Day 8: Island Hopping in Oban (Mull and Iona)
Mull
It was a beautiful morning, the nicest day yet. In fact, the locals said this was the nicest day of the entire summer so far. Lucky us! It was awesome! No rain. Sun all day and a slight breeze, but not really a wind.
We took a local ferry ride for about 45 minutes to the island of Mull. On Mull, we rushed to be the first group off the boat and boarded our new bus. Allan, our driver, needed a day off today, so Richard was our driver on the island of Mull. He was a hoot! I think he is a stand up comedian posing as a bus driver, and he knew he had a captive audience. He was quite the joker and gave us humorous commentary during the entire trip across Mull (a little over an hour). The ride wasn't far, but it was a very slow process because the roads are only one lane wide! There are frequent little inlets/outlets where cars can pass by, and we used them very frequently. There was more than one instance where we had to back up the bus to let someone through. On the drive, we saw remnants of glaciers (glacial erratics) and single stones sticking up from ancient times. We saw lots of heather (which was only beginning its bloom in some spots).
We took a local ferry ride for about 45 minutes to the island of Mull. On Mull, we rushed to be the first group off the boat and boarded our new bus. Allan, our driver, needed a day off today, so Richard was our driver on the island of Mull. He was a hoot! I think he is a stand up comedian posing as a bus driver, and he knew he had a captive audience. He was quite the joker and gave us humorous commentary during the entire trip across Mull (a little over an hour). The ride wasn't far, but it was a very slow process because the roads are only one lane wide! There are frequent little inlets/outlets where cars can pass by, and we used them very frequently. There was more than one instance where we had to back up the bus to let someone through. On the drive, we saw remnants of glaciers (glacial erratics) and single stones sticking up from ancient times. We saw lots of heather (which was only beginning its bloom in some spots).
Iona
From Mull, we took another ferry to Iona. This trip was about 15 minutes across. On the island, we had a local tour guide bring us through the ruins of a nunnery and then up to the Iona Abby, considered to be the birthplace of Christianity in Scotland. Here, in about 600 AD, Saint Columba made a copy of the Bible which led to a bloody war where thousands were killed over keeping the book safe. Columba was haunted by all those deaths, so he spent the remainder of his life on a mission to convert as many people to Christianity as perished in the battles.
The island was beautiful. We saw the much anticipated long haired cows (which they pronounce Coos).
The island was beautiful. We saw the much anticipated long haired cows (which they pronounce Coos).
Back to Oban
When we got back to Oban, we ate fresh mussels at a stand on the dock area. There was a little stand where the workers literally boil the mussels up for us 20 feet from where they came out of the sea. We even got to watch the process in action. You can’t get them any fresher! After our meal on the waterfront, we picked up some beer, cider and popcorn, dropped it off at our room and then walked up to a local castle. Unfortunately, it was closed. It was still a nice walk. We went back to our room to relax and enjoy another nice sunset from our window. This was an awesome day!