It’s time for part 3 of my trip to Scotland! However, before I get started I’m going to have to start pitching to you I’m afraid. This weekend myself and a few other friends are walking the entirety of the South Downs Way. That’s all 100 Miles in 4-5 days. We are raising money for Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders and all donations are much appreciated. Our donation page can be found here. Help us raise our target!
As I’ve mentioned previously on the blog, my parents recently moved to the Isle of Mull. It’s been a fairly crazy couple of months, my mum got struck by lightening?!, it’s been the coldest/heaviest snow that Mull has had in years (they keep on being assured, it NEVER does this here). And they are still, of course, living out of boxes. Anyway, they’ve wanted me to head up and see the new place so I took the first opportunity I could. I’ve been sleeping really badly (combo of stress and some other issues) and a weekend away on Mull would be just the ticket to help sort me out (I hope it lasts).
I’ve not done a “weekend” up there since I moved south. From Leeds I could viably take off the one day and get a good chunk of time on the island before heading back. From London? Not so easy. I opted for the Megabus Gold on the way up (this meant I could travel overnight and be in Glasgow early). Well, that’s the last time I do that on my own. I had to basically share a bed with a complete stranger (alas it wasn’t an attractive lady, just a middle aged man). It did mean, however, that I was in Oban waiting for the ferry by about 12. If I’d left that morning from London it would have meant an entire day of travelling (See the Sunday trip home…).
It rained. What a surprise aye? But it was great to see the new place, and we headed off for a quick stomp (nothing too ambitious due to the weather) to the beaches at Knockvologan. Unfortunately, I hardly used my proper camera on this trip, having to rely almost entirely on my phone. It was the kind of wet outside where you’d be out for 5 minutes and be soaked through, I didn’t want to risk my camera in that. These beaches are superb as they are remote enough to be quiet but actually relatively easy to access. They have superb white sand which stretches a long way, good wildlife (we were being watched by a number of seals) and superb turquoise water (even in the rain).
I baked a couple of Lemon Drizzle loaves, but didn’t take any pictures (we just ate them, soz) and it reminded me I need to actually do that recipe at some point (in the mean time check out my miniature Lime Drizzle Loaves). The Sunday back reminded me exactly why I’d tried to break up the journey by going overnight. I left at 10am from My parents place and got back home at 10pm, shattered beyond belief.
I’m looking forward to more adventures at their new place, which was pretty nice to say they have just moved in, it needs work and they are still living out of boxes. It’s exciting to see what the future holds for them up there. I’ll be back up pretty soon for a slightly longer stay. And I’m trying to organise a camping/campervan trip around Scotland for later in the year. Any tips on other bits of Scotland to visit?
I’ve just returned from a few days on Mull for New Year, and I’m bedridden with a bug which I think I’ve caught from one of my friends (damn you, Conor. And sorry Tim for passing it on further). This means my productive day before returning to work on Monday hasn’t been given much of a chance. I can at least do something, so meal planning and writing up a blog post or two it is. Please excuse the photo quality of some of these as a number are very, very, old and taken with a bog standard digital camera or phone.
This weekend, my parents are moving. They leave behind the house in York which I have called home for the last 16 years. It’s the longest I’ve ever been able to call somewhere home (we moved around a lot in my youth, and since moving out I’ve not stayed in one house for all that long). I said my goodbyes to the house earlier in the week, when I stopped in on my way from Devon up to Scotland. My parents were starting their packing which I believe has been a tad stressful. My mother starts her new job on the isle of Mull on Monday, so she moves into their new home today, with my father following in the coming days. I wish them all the best with their move and have every faith in it being a success. Oh and if you’re reading this ma/pa; GET A DOG PLEASE, thanks.
The house in Appleton Roebuck saw me through my teenage years, which were mixed at best. I was bullied for much of secondary school and the house was a bit of a refuge. But the positives; I remember the first time I kissed a girl on the couch, the parties (sorry mum and dad), playing football in the garden, climbing the hedges & trees, whinging about being made to go on walks to Bolton Percy (that’s changed now, I love walking), having to live in temporary accommodation for a few weeks while the extension was built (and the bathroom that my dad started refurbishing but stalled halfway through for several years), bike rides to Bolton Percy or around Acaster Selby… the list just goes on really.
I often complain about York (I found the city a bit of a drag to live in, I mean sure, it’s pretty, but it’s a bit boring), but if I’m honest, I’ll miss being able to call the place home. So long York, I’ll likely be in you a whole heap less now (apart from when visiting my sister), I’ll miss you and your quaint streets.
