Tuesday, September 27

On Tuesday we were supposed to take a bus tour of the Isle of Mull & then on to Iona but the winds were so high that the ferry crossings from Mull to Iona were cancelled. This was a big disappointment for us, especially for Catherine, but there was nothing we could do about other than to make the best of the situation.

We thought about taking the ferry to Mull & then travelling to the Town of Tobermory for the day but with the wind constantly gusting over 50 mph Catherine was not keen on braving the waves–even on a sizeable boat.

We decided to take a walking tour of Oban & to start with a tour of Dunollie Castle which sits up on a high hill just outside the townsite.

The castle was built over 1,400 years ago. It’s basically a stone tower surrounded by stone walls. For safety reasons we could only enter the base of the tower. It must have taken an incredible amount of effort to quarry & then lug all of those stones up the hill.

After our tour of the castle we walked along the shoreline & enjoyed the views. There are several small islands close to Oban. The ferries have to weave their way through the channels on the way to Mull & the other islands. One of the closest ones has a fairly large marina but ther was nobody out sailing on this day in such high winds!

There are lots of hotels & B&Bs in Oban & the architecture is very attractive. Here’s a photo of the hotel where we were staying.

I really loved the architecture in Oban. The Town has done a great job preserving its heritage.

People living & working in Oban must be Innovative & multitalented as the photo below shows. I couldn’t resist taking a photo of this business sign. A “Joiner” is essentially a craftsman who does fine woodwork such as cabinets, furniture and, in this case, caskets! So, if you can make nice caskets why not offer the rest of the services that go with it! This gives a whole new meaning to the concept of vertically integrated businesses.

And now we say goodbye to Oban & head north to Inverness.

Cheers!