10th – 11th August 2023
The island of Mull is a beautiful destination located just off the western coast of the Scottish Highlands. Whilst I’d actually been there before, I was only a small child and thus could not remember anything about it. My parents have mentioned it quite a few times in the intervening years as a nice place to visit, so this summer we all took the car and headed there. If you want to read about our whistle-stop two day trip to Mull, then please carry on…
Contents:
Exploring the north-west coast
Getting there
To get to Mull you need to take a ferry from one of the three ports:
- Kilchoan, which goes to Tobermory on Mull.
- Lochaline, which goes to Fishnish.
- Oban, which goes to Craignure.
The latter of these options is the main connection, and that is the one we took. With Oban being the main port, however, it is also the most popular. So, if you are travelling during the summer months or on a weekend it would be better to book a ferry well in advance, as it can get very busy. Tickets can be booked on the CalMac website; which can also be used to track the status of the ferry. Whilst we were there, the Lochaline ferry wasn’t running, so it was lucky we’d decided to go via Oban.
Taking a car is probably the way to go on Mull, but if you are unable to do so or you don’t fancy all of the single track roads, there are buses that operate on the island. In this instance, to actually get to the ferry at Oban you do have a few options, which are discussed on this website.
Given that we were only going to Mull for one night, we wanted to take full advantage of the days we had, which meant getting up very early to drive down to Oban for one of the early morning ferries. You are advised to get there half an hour before your scheduled departure, but even though we were actually earlier than that, there was already a fair few cars lined up. The ticket office has places to sit and wait if you wish and there is also a small shop, but unfortunately it wasn’t open for the early morning departures.
The ferry itself has both inside and outside areas in which you can either sit or stand. We decided to stay outside and were rewarded straight out of the harbour, when an inquisitive seal poked its head up to have a look.
Oban itself also looks nice as you’re sailing away, and it’s not too long until you’re passing the picturesque Lismore Lighthouse. At this point a small pod of dolphins started jumping out of the water. It was too far away to get a good photo but it was still amazing to watch. I know Mull is famed for it’s wildlife, but we hadn’t even docked yet!
For the next point of interest, you want to be on the left hand-side of the boat, facing forwards – apparently this is ‘port’, but maybe one of you who knows anything about boats can confirm it for me? Anyway, if you’re on the side closest to Mull, you’ll see a prominent castle perched majestically on top of the hillside by the sea. Now, movie-watchers of a certain age might recognise it as the place that a certain thieving duo trained to steal a priceless Chinese mask… Even if you haven’t watched the movie, the sight alone of Duart Castle is pretty spectacular. I’ll mention this place more further down the page.
After passing the castle, it is not too much further until you dock at Craignure.
Exploring the north-west coast
Given that we had arrived on Mull pretty early, we could not check-in to our hotel and places such as Duart Castle were not yet open. Our plan was to go straight to the track leading up to Mull’s highest mountain, Ben More. After walking up and down the mountain, we could check in, drop off our stuff, and then proceed with our afternoon. However, as we approached Mull on the ferry, we could see there was a layer of low cloud that was just sat on top of the hills. The forecast didn’t suggest that it would change, so we abandoned this plan and instead asked for advice from our hotel reception. The result was that we decided to explore the north-west coast of the island.
We started by taking the A849 north from Craignure to the little village of Salen. Now don’t get complacent by the mention of it being an ‘A-road’; it is still a one-track road in places (mainly north of Salen) but what makes it an A-road here is that it generally has a reasonable surface and has larger passing places than other roads on Mull, or that’s what it seemed like to us anyway. In Salen, we stopped at The Coffee Pot, which is a small cafe that makes very nice freshly baked pies and cakes (there was other stuff as well but that’s what we can comment on). From Salen, we branched off and took the B8035 west across the island until we reached a fork. If we’d gone left (and south) we would have ended up at the starting point for the Ben More hike. However, we could still see the layer of cloud perched on the mountains, so instead we went north and onto the B8073. This one-track road is the only really way to access the north-west of the island.
