The Isle of Mull
.jpg) |
| Loch Lomond |
The moon was high and bright and the midnight air cold and
moist, the local Lancashire tawny owl
population gathered to say goodbye as I warmed up the van that was going to be my
mobile hide for the next three weeks.
After loading the van with supplies ready for the long trip
to the isle of mull on the Scottish west coast, including food check, something
to cook it on check, ah hip flask to keep me from the cold check, last and most
important of all camera gear check then lets go.
After a quick hot mug of coffee to calm down the adventure
butterflies (a condition that builds up through expectation and sheer
excitement of the trip ahead ) as a photographer that has covered most of the
uk I can honestly advise anyone driving any great distance to do it over night
or in the early hours of the morning no traffic, no noise only the sound of radio
one can only make for a more enjoyable and quicker journey.
After a few hundred miles of dreaded motorway tarmac i
reached the unforgiving highland road (A82) that twisted and turned along the
edge of loch lomond.
As i passed through unmanned road works that surrounded
large potholes in the bumpy roads inconveniently placed on sharp blind bends thoughts
of the morning traffic that I had beaten crossed my mind, finally I decided to have
a break and pulled over on one of the many lay-bys along the side of one of the
most beautiful lakes in Scotland, loch lomond.
The air was crisp and mist eerily lifted from the lake as
the first rays of the morning sun hit the water everything was looking good for
the day ahead and of course me being a camera guy I jumped out to take a few
shots.
 |
| Duart Castle |
After a break of an hour to fill up on caffeine and
chocolate biscuits I decided it would be best to carry on to oban so that we
could catch the early morning ferry onto the isle of mull, thoughts of expectation
crossed my mind as deer crossed in front of me and buzzard after buzzard flew
along side me looking for there early morning meal, after a few more miles of
bottom numbing driving along the A85 from tyndrum passing through glen lochy and
the pass of brander, i finally reached the ferry port of oban and would you
believe it the ferry was leaving the port honking its fog horn as though to say
better luck next time even one of the crew members waved with a big smile on
his face as I jumped out of the van and looked aimlessly at the waves churned
up by the enormous boats engines.
After a quick look round the closed shops and a hearty
breakfast in the shore side café that had only just opened at six am and after
paying a reasonable ferry fee i started the engine and drove into lane ready to
board the incoming ferry to craignure on the isle of mull.
The crossing was nice and smooth and i enjoyed looking at
the scenery as i sipped a nice warm cup of coffee on the top deck. The sun
shone as the ferry passed duart castle on the banks of the sound of mull all
that can be said is that the crossing was breathtaking.
It seemed that all the research I had done previously for the
trip had paid of as i had caught the second early morning ferry the settled may
weather was looking favourable as predicted by the locals, and i still had plenty
of time to reach my destination that was to be the first night parked on a
reasonably quiet wild camp situated at killiechronan near salen.
As i reached my first destination on the isle of mull I
immediately spotted one of the most majestic birds that uses the sky the golden
eagle it soared in hunting mode over a field not 50 meters from where we I was
parked as it hunted rabbits, that were enjoying the early morning sun in one of
the close by fields I remember thinking that this was going to be a trip to
remember.
As I started to set up camp after yet another cup of coffee,
I heard the unmistakable sound of hooded crows warning of danger, on looking up
into the sky over loch na keal, i could see they were mobbing a large bird of
prey a sudden urge to find my binoculars began and on looking through them I
could see the crows were mobbing a white tailed sea eagle that was making its
way effortlessly over loch na keal towards Ben more.
 |
| Loch na Keal |
Now call me daft but the fact that I had only been on the
isle of mull for a couple of hours and the
fact that I had already seen a
golden eagle and a white tailed sea eagle not forgetting the thirty or so
rabbits, sent me into overdrive all thoughts of pitching a tent were gone and
after grabbing the essential camera gear I decided to go for a walk, nearly a
run to see what else I could find.
