made the assumption that if the beach was advertised as a place to visit then the sands probably weren't going to be quicksand. From the bottom of the steps it is about 500 metres to Eilean Toigal.
I visited on a very wet murky day, so the famous Silver Sands of Morar weren't looking their best. However I really liked the island. It is obviously visited by people from time to time, as there was a faint path leading up from the south east corner of the island. The island is mainly covered in heather and bracken with some birch and pine trees, 1 small oak tree and a few rhododendron bushes. The whole island is covered in a thick carpet of moss and is very boggy.
I visited on a very wet murky day, so the famous Silver Sands of Morar weren't looking their best. However I really liked the island. It is obviously visited by people from time to time, as there was a faint path leading up from the south east corner of the island. The island is mainly covered in heather and bracken with some birch and pine trees, 1 small oak tree and a few rhododendron bushes. The whole island is covered in a thick carpet of moss and is very boggy.
Sign by the layby near the steps to the beach. I don't know how common rhinoceroses are in these parts!
The centre of Eilean Toigal
Eilean Toigal from the eastern side of Morar Bay
Looking south towards Eilean Toigal
Looking north west towards the mouth of Morar Bay
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Eilean Toigal
Looking north from Toigal towards Eilean Toigal at high tide on a sunny day in June 2016
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Island 265 - Sgeirean na Corra-gribhich, Arisaig, Highland
I have no idea how Sgeirean na Corra-gribhich is pronounced! It is a small tidal island on the north side of the bay at Portnaluchaig two miles to the north of Arisaig and is linked to the mainland by a tombolo of light grey muddy sand. It can be accessed easily without the need to scramble over any rocks or slippery seaweed.
The island is in 3 parts, which are connected to each other at low tide. The eastern most part is sandy and covered in marram grass and other grasses, thistles, harebells, thrift and scabious. The middle section, which is the largest, is covered in bracken, heather, juniper, gorse, short birch trees. I spotted one rhododendron and one very small oak tree. The western half is little more than a rock covered in a small amount of grass.
Looking north
The island is in 3 parts, which are connected to each other at low tide. The eastern most part is sandy and covered in marram grass and other grasses, thistles, harebells, thrift and scabious. The middle section, which is the largest, is covered in bracken, heather, juniper, gorse, short birch trees. I spotted one rhododendron and one very small oak tree. The western half is little more than a rock covered in a small amount of grass.
Looking west from the end of Sgeirean na Corra-gribhich with Eigg and Rum in the distance
Looking east
Looking north
Looking north up the bay towards Sgeirean na Corra-gribhich
Tuesday, 18 November 2014
Island 264 - Lon Liath, Arisaig, Highland
Lon Liath is a very small tidal island in a beautiful sandy bay at Portnaluchaig 2 miles to the north of Arisaig. There are other bigger islands in the area that are not named for some reason. Lon Liath is no more than about 50 metres in circumference. It is covered in grass and is only about 100 metres from the mainland. There are lots of pools filled with dark brown water. There are also a few flowers - thrift and dandelions. It is accessible for at least 2 hours either side of low tide.
Golf Course at Portnaluchaig from Lon Liath
Portnaluchaig Caravan Park from Lon Liath
Lon Liath from Portnaluchaig
Island 263 - Eilean Ighe, Arisaig, Highland
Eilean Ighe is a strangely shaped island with many arms and legs. It lies about 200 metres to the west of a house called Gortenachullish at Back of Keppoch a mile to the north of Arisaig. It can be accessed on foot at low tide.
Peter Caton visited Eilean Ighe in his book No Boat Required: Exploring Tidal Islands. He walked to it from Arisaig but did not report any problems accessing the island. I arrived at the end of the public road in my car. There is a very large turning area, so I parked tidily. However I could see no path or track heading west towards Eilean Ighe. There were gates into 2 fields either side of a house, so I chose one at random but just as I was opening it a cross man came out of the house and told me I couldn't go through his field. I explained that I wanted to visit Eilean Ighe and he said I would have to go round by the beach. He said he didn't know what state the tide was in but when I said low tide had been 50 minutes earlier he said it should still be accessible and walked back up his garden path, obviously not in a mood for a chat, which was a shame, as I wanted to ask him how to pronounce Ighe - is it eye, eee or ay or something else. I still don't know, as I didn't want to call him back to ask!
I walked down to the beach where a group of young cows were standing and staring. I scrambled round the headland but did wonder how I was going to get back again, as the tide was coming in and it was already lapping at the bottom of the rocks. I walked across another beach where some older cows were grazing and over another small headland. I was then faced with 200 metres of what looked to me like sandy mud, although it is marked on the OS map as sand. Peter Caton hadn't reported that it was soft mud, so I tested it with my walking pole and it seemed firmer than it looked. It was covered in thousands of worm casts but was firm enough.
The island is unremarkable. Cows obviously cross to it occasionally, as there were dried up cow pats. However there were none there when I visited. The eastern side of the island, which I visited is covered in heather and rough grass. The western side is partly covered in trees.
I didn't stay longer than the 10 minutes required, as I was aware the tide was coming in. Thanks to the farmer's cows I found an easier way back. By the time I got back to the beach the young cows had joined the older ones and I was pretty certain they hadn't paddled to get there. After a minute or two I spotted their route and was soon back at the beach by my car.