Whilst tricky to drive on due to its narrow nature, the beauty of the road was that at any curve or crest of a hill, you didn’t know what amazing view was going to open up ahead of you. It wasn’t long before we were stopping to take in the views and have a little walk by the sea. Whilst it can be hard to draw your eyes from the deep blue sea and rocky shoreline, make sure you also take a moment to look up. Mull is a great success story in terms of the reintroduction of the white-tailed eagle, which had become extinct in Scotland since 1918. Looking up from our position on the beach we could see the eagle-shaped dots soaring high above us. In the early morning rush, we had managed to leave our binoculars on the living-room table, but using the zoom on our cameras we were able to confirm the identity of the white-tailed eagles, even if the blurry photos were not good enough to be posted here. Just being able to watch them, however, was amazing.
We carried on driving, briefly parking when we were able to enjoy the view, until we reached our next major stop. We actually nearly missed it and ended up doing a turn in the road to get back to the little carpark that acts as the only indicator that you’ve reached Eas Fors Waterfall. If you walk up the hill away from the road, you reach a pretty waterfall nestled amongst the trees. You can also make your way up a trail to get to the top.
Once you’re finished at this point, don’t forget to cross the road and follow the river down. You come across another picturesque cascade with a pool that you could go in if you wished, before carrying on down the path. At this point you need to be aware, as you suddenly reach the edge of a cliff. You can carefully make your way to the edge, where you can see the water plummeting down to the beach below. The whole waterfall is definitely a stop you should be making when you’re exploring Mull.
The next stop was the famous Calgary Beach. You may be familiar with the name, given that Calgary in Canada is named after this small point on Mull, or it could be that you’re familiar with it due to the beach often cropping up in lists for the best beaches in Scotland. Whether you’ve heard of it or not, it’s certainly worth a look. Beautiful white sand, crystal clear waters and all framed by green and purple hills, you could be forgiven for thinking you were somewhere much more tropical. It all looked so amazing that we were even persuaded to go for a dip. However, the freezing water quickly reminded us that we were not somewhere in the Caribbean. It was definitely worth it though. We couldn’t believe how clear the water was. Even when it was up to our chests we could easily see a crab scuttling by on the sand at our feet. After getting out and drying off, the beach also made a lovely point to sit, have a snack and relax. In fact the only negative I can think off about the beach is that you might struggle to find a parking spot!
From Calgary Bay, we could have carried on along the ‘main road’ towards Tobermory, the biggest town on Mull. We decided, however, to save that for the following day and instead took a more direct route back through the centre of the island. This road branches off to the right of the B8073 just before Kilmore Church at Dervaig. The views from this road were nothing to write home about but it meant we swiftly got back to just north of Salen. At this point we drove past the Salen show. This is an agricultural show that is held once a year. But by the time we were passing by it was on it’s way to finishing, so we decided to give it a miss.
Duart Castle
We had one last destination to visit on that first day, and that was Duart Castle. We had considered visiting the castle when we first arrived in the morning, but we weren’t sure whether the 10:30am opening time applied to just the castle or also the grounds. It turned out that it was just the castle itself and you could easily access the grounds at any point. In fact, we were recommended to come during the evening, as that is the time you’re more likely to see the deer that come down from the hills. We were still too early for that, but we still very much enjoyed having a walk around the castle and admiring the views. We decided not to pay to tour the inside of the castle, preferring to just stay outside and see it from there. The pathway goes down from the entrance to the castle and snakes its way along the shoreline before popping back up next to the carpark. The views both of the castle and looking out back towards the mainland were spectacular, and the only downside was that there was scaffolding on part of the castle. Also, whilst it’s hard to take your eyes off the views, be careful where you’re stepping – I very nearly squashed a frog that hopped away just in time.
This was the last action of the first day on Mull, as we spent the evening having a meal and drink at the local pub before collapsing in a tired heap in the hotel. The pub in Craignure does get very busy, so it’s better to get there earlier. Whilst we were early enough to get a table, they had stopped taking orders to allow the kitchens to catch up. We were eventually able to order and the food ended up being very nice.
It had been an amazing day.
Otter spotting at Croggan
We had an interesting morning as the chef at the hotel decided to quit mid-shift. So we had a very apologetic waiter explaining that the Full-Scottish breakfasts would be a while. We hadn’t had too much luck with food on our visit! But the food was lovely when it came, although I’m not completely convinced about having haggis for breakfast.