As I calmed with the sound of the incoming tide my short
walk along the banks of loch na keal started to produce sightings of the local
wildlife fallow deer then red deer then the sound of a grasshopper warbler,
hunting cries of birds of prey could be heard everywhere, I realised that my
lifelong dream of visiting this beautiful island was going to be justified as
wildlife was literally everywhere, but alas the dark ness began to creep in and
the temperature started to drop so after heading back and finishing the last of
my butties and flask it was sleep time.
The next morning I awoke to the sound of my mobile phone
alarm that I had set for 0500am I quickly dressed myself and stepped out of the
van and looked at one of the most spectacular views I had ever seen, the sun
was just appearing over the horizon lighting up the emerald green sea, views of
the treshnish isles could be seen in the distance and the only noise was from
the local bird life announcing the arrival of a new day.
After a quick cup of coffee made over an open camp fire
along with the compulsory bacon butty I made my way down to the shore just as
the tide began to flood the bay.
I sat there with my camera looking through my binoculars
hoping for a sighting of the infamous otter and I was not disappointed, after
an hour a lonely dog otter crossed the bay in front of me about one hundred
meters away, unfortunately it was moving into the middle of the bay out of
range for my camera but all the same it was a magical first experience of a
wild Scottish otter even though I had spent the whole time sat on a cluster of
limpets that are just not meant to be used as a seat, I watched as it submerged
then came up in the middle of a kelp bed then watched as it eventually slipped
out of range of my binoculars.
 |
| Tobemory |
After a leisurely breakfast and an hour or so in the sun
just watching the world go by i decided to
head into salen on the A849 between
craignure and tobemory one of three main villages on mull, the village is
equipped with a small post office a spar that is always stocked with plenty of
bbq meats and nearly everything else you could imagine including a necessary
collection of local guide books of which I am now the proud owner, there is a garage,
an Italian restaurant and of course a pub that serves a very nice pint of
liquid nectar or whiskey depending on your tipple.
There are also public toilets that are a valuable commodity
when you are touring around the island and it is always a good idea to mark
them all on the map so that you always have a place to head to if the other
half needs a tinkle, also try to remember that if you are going to shop in
salen, park up on a car park and not on the narrow main road as I learnt that
lorries do not muck about going round your car they tend to push others out of
there way and the local police have a move you on policy.
After picking up supplies i decided to find a camp site to
make camp, i settled for tobemory campsite about a mile just outside of tobemory on the B8073 towards dervaig and set
up for the three weeks ahead, showers, toilets, phones hot water and good
scenery are all in good supply here and also friendly conversation with the
owner that told us not to worry about the horrible Scottish midge as he has
midge catchers installed around the small campsite, it was here once set up
that i planned out my mission to photograph the isle of mull otters and of
course any other wildlife I could find.
After planning out the three weeks worth of activities i
decided to head into tobemory (or as the kids call it ballamory which
apparently the locals hate you calling it) for a proper meal and of course a
pint or two and found eating places in good supply, there are a number of pubs
serving large bar meals and an Indian that I tried once during the three weeks and although
it was a cracking meal the price left a huge hole in my wallet no wonder the
waiters were always smiling, it is always a good idea to pre book as all the
eating places become very busy at night time (especially from may onwards) and
you will be expected to wait about an hour or more for an un-booked table.
There is a also an absolutely brilliant cheap chippy on the
harbour serving extra large fresh fish along with all the extras you can expect
from a good chippy and in my view is deserving of an award.
Some of you whiskey drinkers out there might be interested
to know that there is a whiskey distillery located in tobemory right on the
harbour and is well worth a visit if only to pick up a bottle to keep the cold
away during your stay on mull.
 |
| Calgary Bay |
There are quite a few shops selling everything from
binoculars to freshly baked bread and there is
also a spar that is open until
about nine o’clock always handy if you run out of your favourite tipple.
Once refuelled with a good meal and after having a few pints
of the good stuff I headed back to the
campsite by taxi that was very reasonable at £5.00 and available at short
notice, this was to become good news especially due to the torrential downpours
this island can sometimes experience usually at night or early morning.
