. . . Ben More, the solemn mountain,
Picture an island about thirty miles long at its greatest, and about thirty miles broad at its wildest, measurements. If its coast-line were the circumference of a circle, that line would measure about ninety-five miles. But it really amounts to about three hundred miles. If the island were a complete circle such as has been imagined, its area would be about seven hundred square miles, whereas it is only about four hundred and fifty. That is the Isle of Mull, and the explanation of the difference is that the island is eaten into all round the coast by great indentations, which give a wonderful beauty and variety to the scenery.
Seen from Oban or from the hills around Oban it is very striking. On a dull day the mountains stand up black and forbidding; in sunshine they appear green and inviting. Seen from within, its character is comprised in mountains, glens, rivers, lochs and bays.
The Sound of Mull makes the island easily accessible from Oban, as it has landing-places at Craignure, Salen, and Tobermory, where there is an expansive natural harbour, surrounded by rising ground beautifully wooded, the entrance to which is guarded by Calla Island.
There is comparatively little arable land on the island, by far the greater part of the surface being hill pasture for sheep. Although there are many crofts, the island cannot be described as a crafting island, and accordingly the accommodation for visitors is limited. Bunessan is a picturesque little town on the west side, nestling at the head of Loch na Lathaich, a branch of Loch Scridain.
In spite of the mountainous character of the island, every part of it is accessible, and the roads are remarkably good. From Tobermory an excellent road runs to Craignure. From Tobermory to Salen it is ten miles, from Salen to Craignure fifteen miles, where it turns away from the Sound and passes the head of Loch Don at the charmingly placed village of Loch-donhead. Thence it continues past Loch Spelve, an arm of the sea with an extremely narrow entrance. When the road reaches Kinlochspelve it carries on by the side of the most beautiful of the Mull Lochs, Loch Uisg, until it reaches Loch Buie.
The road ceases when it reaches Loch Buie, although a farm-road carries on another couple of miles to Glenbyre, a favourite farm for walkers.
The finest stretch of road in Mull is from Salen across the island to the head of Loch na Keal, to Knock. It is only about four miles, and at that point good roads continue along the north side of the loch towards Ulva and Gometra, and along the south side to the Ardmeanach peninsula, the wildest part of Mull. A part of this south road is noted for its numerous falls of rock at Gribun, and the road is occasionally completely blocked. It is simply the old pilgrim track of the Middle Ages, surfaced with small stones, and widened a bit. Motor-cars are constantly running over it now, the way to the sacred isle of Iona.
Once through the glen – which is not a difficult pass- the road to Iona Ferry passes along the north side of the Ross of Mull. This is the south side of Loch Scridain, a great arm of the sea. Along the road there is a magnificent view of the cliffs on the north side of the loch, with their long parallel striations at different levels, made by the ancient glaciers.
Where the Iona road reaches Loch Scridain, Ben More, the highest mountain of Mull, rises gradually to its 3169 feet, not in frowning majesty, but in quiet easy dignity. Here is the home of the golden eagle.
Ben More is the mother of Mull. Its present height is little in comparison with its period glory when it rose 15000 feet as a volcano with a base forty miles in circumference.
There are three outstanding rivers – Forsa and Lussa flowing into the Sound, and the Colodoir flowing into Loch Scridain on the west. The two last mentioned flow down opposite slopes of Glen More.
The fresh-water lochs are the beauty spots of the island. Loch Frisa in the north is the largest and easily reached from Tobermory and Salen. It is nearly five miles long, and presents an attractive picture as we look down upon it from the side of one of the low hills. Loch Ba, three miles long, empties into Loch na Keal by its River Ba, which flows parallel with the shore for nearly two miles as if it hesitated to take the plunge. For absolute pictorial beauty this loch and Loch Uisg are supreme in the island.
Besides the large islands, the ocean just off the west coast is dotted with innumerable small islands, some of them hardly more than rocks, which seem to indicate the edge of a continent which has collapsed. Off Mull, by far the most interesting is Iona, because of its association with St Columba. It is less than three and a half miles long, separated from Mull by a channel hardly a mile broad.
The great attraction is in the ancient ecclesiastical buildings, but they are hundreds of years later than the time of the famous Irish saint who founded the Christian settlement. The oldest building is St Oran’s Chapel, which has a beautifully decorated arched doorway similar to that of St Margaret of Scotland, wife of King Malcolm Canmore and sister of Edgar Atheling, the Saxon Prince who ought to have been King of England.
The date of the earliest part of the Abbey Church, or Cathedral, is definitely known as 1203, from an inscription on the capital of a column opposite the pulpit.
On a good summer day a charming view is obtained from Iona, looking north, of the Coolin Hills of Skye bathed in a violet haze in the far distance; Coll and Tiree in the near distance; and Staffa about six miles away. Besides its striking Fingal’s Cave, Staffa has on its summit an ancient chapel which few people ever see.
From the south coast of Mull can be seen the isle of Colonsay, with the dark mass of Isla behind it. A view can also be obtained of the hills of Jura. Colonsay has attached to it at low water the little Oronsay, with very beautiful ecclesiastical remains on it.
Inchkenneth, a very small island just off the Gribun shore of Mull, has the remains of a very interesting little church, and a churchyard which contains some delightful sculptured stones, and an ancient Celtic Cross.
Many of these places are difficult to reach but the most difficult is one of the really most interesting islands in those seas – “The Garvelloch Islands” or “Islands of the Sea.” The one which lies farthest south and bears the name “Aileach an Naoimh” is difficult to land on, and impossible to leave if the wind rises.
This island contains the remains of a Christian settlement older than St Columba’s, and said to be St Brendan’s, although Columba’s name is also connected with it by a well which rises just a few feet from high-water mark – “Tobar Challum-cille.” It formed an adjunct to the community of Iona – a place of more austere retirement and meditation. The island bears signs of great fertility, and many medicinal herbs which monks introduced still grows wild.