After getting packed up we were back in the car, and this time heading south towards the hamlet of Croggan. You go down the A849 for a while until you come to an arm of Loch Spelve. Just after passing the water there is a left-turn and Croggan is signposted. You carry on down the side of the loch, before another left turn that takes you towards Croggan. This road is very small and is rarely used apart from by the locals. We came across some of these as we had to stop and wait as a couple of very friendly farmers had to move their herd of cows off the road.
Whilst Croggan was the destination (and the end of the road) it was actually this coastline leading to it that we were interested in. We’d been told that this was prime otter-spotting territory. So any passengers at this point should be keeping their eyes peeled. And after a while we got lucky, spotting a head bobbing along before disappearing back under the water. A little while longer the head popped up again, this time further down the coast. Luckily, we found a place to leave the car and followed it down the road. Whilst you shouldn’t disturb the otter by going down to the beach, it was close enough to the land that we could still get a good view from the road. At one point it even briefly came onto land in between the rocks, before quickly scuttling back to the water. I’d never seen an otter in the wild before, so it was a cool experience.
Despite having achieved our main goal of heading down there, we still carried onto Croggan. It is only a few houses and a tiny abandoned school, but it has a very picturesque setting on the loch and even has an old red telephone box. The views over the water were really lovely, so we spent quite a while here just strolling along the shore before starting the journey back the way we had come.
Tobermory
No trip to Mull is complete without a trip to the ‘capital’ – Tobermory. Unfortunately, half of Scotland seemed to have the same idea. So after we’d made our way up north we were faced will a completely full carpark and promenade. After consulting Google Maps, we were able to make our way up the hill to the residential part of the town and found space just in a normal street. It then took another 10 minutes or so to walk back to the seafront, but it’s worth keeping that area in mind given how busy Tobermory can get.
The place itself is just a small fishing town but it has a lovely main street, backed by colourful buildings situated along the edge of the horse-shoe shaped bay. We walked along the street, peering in the windows of the multitude of gift shops, until we reached the dock at the end. On the way back, we popped into the little shop operated by the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust. At the back of the shop there is a little room where you can learn about the different cetaceans that inhabit the waters near by. It was a nice little stop, and inspired us to find out more about the Hebridean Whale Trail before our next trip to these parts. We finished our trip by getting some fish and chips. Well, Radka got fish and chips whilst I got battered haggis. It’s not something I’d intended getting but it sounded so stereotypically Scottish that I had to act the tourist and give it a try. And as crazy as it sounds, it turned out to be pretty tasty.
Sadly, this was our last activity before heading back south to Craignure for our ferry. We had time for a quick drink and then it was back on the water to start our long trip back.
It may have been a very quick visit, but we had a lovely time on Mull. The combination of beautiful landscapes and lots of varied wildlife make the island a fantastic place to visit. It has certainly made us want to explore the islands of the Hebrides to a much greater extent.
Things to do next time
There was no way that we could even scratch the surface of everything there is to do on Mull in just two days. We gave it a good try but there were still activities we would have liked to have done if we’d had more time. So we’ll just have to save them for next time.
As I mentioned earlier, one of the main things we’d planned on doing on Mull was to climb Ben More. This is the highest mountain on Mull and on a nice day is supposed to give amazing views across the island. There is apparently more than one way to tackle the mountain depending on your hiking level, and they have been summarised quite nicely on this blog.
Another activity that we’d thought about doing was going on a whale-watching tour. Summer is apparently the best season for spotting whales off the coast of Mull and there are regular trips leaving from Tobermory. We were lucky enough to spot dolphins just from the ferry, but I can imagine it would have been cool to take part on one of these trips.
The last activity I would have liked to have done was a day trip to the Isle of Staffa. This island houses the interesting Fingal’s Cave as well as being home to a colony of puffins. We would never have had time for this trip but the main reason we didn’t seriously consider it this time was that we didn’t go in puffin season – so make sure you check your dates coincide if this is something you’d like to do.
Thanks for reading this post and if any of you have suggestions for things we’ve missed, then please add then to the linked blog post.
Brit and Czech Abroad 