The third day started with the sun shining through the tent
waking me up from my slightly intoxicated
sleep and I was glad to see that the weather was looking good and the temperature
was already rising as I sat out and had breakfast, the campsite was pretty
queit apart from the local ducks playing in the small stream that runs through
the little campsite, and as promised the midge catchers on the campsite did
there job and I unexpectedly dined in peace without having to pluck black bits
from my early morning brew and butty.
After having a red hot shower and a quick chat with some of
the other campers it was time to set off on my travels that comprised of a complete
drive around the whole of the island to see what wildlife encounters I could find.
my first stop was at salen to refuel as this I found was the cheapest garage on the island (it is
always a good idea to fill up with fuel at every opportunity just in case you
stray away from the open road remember its always better to have too much than
too little as the AA takes hours to get to mull) it was also an opportunity to
question the locals about recently sighted otters but unfortunately hardly any
of the locals could tell me locations in fact a lot of the local chaps and
lasses had never seen an otter, this played havoc with my expectations, even
though I had already seen one on my first day on the island was this the only
otter here I hope not.
Not the sort of lad to be put off i set off in my mobile
hide (the van) with windows open camera on the reachable back seat and
binoculars on my knee turning left at the old church in the centre of salen
onto the B8035 towards grulin, keep your eyes out on this stretch as fields and
conifer plantations surround the road and i often spotted birds of prey
especially early in the morning sitting on top of the telegraph poles that run
along side of the road, i also had frequent sightings of red and fallow deer
and owls during late evening around this area.
Once at grulin i stayed on the B8035 and followed the road
through Ben more estate this stretch has a large blue bell wood on your right
hand side near some small cottages that is worthy of a quick stop and a few photo’s,
the wood is straight across from the Macquarie mausoleum that is well marked on
most maps.
After a quick stop and a few photos of the bluebell wood i
carried on the B8035 and crossed over a
small hump backed bridge, it was here that
i often had sightings of herons and fallow deer to our right and keep a look
out for the albino fallow deer that i spotted on many occasions feeding in the
woodland right near the road.
 |
| isle of mull otter |
From here follow the coastal road that runs alongside loch na keal on the same side as ben more this
is a beautiful scenic road if not a bit ruff with the sea loch to your right
and craggy ground to the left, this area is a good stretch for sightings of
grey and common seals basking on the rocks and also a wide variety of sea birds
and waders keep an eye out for stoats mink and hares as these are also often
spotted, parking spots are plenty down this stretch and the views of the
treshnish isles from further up this road at the highest points deserve a ten
minute photography break, after speaking to a friendly farmer I was informed
that a dog otter frequented this stretch of coastline but unfortunately during
the couple of hours I waited I had no sightings, although northern divers, red mergansers,
eider duck, shell duck and plenty of sightings of ringed and golden plover were
added to my ever growing list and where constantly spotted around this area
over the three week stay.
Further on, the road starts to rise up and run along side a
large cliff face at gribun and this is where i had quite a few sightings of
peregrine falcons,golden eagles and countless buzzards and hen harriers to name
just a few, I was informed later that the hen harriers use the island during
there travels around the Scottish highlands and islands as a break from the
weather conditions and often visit mull from the mainland during the early
parts of the year.
I found the local hooded crows or hoodies as the locals call
them absolutely brilliant as all you have to do to spot a bird of prey is to
listen for the alarm calls of the hoodies and head for there direction you can
also bet that if there is a large group of hoodies in the air nine times out of
ten they will be mobbing some sort of bird of prey.
There are only a few parking spots under these cliffs and we
found that they are in great demand with the local twitchers, so if you have
the opportunity of finding a parking space have a short break and see if you
have any sightings.
 |
| road along loch na keal |
Try looking in the crags for nesting birds of prey or look
along the top edges of the cliffs for the
silhouettes of birds scouring the
landscape for there next meal such as the infamous peregrine falcon that I had
many sightings of along this stretch, but again remember not to park on the
narrow roads as you will block them and I can guarantee your wing mirrors will
be knocked off by passing tractors.