Peter Caton visited Eilean Ighe in his book No Boat Required: Exploring Tidal Islands. He walked to it from Arisaig but did not report any problems accessing the island. I arrived at the end of the public road in my car. There is a very large turning area, so I parked tidily. However I could see no path or track heading west towards Eilean Ighe. There were gates into 2 fields either side of a house, so I chose one at random but just as I was opening it a cross man came out of the house and told me I couldn't go through his field. I explained that I wanted to visit Eilean Ighe and he said I would have to go round by the beach. He said he didn't know what state the tide was in but when I said low tide had been 50 minutes earlier he said it should still be accessible and walked back up his garden path, obviously not in a mood for a chat, which was a shame, as I wanted to ask him how to pronounce Ighe - is it eye, eee or ay or something else. I still don't know, as I didn't want to call him back to ask!
I walked down to the beach where a group of young cows were standing and staring. I scrambled round the headland but did wonder how I was going to get back again, as the tide was coming in and it was already lapping at the bottom of the rocks. I walked across another beach where some older cows were grazing and over another small headland. I was then faced with 200 metres of what looked to me like sandy mud, although it is marked on the OS map as sand. Peter Caton hadn't reported that it was soft mud, so I tested it with my walking pole and it seemed firmer than it looked. It was covered in thousands of worm casts but was firm enough.
The island is unremarkable. Cows obviously cross to it occasionally, as there were dried up cow pats. However there were none there when I visited. The eastern side of the island, which I visited is covered in heather and rough grass. The western side is partly covered in trees.
I didn't stay longer than the 10 minutes required, as I was aware the tide was coming in. Thanks to the farmer's cows I found an easier way back. By the time I got back to the beach the young cows had joined the older ones and I was pretty certain they hadn't paddled to get there. After a minute or two I spotted their route and was soon back at the beach by my car.
Eilean Ighe looking west towards the wooded part of the island
Back of Keppoch from Eilean Ighe
Eilean Ighe from the mainland
Caolas Eilean Ighe
Samalaman Island, Glen Uig, Highland - so near but so far
Samalaman Island is a small tidal island 200 metres from the mainland a mile to the west of Glen Uig in the Sound of Arisaig. I had read in various sources that it was only accessible at low spring tides, so I arranged my entire holiday so that I could be there at a low spring tide. However I discovered that not all spring tides are the same. I visited the day before the spring tide when the height was 90 cm. However there was about a 25 metres stretch of water about 40 cm deep between me and the island. It would have been possible to wade it but I decided not to risk it, as the tide was about to turn. The following day the tide was 10 cm lower but I could see that wouldn't be enough. Having studied the tide times for the rest of the year I can see that some spring tides are as low as 40 or 50 cm, which would probably be enough for the causeway to clear completely.
Samalaman Island, whose name makes it sound as though it should be somewhere in the Indian Ocean, looks to be a delightful little island covered in grass, bushes and a few trees. I assume it is named after the nearby Samalaman House. I will be back one day to visit it.
Samalaman Island, whose name makes it sound as though it should be somewhere in the Indian Ocean, looks to be a delightful little island covered in grass, bushes and a few trees. I assume it is named after the nearby Samalaman House. I will be back one day to visit it.
Samalaman Island with Eigg in the distance
Samalaman Island
Monday, 3 November 2014
Island 262 - Shona Beag, Loch Moidart, Highland
Shona Beag and Shona are one island located on the north side of Loch Moidart and linked by a narrow isthmus. Shona Beag, which is the smaller part, is accessible at low tide from the mainland via a causeway. A track runs down to the causeway from the A861 about halfway between Kinlochmoidart and Glenuig.
It was difficult to spot where the track started. Initially I drove passed it, as there is just a closed gate with no name on it. After careful consultation of my Explorer map, I realised it was the start of the Shona Beag track. There was just about enough parking for one small car without blocking the driveway. It was then a delightful walk in the sunshine down the tree lined track to the ford marked on the map as Atha a' Chaolais.
I arrived about an hour before low tide and the causeway was clear. On each side of it was mud, so I presume that the causeway has been deliberately built up slightly and made firmer with gravel. There was no ford to cross. I met no one on the way down or on the island and there are no notices saying Private, Keep Out. However I still felt slightly uneasy about being there without permission, so only walked a short way up the track and didn't go as far as the small cluster of houses on the south side of the island at Invermoidart. The track on the island had been mended recently but the only cars I saw were parked on the mainland side of the causeway.
Shona Beag is covered in widely spaced mature oak and birch trees with heather in between.
A few days later when I was at Castle Tioram on the opposite side of Loch Moidart I watched a boat arrive and depart at Eilean Shona House on Shona. There is no road access to this house.
It was difficult to spot where the track started. Initially I drove passed it, as there is just a closed gate with no name on it. After careful consultation of my Explorer map, I realised it was the start of the Shona Beag track. There was just about enough parking for one small car without blocking the driveway. It was then a delightful walk in the sunshine down the tree lined track to the ford marked on the map as Atha a' Chaolais.
I arrived about an hour before low tide and the causeway was clear. On each side of it was mud, so I presume that the causeway has been deliberately built up slightly and made firmer with gravel. There was no ford to cross. I met no one on the way down or on the island and there are no notices saying Private, Keep Out. However I still felt slightly uneasy about being there without permission, so only walked a short way up the track and didn't go as far as the small cluster of houses on the south side of the island at Invermoidart. The track on the island had been mended recently but the only cars I saw were parked on the mainland side of the causeway.
Shona Beag is covered in widely spaced mature oak and birch trees with heather in between.
A few days later when I was at Castle Tioram on the opposite side of Loch Moidart I watched a boat arrive and depart at Eilean Shona House on Shona. There is no road access to this house.
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| Mainland from Shona Beag |
Mainland from Shona Beag
Mainland from Shona Beag showing the causeway
Shona Beag from the mainland.
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