Darryl B Traveling: A Three Island Tour

September 8, 2022

Oban is a port and resort town on the west coast of Scotland. Gaelic for "Little Bay", it sits on pleasant bay surrounded by islands and shorelines. It seems like a small town but it is usually busy. Restaurants get full so again make reservations a day or two ahead of time.

I wanted to visit for the Three Island Tour of Mull, Iona, and Staffa, but also for the west coast style of whisky.

Oban Distillery existed before the town and kind of built up around it. Nestled in the middle of town next to a high bluff on the main road along the promenade and bay, the whisky gets some of its flavor from the sea salt air and nearby peat bogs. It's a bit different from other distilleries I visited in that it is now owned by the huge conglomerate Diageo. It is almost against my sensibilities, similar to how I rail against craft beer breweries who "sell out" to mega beer conglomerates.

Although they do begin the process of heating and mixing the barley into wort. But the malting of the barley is done centrally along with other brands in the Diageo family. Once distilled in one of the 2 small stills here, the liquid is sent to that same central location for filling in to casks. Then they get sent back to Oban for aging. It seems like a lot of travel for different parts of the process but for a small distillery that produces a fraction of what the big distilleries produce, it works for them financially. And being a part of Diageo I imagine is aids with the ability to distribute their whisky more widely, although still smaller in volume.

I actually enjoyed the whisky and could sense the sea air. It isn't as sweet as Speyside but not as smoky as some other island whiskies. So if you can't handle a heavy peat whisky like Ardbeg (I can't), maybe Oban or Talisker would suit you better.

The day I arrived was one of the few very rainy days I experienced in Scotland. And I was not prepared for full restaurants. On the fourth place, I finally at least got on the wait list, but it was less than a thirty minute wait. But the Cuan Mor was quite the gem.

Broccoli Soup at Cuan Mor

Roast Duck at Cuan Mor

The Saltire Lager is one of Scottish giant brewer Belhaven. And it remains independent, so in my book it counts as craft. I suppose independent is the proper way to say it now. But it was a nice beer. Oh, Cuan Mor is Gaelic for Big Ocean.

Three Island Tour

Well we didn't get shipwrecked with a millionaire or an actress, but we saw some more cool rock formations and sea lochs. Our little tender boat even came across some playful swimmers.

Departing from the Oban port, I joined groups departing for several tours to the lower Inner Hebrides Islands. My particular tour takes us to Mull, Staffa, and Iona. But we all leave on the same CalMac Ferry from the Oban Ferry Terminal. It is a 45 minutes sail, crossing the Firth of Lorn to Craignure on the Isle of Mull.

Once at Craignure, Mull, we boarded a bus for a meandering ride through the countryside, with humorous commentary by the driver. Passing more glens and lochs, both sea and fresh water, we learned of mussel farms and tales of myths and history lessons along the way. Later in Oban I had some mussels and oysters from the area.

Next it was on to our little vessel to head to the island of Staffa, one of the coolest places I've seen.

Staffa

These formations are columnar basalt. The name Staffa derives from the Vikings who arrived here and thought the columns reminded them of material they used for their houses.

The two main caves are Fingal's Cave and MacKinnon's Cave. These same columns are similar to the ones in Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, just down south a bit on the Atlantic Ocean.

Fingal's Cave

The fun legend is that on the Scotland side, a Giant named Benandonner challenged his Irish counterpart Fionn mac Cumhaill to a fight. Fionn accepted and built the causeway with these rock pillars across the ocean. Fionn, seeing that Benandonner is much bigger than he, flees and hides, disguising himself as a baby. When Benandonner sees this "baby" he surmises this baby's father Fionn must be an even bigger giant than himself. He runs back to Scotland destroying the columns along the way to avoid being chased! Thus we have similar crumbled rocks at each end of Northern Ireland and Scotland!

The boat dropped us off and provided plenty of time to get a close look at the cave, as well as hikes on part of the island. I wandered over to MacKinnon's Cave and some other impressive viewpoints.

Birds taking a break

The next island to visit is Iona, a very small community founded by St Columba, building an Abbey that still stands. It is for some a religious pilgrimage. It is known as being ‘The Cradle of Christianity’ in Scotland. I just enjoyed the peaceful serene landscape and waves lapping on my feet.

Iona Abbey

Argyll Hotel Organic Gardens

Ruins of the Nunnery

Almost a vacation from the vacation

Taking in some serene waves

Next to the ferry landing, I had a lunch of fish & chips and bought a couple of souvenirs. I really like the Iona Tartan. A friend of mine loves scrunchies and I thought of her with this tartan pattern.

During our journeys in the Atlantic (out here past Mull, we are in the Atlantic), we came across these delightful creatures: Harbour Porpoise and Bottle-Nosed dolphins!

We also saw some sea lions resting after their meals.

Back on the ferry and to Mull, even more cute animals. These are Highland Cows, Hairy Coos!

And of course more lochs and glens. Sailing back in to Oban, we caught some beautiful sunsets.

Back on land, this time with a reservation made the previous day, I dined on local oysters, mussels, salmon, and queen scallops ("queenies") and contemplated going to one of the clubs on the promenade, and took in a few more scenes from Oban.

During our cruises, internet access was mostly non-existent. It was only when we returned to Oban that we learned of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. It seemed to be a more subdued reaction in Scotland than it was in London, that I observed. Given the history of the countries, with differences even today (Scotland approved of staying with the EU, while England favored Brexit), I can understand the muted reaction here. But yet, it was a historical moment. She reigned for 70 years and lived to 96. An amazing life.