Ardnamurchan (Sunday 13th July 2021)

That was the end of our slightly curtailed trip to Mull, with a few things missed off the list. There has been virtually no sitting out in warm sunshine, fewer views of mountains than hoped for and no boat trip to Staffa to see Fingal’s cave and puffins because of wind. The trips were still running but we didn’t fancy a few hours on a choppy sea.

To cap it all, my boots leak. They are the Keen brand and I only bought them last year. They have been looked after, treated with the correct waterproofer but now I’m getting wet feet whenever I get into squelchy ground. I wish I’d brought my big Meindl Borneo ones but they can often be an overkill. At least they don’t leak.

The plan was always to go to Ardnamurchan and from Mull it’s easy as the ferry leaves from there. Tobermory to Kilchoan only takes 45’ and on Sunday at 11:00 there were just three vehicles.

The view was just as limited as on the Oban ferry but at least we were first off

The Ardnamurchan peninsular is a long way west of anywhere and the lighthouse marks the western-most point of mainland Great Britain. It features on the inshore waters forecast on BBC R4 and I have always fancied a visit.

It is a wild and forbidding place and the dramatic skies and frequent squalls added to the atmosphere.

The only problem was that a few miles from the lighthouse we reached a ‘Road Closed’ sign that also informed us that the lighthouse wasn’t accessible on foot either. So that plan failed.

We tried the next road that also ended at the sea. This was open but at the tiny fishing quay it was clear that there would be no overnight parking.

The final attempt to get near to the end and stay overnight seemed to be much more promising. We drove almost to the end of the road, opened the farm gate and continued to an idyllic bay, overlooked by a modest farm and a beautiful new build.

Unfortunately no one was around. The house was open and the three chained-up dogs were going wild but no one was to be seen. After ten minutes we gave up and reluctantly retraced our route all the way to Kilchoan and then onwards towards the east on the only road.

I was quite sad not to be spending more time here but bad weather makes for unhappy travellers and we decided to make a swift run towards the warmth in the east.

The Coggan ferry awaited us!