Duart Castle

What a horrible morning it was!  Wet and grey, and the rain was horizontal!!  We stayed in the B & B for a while but then decided just to go.  After all, most of what we wanted to see would  be inside the castle, so it would  be nice and dry, and surely there would be a tea room as well!!

However, as the morning progressed and as we drove nearer to Duart Castle, the sky turned blue and the sun came out!  We couldn't help feel though that we'd better make the best of it before the weather closed back in again!

Duart Castle

Can you spot the lighthouse?

The weather started to close in!

The castle was very interesting (no photos allowed in the interior of the building) and the views were spectacular.  You can see Lismore Lighthouse from the rooftops and, as you can see from the photo, the mist and clouds started to roll in again from the sea.  The above photo of the Lismore Lighthouse is very different from the one I posted on the first post of the blog!!

We drove to the area where we thought the standing stones were and did find the entrance eventually.  However, the field that you were directed into was very marshy and it was soaking wet.  I think had I tried to follow the white stones through the field to where the stones were, I would have been up to my ankles in mud and puddles, so I had to give up on that idea, which is a tad annoying as apparently this is the best site of standing stones in Mull!!

We then headed further down the coast to try and find the Castle of Moy.  Well, we ended up down very small narrow-laned roads with hardly any passing places, but very pretty nonetheless

We eventually got to the end of the track at a small loch where we found an honesty shop.  It was stocked with all sorts of foodstuffs, all priced, for you just to take and leave the money in a dish within the shop.  I bought some postcards and left the cash - and there was money already in the dish and it was surprising just how busy this little place was!   But, there was now the matter of trying to find the castle.  I knew it was derelict but, although I knew we were in the right place, I couldn't see a castle!  Despite the awful weather, I got out of the car and walked a short distance to a piece of headland that we could see in the distance and I walked onto it as we had seen other people do.  I still couldn't see anything - then I turned around and there it was in the distance!!

I still couldn't see it properly, but it was covered in scaffolding and it was cold and wet, so that was another disappointment!!  Two disappointments in one day in quick succession!!  It was time to drive back to the B & B!!

On the way back, the weather started to clear a little and clouds began to lift.  We also came across a small crofter's cottage, probably an old clearance cottage, which looked quite interesting, so I took the chance of taking a few photos, especially now that the rain had stopped!!

Can you spot a little piece of blue sky in the top left corner?

More blue sky appearing

Driving into the mist!!

Then, a little further on, we spotted two birds in the sky and we think it was a buzzard annoying an eagle.  It was difficult to try and take photos, so this is about the best I could do!

Once back at the B & B our host there told us he would take us into the forest that night to try and spot some deer, so that was something special to look forward to!  We had a very quick dinner out that night so that we could get back in time while there was still enough light to hopefully take some photos.  We climbed into his very substantial 4 x 4 and set off, but sadly there were no signs of any deer at all, and I thought that was going to be the third disappointment of the day!  We headed off up high into the forest and walked up to a very special viewpoint - it was still misty and mysterious and the colours were like something out of a watercolour painting.  Again, photos just don't do it justice!!

The  light was beginning to fade fast and we headed back down through the forest when, all of a sudden I saw it - a stag standing on the track right in front of our vehicle!!  What a fantastic sight.  He saw us and moved into the undergrowth, but then he stopped and turned and virtually posed for the camera!!  So, not a third disappointment after all!!

And that was that for the day.  Some disappointments along the way certainly, but what a way to end the day - a very special highlight indeed!!

On our way!!

We had always promised ourselves another holiday in Scotland after a wonderful time travelling to Orkney and then the Kyles of Lochalsh a few years ago, so we had arranged a B & B in Bunessan, Mull, staying from the 12th to 17th August.  The ferry was all organised having done all of that on-line, and we were all packed and prepared to leave on the morning of Monday 12th August.

There was just one fly in the ointment though - a filling had come out of one of my teeth on the Friday night so it was panic stations to try and get to the dentist on Monday prior to us leaving for our trip!!  I was standing on the doorstep of the dentist at 8 a.m. and, luckily, he fitted me in for a temporary repair which would let me now enjoy my holiday without worrying about having to find a dentist on Mull.

We left home around 9 a.m. and we were finally on our way!  The weather on the way up to Oban wasn't too bad really, but we did hit a shower of rain just as we reached there.  We also popped into a petrol station for fuel prior to getting into the queue for the ferry over to Mull.  After driving into the queue for the ferry we were able to leave the car there and go for a coffee and cake before driving onto the ferry for the crossing over to Mull. After leaving the car down below deck, we went up to the restaurant for coffee and a sandwich, which was very tasty!

Driving onto the ferry

The crossing over to Mull was uneventful and fairly calm, which was good!!  I took one or two photos from the deck as we approached Mull

Lismore Lighthouse in the sun

Duart Castle

Just after I took these photos, we were summoned back to the car to get ready to disembark - let the raod trip of Mull begin!!

Waiting in the car to disembark

Driving off into Mull - turning left to Bunessan

And this is when an entirely different way of driving begins - single track roads with passing places and all sorts of hazards - mainly in the shape of sheep and cows that wander around the island!!  We followed the road down to Bunessan where we stopped briefly before heading onwards to the B & B. A wee photo before setting off on our way!

A boat in the bay

Once we were settled into our marvellous B & B we went to Fionnphort which is about a ten minute drive away to go for dinner to the Keel Row.  We had fish and chips that night which were very tasty.  However, on our way there, we came across one of the many Mull traffic calming measures!!

This is our road and we will walk on it!!

 And they knew exactly where they were going as they turned up a nearby side road!!

We know where we're going!

After we had our dinner we came out of the restaurant and were met by the most wonderful sunset

View over to Iona

The little gaps in the cloud make this one look like a face!

On the way back we stopped off at the local pub for a very quick drink then headed back up the winding road to the B & B to settle in for a night's rest but, before we did, there were just the last rays of the sun to catch before heading off.

Bunessan Bay - tide now in

And there was also a sighting of either a buzzard or an eagle just as we left - it's just a silhouette, but great to see against the twilight blue colour of the sky

We were hopeful that the weather would hold out for a trip to both Staffa and Iona in the morning.  I think I slept with my fingers crossed all night!!