The drive along this stretch of road is a bit hair raising
as the land on the right suddenly disappears and turns into cliff edge and the
large dents in the road side barrier are a reminder that caution is the best
policy whilst driving this stretch.
when you reach the highest point look out for the sharp bend
to the left there is a small parking spot that is a fine place to park up and
get out the binoculars as the vast views from here are amazing, to the right of
you (providing you have reversed into the parking spot) you will see the
treshnish isles including staffa and to the left there is another large cliff
face that if you are lucky enough you might catch the resident golden eagles
catching the thermals also look out for dolphins and whales hunting as they can
often be seen in settled weather.
From this point the B8035 starts to head across land away
from the coast, the road is surrounded on both sides by high graduated hills
and this is one of the best places on the island to spot red deer and birds of
prey such as the golden eagle and the famous white tailed sea eagle, every time
i drove down this stretch of road I had amazing long lasting sightings of all
three of these iconic Scottish members of the wildlife community.
The road here is quite wide so it is easy to park up if you
spot something, so keep your eyes peeled and I can guarantee you a sighting,
also try checking this area after showers as the eagles tend to use the thermals
in this area to take flight just after a period of rain, if you see something
try waiting in your car as the birds tend to land lower down the slopes if you
don’t disturb them you never know you might get a close encounter.
The roads around this area are very quiet this makes it
ideal for second gear as this is the best way to travel giving you plenty of
time to see the local wildlife again look and listen and if you have enough
time pull over and look for the local hooded crows giving away the position of
birds of prey.
When you reach the end of this road the landscape becomes
civilised once again and you come to a t junction between your road the B8035
and the A849 that runs back to tobemory to the left or fionphort to your right,
I tried both during the three weeks and found both roads a pleasure to drive
down and both hotspots for wildlife.
The A849 towards fionphort leads to the small ferry port
where you can either, catch a small pleasure boat to the treshnish islands that
include Iona, Staffa and lunga with views of
the Dutchman’s cap in the distance or one of the specialised wildlife tour
boats that run from this point to see seals and the local sea bird populations.
The journey to this part of the island takes you along loch
scridain that is a must for any otter or white tailed sea eagle fan as you have
one of the best chances of spotting an otter or eagle down this road, keep your
eyes peeled to the right in the kelp beds for signs of splashing as by now you
will be driving a matter of feet away from the loch or look left for signs of
white tailed sea eagles that often fly over on there way to this sheltered loch
to hunt, also keep in mind that you will often see the local wildlife guides
parked up, if you happen to come across one pull over and have a look to see
what they are looking at, as i did on one occasion and they were looking at an
otter that was feeding right in front of them (this was at pennycross) the
guides tend not to hang about for two long so we I was left with a private viewing
of an otter and the chance to get a few photographs before it headed out to
catch its second course.
I also had sightings of a pair of white tailed sea eagles
further down at bunessan that were being
 |
| Treshnish isles |
My Tick List driving down to fionphort grew as i added
otter, herons, eider duck, northern divers, ringed plover, oyster catcher, and a
golden eagle circling high in the sky oh and a long line of some fifty cows
including Aberdeen Angus that would not move out of our the way keeping me
hostage for at least an hour (this always seemed to happen at 15.00hrs each
day).
Further down this stretch the habitat changes to estuary and
marsh land and a day can be lost venturing around this area and you are pretty
much on your own all the way up to bunessan as people tend only to use this
stretch of road to get to there chartered wildlife trips (more on these later) usually
early in the morning and around 5-6pm.
The A849 back towards tobemory was for me the most enjoyable
drive as the scenery was spectacular and basically it was one big loop road
home, this stretch of the A8049 took me through glen more that is supposed to
be the best place to see golden eagles especially around the three lakes area
of the glen, unfortunately for me i had no sightings at all during our three
weeks driving through glen more in fact I found the best place to see the
golden eagle was along the B8035 back towards loch na keal.
