Mull’s hidden beaches are one of the delights of the island. There are the obvious ones like Calgary near Treshnish, and Knockvologan and Ardalanish in the Ross of Mull, but there are so many more, if you know where to look. And that is before you get to Iona! Any scale Ordnance Survey map will reveal those little tell tale yellow sand areas, and that is where to head for. Today we went to one of our favourites, only a few miles from the farm. It was Sunday after all! (A perfect excuse to stop at Am Birlinn restaurant for a delicious lunch on the way…)
The only human being we encountered was the crofter whose ewes were mothers to the huge healthy lambs we admired as we walked to the beach. Someone had been stealing eggs. Farmer thought this might be a pheasant egg.
There is something very magical about being the first one on the beach, the sand pristine and free of footprints, recently washed by the tide. The white sands and turquoise waters make you feel as if you have left reality behind you. Oystercatchers call, sand martins fly over head, the occasional sheep watches. Seals on the rocks, and the occasional boat passing in the distance. We soon made our mark on the sands.
The views from this part of the island are wonderful. In the winter, and when I was outside taking photographs of the Aurora Borealis, I felt I got to know the rhythm of the Ardnamurchan lighthouse quite well! And then, the perfect end to the day…