The sun beat us in rising by only 2 hours today. At 6 am the Royal Burgh of Inveraray is still very much asleep. It was a perfect time to film the town and the calmness of Loch Fyne. After a quick breakfast we packed up Mr. Bingley and headed west toward the coast. We remarked about how nice the road was to Oban. The lack of hedgerows and stone walls provided great visibility and comfortable driving even on the curvy roads. En route to Oban we passed an old ruined Campbell fortress on Loch Awe. Aptly named.

We queued up at the Caledonian-MacBrayne terminal ready for the second leg of our four-part journey to the Isle of Iona. Once we had safely parked Mr. Bingley in the hold of the ship and satisfied all of the questions from the crew about our GoPro mounted on the car, we went in search of the captain of the ship. We met captain Michael MacNeil and his crew on the bridge.  They welcomed us aboard and invited us to enjoy the crossing from the bridge of the ship called the Isle of Mull. In true British fashion we were offered coffee and tea as we sailed out of the harbor. It was such a treat to see the crew at work and how expertly they navigated the huge ferry through the channel. His First Officer Ian was very attentive and made a mean cup of coffee.  Captain MacNeil has been around the sea his whole life. He said, “its in my blood.” He worked his way up from Seaman all the way to Captain.

We disembarked and began our journey on the “Mull Motorway.”  This is a “single track road” all the way across the island. There are numerous pull off areas that are used to allow two cars to pass each other. It was quite the adventure. At one point an entire flock of sheep was meandering up the road toward us. The highlight of the drive was the wooly (Scottish Highland) cow, who  obligingly posed for a picture right on the side of the road.  We have been waiting to see one of those since we crossed the border.  The pedestrian only ferry at Fionnphort was the fourth and final leg of our journey to Iona.  We left Mr. Bingley behind and just became Two Moms for the next couple days.

The first thing we noticed was the color of the water. It’s clear emerald-green in some places and brilliant turquoise blue in others. It really resembles the water of the Caribbean. We docked and walked 2 minutes up a hill to our B&B, the Finlay Ross.  Our room was very bright and had a beautiful view of Martyr’s Bay and a Celtic cross. We grabbed a take-away  lunch of sandwiches and crisps to take with us as we sat on the rocks surrounded by tidal pools along the boat dock.

In short order it was time to board yet another boat for our trip to Staffa Island, a tiny uninhabited island in the Inner Hebrides.  David and Carol run Staffa Trips, a 3 hour boat trip to visit the island and learn about the local wildlife.  As we motored out of the bay we passed a cove with a large group of seals sunning themselves on the rocks.  It looked just like the zoo only they were in their natural habitat.   Fortunately, the water was unusually calm. Really it seemed more like a lake than the sea.  Heather was very thankful even though she had taken a precautionary Dramamine.  David pointed out several other islands of interest on the way. One was the Island of Tiree where the air traffic control towers for the Western Atlantic Ocean are located.  Very important for anyone traveling across “The Pond.” Another island whose name we cannot spell, is said to have been the inspiration for the writer of the How To Train Your Dragon book series.

As we approached Staffa the octagonal basalt columns became very distinct and looked like man-made pillars instead of natural rock formations.  Because of the calm conditions and the tide we had the very unique opportunity for the boat to motor right into Fingal’s Cave.  David said they have only been able to do that one other time this year.  Wow, what an unbelievable experience! The sound of the water crashing on the rocks and echoing made it easy for us to understand how Mendelssohn was inspired to compose his Hebrides Overture.  As we docked David explained how to find the Puffins and that they would fly away at first but that they would come back because they like people.  We hopped off the boat and Captain David invited us to sample some freshly picked seaweed from the tidal pool. In Heather’s words, ” It was good, but kind of like tough, wet, salty kale.”  I’m sure it contained all the nutrients we needed to hike up the mountain and find the puffins.  We’re strong to the finish because we eats we seaweed, as Popeye might say.

After our 15 minute rocky hilly climb, we reached a cliff high above a cove where hundreds of puffins where flying out of their shelters over the water. David was right, they really did like people. They came with in inches of  us, but they always stayed close to the edge of the cliff.  This also meant we had to get close to the cliff! Fortunately, Heather had her telescoping handle for the GoPro and was able to get up close and personal with the puffin without putting herself in peril.  Gladly she handed the GoPro handle off to me for the over-the-cliff shot. This entailed inching my as close to the cliff as I could and sticking the GoPro over the edge.  Really, it wasn’t that scary. Well, maybe a little scary. Hopefully the shots will pay off.

We spent a lot of time with the puffins so we had to really hoof it to the other side of the island to see Fingal’s Cave.  To get there you scramble across a ledge of broken off octagonal columns with a rope to keep you steady. This walk would NEVER happen in the US.  There were no guard rails on the side that dropped off into the rocky sea below. It was a thrilling hike!  At the end you are rewarded by walking into the mouth of Fingal’s Cave with its majestic pillars-like columns and clear deep blue water.  Truly spectacular.

On the way back to Iona we sat in the bow of the boat and had a nice long chat with Captain David.  It is obvious he loves what he does.  He told us about his favorite places on Iona, which is where he lives.  He gave Heather a rock called St. Columba’s tear, which you can only find at the beach which bears the saint’s name.  He shared lots of local lore with us and we truly enjoyed our time with him.

There are only 3 restaurants on the island and two of them were fully booked, so that made our dinner choice simple.  Martyr’s Bay restaurant is right across the street from our B&B and overlooks the bay.  The food was adequate, but the view was fantastic.  It really looked like we were dinning somewhere in the Keys instead of the land where the sun barely sets.

We attended the 9 o’clock service at Iona Abbey.  It was rather surreal to sit in this ancient stone church and sing where thousands have done the same for centuries.  Afterwards, we were all invited for tea in the abbey refectory.  This was a lovely way to end the day. As we type this it is quarter past 11 and it is not yet dark. An hour ago the sun had not even set.  I think I will be using my sleep mask tonight.

Enjoying the journey as Two Moms and a Boat,

Courtney and Heather