The scenery along glen more is breathtaking especially the
view of Ben more that on a clear day looks worthy of the title highest Monroe (mountain) on the
isle of mull. The habitat in glen more is baron and windswept with heath and
moor land surrounded by steep high ground to both sides it then opens up into
small plantations of conifer and yew, we had loads of sightings of buzzard
along this route perching on the endless number of telegraph poles that run along the way, herds
of red deer up on the highland to our left where constantly sighted around this
area and also countless sightings of meadow pipits and various species of
warbler are in great numbers along the road.
As you reach about half way through the glen you come to the
three lakes area that is worth an hours break, there is a small lay-by directly
across from the lakes and the scenery from this point overlooking the three
lakes with Ben buie and Ben creach in the distance is spectacular on a clear
day and even though I did not have any sightings of golden eagles on my trip
through this area other twitching types swear by it.
When you reach strathcoil there is a small road that leads
to either lochbuie or croggan both of these places are worth a visit and are
guaranteed to produce good wildlife sightings of northern divers, otters, red
meganzers and if you are lucky all manner of marine life such as dolphins and porpoises,
both of the roads end up at quiet secluded loch’s loch buie and loch spelve if
you have a couple of hours to spare why not just sit there and take time out and
have a cuppa as this is a truly lovely place with fantastic views and if you
are a camera mad bloke like me then you will surely find landscapes/flowers/and
wildlife to photograph even if it is the local rabbit population that are quite
tame and come to have a look at you.
Carrying on from strathcoil you will come to one of the best
guaranteed places to see the white tailed sea eagle, head for lochdon and you
will see a sign post for grass point (right turn off the A849) if you follow
this road it takes you through a small valley where you will see the local
Aberdeen Angus lying at the side of the road the road then climbs steeply over
a hillside, by this time you should have realised that you are being watched as
there are hundreds of eagle watch posters and signs everywhere and the fact
that there are hundreds of twitchers walking about with large spotting scopes
points to the fact that there is something worth watching here, if you follow
the road for another two hundred meters then you will come to a small car park
on your right, it is worth parking up and taking a walk down to the top of the
hill you have just drove down, I can personally guarantee that if you sit at
the top of the hill you will see the eagles perching in one of the trees
directly to the front of you high up on the opposite hillside.
If you don’t fancy looking at the eagles then from the car
park walk up the hill directly behind the car park, this will take you to a
long high cliff face and some spectacular scenery overlooking the firth of
lorne this area is also a cracking wild flower site with wild orchids and many
other wild flowers growing on the craggy hillside, if you walk in a straight
line from the car park you will come to a large long piece of rock that makes
an ideal seat and picnic site and worthy of a couple of hours rest especially
in the sunshine you never know you might even see the eagles fishing in the
sea.
When you have had enough of the coastal air head back
towards the main road and turn right to carry on your journey back onto the
A849 this time i headed through lochdonhead and turned right again heading
towards the signposted duart point the home of duart castle, although this is
not really a wildlife site on this occasion i took time out to have a look
around the castle and the views from this magnificent building were beautiful
as the castle looks out over the sound of mull and on a clear day the highlands
of Ben Nevis can be easily made out, well worth a visit by anyone young or old
and take my word for it no matter what the weather go to the roof for some more
spectacular views.
From duart point get back on the A849 again turn right and
head towards craignure you will pass tourist signs for wings over mull (bird of
prey centre well worth a visit) to your left, and torosay castle to your right
(again worth a visit especially if you like stunning gardens but due to close
so please check there website) eventually you will come to craignure the ferry terminal,
now you might think that due to this being the busiest place on the island that
wildlife would stay away but tell the local otter’s that as early morning and
late evening sightings are frequent and almost guaranteed during our three week
stay we often spotted otters hunting in the small harbour directly to the right
of the main ferry terminal and they where not as shy as the other otters i had
spotted during my three week stay.
