After yesterday’s abortive attempt to visit the island of Rum, today was my final chance to set foot (and bicycle wheels) on OS Map 39 without going out of sequence. Luckily, the weather today came with no colourful warnings, and the Calmac boat sailed with every expectation of bringing me back again today. That would give me almost 2 hours on the island of Eigg, the second largest and most populous of the Small Isles. Phew.
In the negative column we have to list the almost zero visibility today’s weather delivered. You couldn’t see Eigg at all until we were about to dock in its small harbour. As a small child on the boat accurately put it, ”No sky, only cloud.” And you couldn’t see the upper parts of the island at all. They remained elusively shrouded in the white blanket of mist. Nevertheless, I got a feel for the place and had just enough time to cycle across it and back on the island’s only road, a total journey of perhaps nine miles. The road is tiny – about the width of a car – and they don’t really go in for passing places on Eigg. The traffic was very light, fortunately, but a few times in each direction I had to take evasive action as a car or van bore down upon me without any obvious sign that it would stop. I guess local rules apply in places like this.
From what I did see of Eigg, it would certainly be worth another visit in better weather. First let me dispel the notion that it is a flat island. Despite such appearances from the mainland 8 miles away, it most decidedly is not. It may not be mountainous like Rum or Skye; but most of the interior is a raised plateau reached from either side by a short but stiff climb. Even in today’s white murk, you could see from the west coast that inland from the narrow coastal plain rose jagged cliffs adorned with dramatic pinnacles of rock. There was a wide, sweeping white sand bay below these cliffs. Somewhere beyond where I reached today, there is another beach with whistling sand (when you walk on it). There was a sprinkling of houses across both sides of the island, some old and some more modern. They were mostly tucked away in lush grounds. The vegetation was quite un-Hebridean, based on my experiences so far. There was a mixture of trees wherever it was sheltered, while the presence of fuscias in the hedges and orchids by the roadside suggested a mild, damp climate.
As I reached the far side of the island, a couple of grey haired ladies left a property and begin walking up the road pulling small suitcases on wheels behind them. An hour later, I met them again waiting for the ferry to dock. It’s not a big place.
On the way back, the ship sounded its whistle at regular intervals due to the low visibility. Since there was nothing to look at, I ate lunch in the cafeteria. I decided it was time I went for the meal that seems to appear on every Scottish menu: macaroni cheese with chips. This seems like an odd combination to me. Carbohydrate with carbohydrate. The man serving asked me if I wanted peas as well. Very much an optional extra, the way he put it. I thought I had better, for the sake of my health. I have to say though, I really enjoyed it all!
So that ends my association for this trip with OS map 39. It was brief and there were issues; but I liked it. The ferry timetables made it hard to visit the islands for long without staying on them. It gets complicated very quickly.
Now I have another boat trip over to Knoydart and Britain’s most remote pub, in Inverie, the tiny village that is its only settlement. You can only get there by boat from Mallaig, or by walking many tough miles over mountain passes. Inverie just scrapes into the very top of OS map 40, so this is my chance to visit somewhere I have always wanted to go, on the edge of one of the last true areas of wilderness left in Britain. Even if I won’t be able to see it!
One reply on “Map 39 – Eigg white”
Eigg is quite remarkable, at least according to my wife who spent two weeks family camping there in her early teens. No facilities, just a farmers field. Thankfully she had 3 brothers, friends children and a huge jar of sweets which kept them going!