Over the water

Another scorcher today - we decided to take the small passenger ferry to the north end of Kerrera, the island that lies across the mouth of Oban Bay. The usual ferry route is further south, but this ferry, which leaves from Oban's North Pier and takes you to the marina on Kerrera, has only recently become more frequent and better known.

The Kerrera boatyard was a flying boat base in WW2 and quite a few old buildings, bomb dumps and slipways still exist. We walked up to the Hutcheson monument, an obelisk erected 'by a grateful public' in 1883, to David Hutcheson, who began the steamship company which later became Caledonion MacBrayne, which run ferries to most of the Hebridean islands to this day. My Blip today is a view of the 'Isle of Lewis', inbound from the Isle of Barra, taken from the opposite side to my usual pictures! The beach at Little Ganavan can be seen in the background.

Today's extra shows Ardantrive Bay on Kerrera, with the old slipways and war-time buildings still visible.

We had lunch outside under a shade at the Waypoint Grill, followed by a wander through meadows of wild flowers, including orchids, before taking the later ferry back to Oban. It was a steep and hot walk home, but how many folk can enjoy walking and lunching on a peaceful island after a ten minute walk and a ten minute boat ride!