The castle in the bay at Castlebay
I slept badly despite being so tired. After breakfast, our friends Toby and Kerry arrived to join us for a walk. Since it was a drizzly morning with low cloud, they drove us back to their home in Taynuilt for a very pleasant low-level walk. Kerry, a herbalist, remarked on the variety and abundance of wild flowers and the tree population with species that could equally be found in southern England. One of them hosted a red squirrel, my first ever sighting.
They returned us to Oban in time for the five hour crossing to the Isle of Barra. We were astonished at the number of bikes, which matched and possibly surpassed the car population of the vessel. We sat on deck for a while as it was warm and dry by now, though still cloudy. We enjoyed the marvellous scenery through the Sound of Mull between the eponymous island and the Ardnamurchan peninsula before we were forced inside by the returning mist and consequent drop in temperature.
We watched a trio of dolphins leaping a short distance away alongside the
ship. On landing, we made straight for the nearby Castlebay Hotel, where we
ate and slept.