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The Small Isles
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Overlooking Loch Scresort, a sheltered bay halfway up the east
coast where the ferry arrives, sits the reddish form of Kinloch Castle, an extravagant Edwardian dream,
built by wealthy industrialist George Bullough in 1900. It was featured in the BBC 'Restoration' competition in 2003.
Guided tours take place daily for summer 2013 - phone 01687 462 037 to avoid disappointment.
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 Photo copyright Joanne Mackenzie-Winters 2007 - More photos |
It is thought that George Bullough changed the island's original Gaelic name from Rum to Rhum because he didn't want the island associated with the alcholic drink and it was then changed back to its original name in 1991 by the then Nature Conservancy Council.
Kinloch Castle Friends Association, founded in 1996, is a registered Scottish Charity and produces a newsletter.Mountain Leader, Gav Copland, offers guided walks up into the mountains, as well as 4x4 safaris over to Kilmory and Harris for a chance to see the Red Deer, Golden and White Tailed Eagles, the Rum ponies plus the historical and geological sights of the island. Special tours on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the summer are designed to fit between ferry sailings. Connect with him on Facebook.
Accommodation on Rum:
- Camping: there is a basic camping area by the shore of Loch Scresort, with 2 toilets, 2 hot showers, fresh water taps and 2 camping shelters. 10 minutes walk from the ferry terminal. 5 minutes walk from Kinloch Castle. First come, first served. Tel: 01687 462404. Click here for more details. Can get midgey when it's not windy!
- 2 bothies (at Dibidal and Guirdal) run by the Mountain Bothy Association.
- Caravan to let, situated on the shore of Loch Scresort, with stunning views. Sleeps up to 3, possibly 4. Facilities include gas and electricity, cooking facilities, pots and pans, fridge and a nice teapot. Contact Fliss on 01687 462744.
More accommodation options may become available in 2013, please check isleofrum.com for details.
There is a well stocked shop in the village. Apart from groceries it also sells local crafts, postcards, stamps and souvenirs.
The Village Hall is always open for people to use to escape from the rain or midges or both!! A cafe/teashop is available there several afternoons a week during the summer. It offers tea/coffee, cake, soup and other home made food. Phone 01687 462026 to checking opening times.
Rum Crafts has a craft shop on the shoreline near the village.
Rum Bike Hire is available from the craft shop. Contact Fliss Fraser. Tel: 01687 462744The Rum Community Ranger service has a programme of guided walks and talks from Monday - Friday during the summer plus a wildlife cruise and otter watch - tel: 01687 462404.
The otter hide is situated along a path which is easily reachable from the ferry terminal (turn left at the top of the pier).For additional information, visit the new community web site: www.isleofrum.com
For local news, read the report from Rum every month in the local community newspaper West Word.
For Books about Rum - see below.
From 'The Castles of Scotland' series, there is a video which features Kinloch Castle, Edinburgh Castle, Fort George and Culzean Castle - more info.
EIGG
Photo copyright Joanne Mackenzie-Winters 2007 - More photosEigg is the second largest in the Small Isles group. Its distinctive outline is provided by a sloping ridge of lava known as the Sgurr which runs down the island like the backbone of some prehistoric creature. In fact the name Eigg comes from the Gaelic word meaning 'notch'.
If you walk along the road from the pier through the moors, you will reach Laig Bay. About a mile to the north are the Singing Sands of white quartz. There are also a few historic ruins on the island including Iron Age forts, a 6th century Christian church and Viking burial mounds.
The island has been bought and sold several times in the past. Not all of the owners have been particularly liked by the inhabitants whose supplies are transported on the ferry from Mallaig. After many empty promises, the present owner - a German who bought it in 1995 - put the island up for sale. In August 1996, the islanders launched a public appeal to raise money so that Eigg could be properly managed by the islanders themselves in partnership with the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Highland Council. In April 1997 their offer of 1.5 million pounds was finally accepted and they happily took possession on 12 June 1997.
In 1998 a new pierside complex was opened with tea room, post office, grocery store, craft shop and information centre. A minibus meets the ferry and can give you a lift.
Eigg Adventures offers bike hire plus wilderness trips with kayaking, mountain biking and walking. Tel: 01687 315012.The Cleadale Crofting Museum (or Tigh Iain Dhonnachaidh - Gaelic for croft number 6) shows the way people used to live on the island. It is looked after by Eigg History Society in an old blackhouse. Admission free. Donations welcome.
To find out what's happening on the island today, read the news report from Eigg every month in the local community newspaper West Word.
Photos and more info are on the Eigg community web site.Eigg Box will be a workspace on Eigg for island-based artists and creative businesses to share with visiting artists from Scotland and beyond. As well as different sized work spaces, Eigg Box might also have a small exhibition area.
Accommodation on Eigg:
- Sue Kirk, Lageorna, Isle of Eigg PH42 4RL. Tel: 01687 482 405. Self catering cottage, bed and breakfast and restaurant.
- Kildonan House B&B, Isle of Eigg PH42 4RL. 1 double & 2 twin rooms. Contact Marie. Tel: 01687 482 446
- The Glebe Barn. Field Study and Outdoor Centre and self-catering independent hostel (24 beds), 1 mile from harbour. Contact Karen Helliwell. Tel: 01687 482 417.
- Camping at Cleadale (north end of the island) in a designated area. Contact Sue Hollands (tel: 01687 482480).
- Eigg Yurts. Contact Phil Seddon and Clare Miller. Tel: 01687 460317 / Mob: 078 11 078 747
More details about various self catering properties are given on the Eigg community web site.
