Mull from Kerrera

Historic Scotland will tell you that Gylen Castle (just out of frame, left) was built in the 16th century. Don't believe a word of it. Locals know that the romantic ruin was constructed in the 1980s with the intention of attracting visitors to what was previously a remote spot favoured by Howard Marks who landed large shipments of Colombian marijuana there before the operation was rumbled by the Customs and Excise.

Determined to prevent the south end of Kerrera being used for this purpose again, they flooded the area with knapsacked pedestrians with a taste for history. But as the tourists dangle their hairy legs from the clifftop and count out the islands on the horizon, from Scarba to Colonsay, one cannot help thinking: what exactly are they drinking from their thermos flasks?