In craignure you will find the craignure pub that serves
great cheap meals that would fill even the hungriest of people, you will also
find a garage/local spar shop an off licence/café/tourist information (full of
free maps of the island) campsite/car park/ and of course the ferry terminal
there is also a hotel (craignure hotel) within walking distance that really is
not worth bothering with, as if you are not with a coach party, you will not be
looked after as the staff are that busy with the coach loads of other
travellers and you will not get a look in, the meals are cold after you have
waited two hours for a table, you will be asked to move rooms if you have
booked less than a 4 days stay and if you stop out later than 10.45pm then you
will be locked out and have to resort in banging on the door like Fred
Flintstone.
From craignure get back on the A849 and head towards salen
this stretch is a long 12 mile stretch of coast line and is another hotspot for
otters and sea birds of all types but parking is at a premium so keep a look
out for places to park up as there are only a couple.
The coast line is packed with different areas such as little
coves filled with kelp and shingle beaches stretching out at low tide to small
raised outcrops of rock perfect for seals and otters to dry themselves off on
so try at least once to leave the car and walk the whole stretch as you will
almost certainly spot something.
When you get into salen and you have stopped for a tinkle go
straight through towards tobemory and pull into the parking space either by the
old ships to your right or in the ready made official car park on the right
hand side just a bit further up, park up and get out and walk from this point.
The coast line around
this stretch from the public toilets all the way round to aros castle is a
hotspot for common seals, grey seals, otters and all manner of bird life don’t
do what many have done and just stop for an hour as wildlife in this area
appears and disappears with the tide so buy a tide guide book from the spar in
salen as this will tell you when the tide is in or out, it even tells you where
the tide will be in and what time i.e. when the tide is out in salen it may be
in on the other side of the island.
Try looking for seals in salen on a low tide as this is when
the rocks are exposed making ideal sunbathing spots for the seals to haul up
on, in the summer common seals mix with grey seals on these rocks giving you a
close encounter, if you are still and quiet they will come right up and have a
look at you.
Check this area regularly during the morning, early
afternoon and late evening as this is the time you will and I mean you “will”
spot an otter, try stopping for an hour then if you see one, record the time and
turn up each day at that time and wait, i did this during my stay and was
rewarded with various encounters with the local otter family.
On the first occasion I spotted an otter fishing in the kelp
just off shore and waited to see if it would come closer to the shore line,
after about an hour I decided to get out of the car and find a place to watch
the otter.
Sat on a small outcrop, I watched with camera at the ready
as the otter came up with a large butter fish and carried it towards me, as the
wind was blowing onto my face I knew that the otter would not be able to smell
me, so I sat still and would you believe it the otter clambered up onto the
outcrop of rock that I was sat on not a meter away, it was then that this otter
was joined by two others I couldn’t believe my luck as the otter family squabbled
over the fish paying no attention to the bloke sat right in front of them, this
turned out to be a magical experience and was the highlight of the trip for me
and the photographs taken during this experience are something I will treasure.
i found salen to be the best place on the island to see the
otters and it also makes a good place to see the seals close up and the fact
that the toilets are just a quick trot away makes it ideal for sitting and
watching the world go by especially with some of the local made biscuits bought
from the local spar.
After a good stop here I carried on with my trip back up to
tobemory on the A848 from Salen on the way back you pass through all manner of
habitats on this stretch and there are various places that you can stop off,
with walks down to the coast line through conifer forest and the drive down
this route produced great sightings of seals and bird life of all types
including eider duck, heron, shell duck, merganser, and various birds of prey
including goshawk, peregrine, little owl, short eared owl, kestrel, buzzard,
merlin and more.
There are also some stunning walks along this route where
you can get out and stretch the legs through heath and moor land these again produce
sightings of birds of all types and with mull being a hotspot for wildlife your
never short of something to look at and photograph, for me this was the best
route to follow as it produced regular sightings of all the wildlife that can
be found on the isle of mull, I hope it helps to make your visit more enjoyable
and if you are an up and coming photographer like myself and you have the
patience to wait and watch then you will also see and photograph some stunning
wildlife.
Please check my blog regularly for more write-ups of where I
have been and please feel free to share my tales.
.jpg)
.jpg)