It’s time for the second half of my Mull post. The Monday through to the Tuesday of the week.
After the more quiet day of the Sunday after the driving up, I’d planned in a more hectic itinerary for the Monday. Including waterfalls, a walk, beach, distillery, Café Fish and sunset chasing. This meant that we needed an early start (about 9.30). So, rolling out of the gate at about 10.45 while the rain was still coming down, we drove out around the loch towards Ulva. Just past the Ulva school you reach Eas Fors. A breathtaking set of waterfalls that run under the road, culminating in a 100ft fall into the sea. With the amount of rainfall the island had endured over recent days the falls were completely bursting.
I may have slipped a couple of times, because I thought “hey, I don’t need to wear my walking boots just to see a waterfall”. Vans, don’t wear them in rain. But it’s ok, I’m still alive.
From here I’d planned for us to jump back in the minibus and up to Treshnish point, where we’d do (part of) the walk that heads out around the end around the headland, getting views out towards the Treshnish isles. We were exceedingly fortunate and as we started walking the sun poked its head out and stay all the way through for the rest of the walk. We walked out for about an hour, took up camp on the end of the headland for lunch and walked back again. A few of the people in the group aren’t strong walkers for one reason or another so we decided to keep it short. It also meant we could fit more in.
After this we drove a little further around the coast to Calgary beach. Which is one of the island’s famous white beaches. Being summer it was a bit busier than I’m used to (I’m usually up out of season), so we didn’t stick around for long before heading to Tobermory, where we managed to get to the Distillery bang on 4pm for a whiskey tasting. A potter around Tobermory (I grabbed myself a candle from the Isle of Mull Soap Company and a few others got some odds and ends from the Isle of Mull Chocolate shop).
I grabbed an ice cream from Isle of Mull ice cream and a couple of friends got Deep Fried Haggis from the fish and chip van by the pier. Eventually it was time for Café Fish. Which I’d been going on about for most of the holiday. I was desperate for it to not disappoint. The review is in the next post.
We Are The Mulligang: Pt. 1
Well, what an eventful couple of weeks. Last week I wasn’t home for longer than a couple of sleeping hours each day. I played football, went to a gig, my sister’s husband’s stag do, their practise meal and then their wedding. It was all fairly hectic, especially as I had work in between. I’ll do a proper post about their wedding at a later date, when I have photos etc to share with you all. Needless to say, it was fun and my sister looked incredible. Congratulations to the both of them and I wish their continued happiness well into the future.
Anyway, that turned into a longer ramble than I intended. The morning after their wedding, I had to force myself up early once again. This was, however, so that I could get picked up by the Derby lot to head north to my parent’s holiday let on the Isle of Mull (the one I’ve mentioned a lot). I finally had a chance to show my friends why I loved this place. So they could live what I’d talked at them about far too much over the last few years. The drive was long, Leeds to Oban on a good day being 5-7 hours. We did of course, hit traffic and as soon as we got near Glasgow, the rain began. And I don’t just mean rain. I mean torrential downpour. It held up all the way from Glasgow to Oban. Making for a, shall we say, atmospheric drive.
As much as the scenery was still beautiful in the rain, it did fill me with a slight sense of dread. What if I finally got to show these places to my friends, and all they saw was grey and miserable?
The weather ended up causing our ferry to be delayed. However while we were waiting the rain subsided. We had a mad dash around Oban Tesco for supplies before queuing for the delayed ferry. The crossing was nowhere near as bad as expected. Once we reached the other side the sun had started going well and truly down. Meaning that by the time we reached Loch Na Keal (the sea loch which the cottage is on) it was a bit on the dingey side, especially combined with the grey/cloud/rain. It mean that they didn’t get to see the glorious view I’d been hoping for.
Then when we woke up the next day, everything had changed. I will let these photographs tell the tale themselves. It did mean, however, that the darkness/bad weather had worked in our advantage. It meant they had never suspected that the views would be quite so stunning, or to quite that scale.
We started the day slowly, mainly due to the large amounts of travelling the day before. Then decided to visit Duart Castle, a place I’ve only been once before when I was much, much younger. It’s one of the island’s main tourist traps, and usually I’d not have paid in (and have just pottered about outside) but they had some Scottish marching bands and dancers performing so it made slightly more sense to do so this time around, and hey, who doesn’t love a castle?
That evening we decided to BBQ, so picked up some last minute supplies from the Spar in Salen, and bumped into one of the Hairy Bikers. Yup, really. He was driving a campervan. The second part of my post will follow soon.
There are more of these photos on my flickr. Have you ever been to Scotland? Tell me about your Scottish adventures below.