For Books about Eigg - see below.
MUCK
Photo copyright Joanne Mackenzie-Winters 2010 - More photos
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Run as one large farm, the island is the smallest and flattest of the group, but there is still lots to see and do for those who enjoy getting away from it all. Population around 30.
The craft shop, tearoom and restaurant have a wide range of meals available (tel: 01687 462990 or 01687 460057). The Green Shed sells crafts and offers craft courses. More info and photos of the island:
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 Craft shop & restaurant photo copyright Joanne Mackenzie-Winters 2007 - More photos |
Accommodation on Muck:
- 4 self-catering cottages (sleeping 10, 5, 5-6 and 6-7), plus a replica Mongolian 'Yurt'. Phone 01687 462362 or email info@isleofmuck.com
- Port Mor House Hotel is situated near the pier. It has 8 bedrooms and excellent food. Contact Toby Fichtner-Irvine and Mary MacEwen. Tel: 01687 462365.
- Godag House: Offering full board or B&B, this house is half a mile north of the harbour. Contact Julie MacFadzean - tel: 01687 462371.
- Carn Dearg B&B in Port Mor has 2 bedrooms (1 double & 1 twin). Evening meals are available. Contact David or Libby Barnden - tel: 01687 462363.
- The Bunk House: Basic, comfortable accommodation in 3 bedrooms for individuals or groups. Contact Rosie Soutter. Tel: 01687 462042.
- Camping on the island is free of charge but check at the Craft Shop for good sites.
CANNA
Photo copyright Joanne Mackenzie-Winters 2007 - More photosThe furthest of the Small Isles from the mainland. From afar, it appears small and whale-shaped, with a solitary stack rising out of the sea near the east coast. Currently in the care of the National Trust for Scotland and with a population of around 20. Looking out over to Skye sits Compass Hill, so called because the iron in its basaltic rock affects compasses up to three miles away.
This is a beautifully scenic island and a car is not really needed for exploration (vehicles are only allowed by permit from the National Trust for Scotland).
The Canna Feis (festival) will be 7 - 10 August 2013.The community shop at the pier offers gifts and handmade crafts, as well as hot and cold beverages and snacks. The shop is based on an honesty system and a percentage of the money raised goes back into the community fund and helps support projects based on Canna.
Saint Columba's Presbyterian Church was built in 1913 and has a very nice ornamental wrought-iron gate. Rarely used nowadays, it is called the 'rocket church'. The Roman Catholic church, originally built around 1770 is St Columba's and has a plaque in memory of Margaret Fay Shaw and John Lorne Campbell who lived in Canna House.
Canna House and its amazing archives are open to visitors on certain days.The Canna Local History Group has a useful web site.
Ray Perman, author of The Man Who Gave Away His Island, A Life of John Lorne Campbell of Canna, writes a blog about Canna.
The Canna Community Development Trust has a wealth of info about visiting the island.Connected to Canna by a wooden bridge is the tidal island of Sanday. St. Edward's Chapel is being restored as an arts centre.
Accommodation on Canna:
- Tighard Guest House has 3 double/twin rooms. Tel: 01687 462474.
- The National Trust for Scotland offers self catering on the island.
- Wild camping is available and there are toilets and showers at the farm. For advice on the best places to pitch your tent, call the NTS property manager, Stewart Connor - tel: 01687 462963.
Books about Canna:
- Canna: The Story of a Hebridean Island was written by former owner John Lorne Campbell who deeded the island to the National Trust for Scotland. Available as a paperback from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.
- His widow, an American lady called Margaret Fay Shaw (Campbell), who lives in Canna House, wrote her autobiography From the Alleghenies to the Hebrides. First published in 1995, it is recommended as a very good read. It is available from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk (January 2000 paperback edition).
- The Man Who Gave Away His Island: A Life of John Lorne Campbell of Canna is a biography by Ray Perman.
Books
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The Small Isles
For many a spectacular skyline and magnificent scenery is their first awareness of the islands off Arisaig and Mallaig, yet their history is as central as their geographic situation to the story of the Hebrides. It was their misfortune that economic change and historical accident led to their marginalisation and the loss of so much of that extraordinary past. This is the first book ever to be written on the collective history of these 4 islands. It provides a wide ranging, fresh and provocative analysis of these islands and their history. Includes maps, population tables, details of stone crosses, some b/w photos. Author: Denis Rixson. Paperback. 223 pages. Published in June 2001. Order your copy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk |
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Rum: Island of Deer
This new book by John A. Love reveals the human story of the island of Rum, both in the tragedy of the clearance and in the interlude of the Bullogh period when the folly at Kinloch was built. It also covers the history of the island stretching back to the mesolithic period and the earliest settlements in Scotland. Includes sections of old b/w photos, colour photos and portraits. Hardcover. 317 pages. Published in July 2001. Order your copy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk |
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Rum: Nature's Island
Review by HIGHLAND NEWS: If you have already been to Rum, then this book will make you return. If you have never been to Rum you will just have to go to this magical island. Written by Magnus Magnusson and published in co-operation with Scottish Natural Heritage to mark the 40th anniversary of the acquisition of Rum by its predecessor, The Nature Conservancy. Description by the publisher: Thoroughly researched and written in a lively accessible style, the book includes comprehensive coverage of the island's geology, animals and plants, and people, with a special chapter on the Edwardian extravaganza of Kinloch Castle. There is practical information for visitors to what was once known as the Forbidden Isle; the book provides details of bothy and other accommodation, walks and nature trails. It closes with a positive vision for the island's future: biologically diverse, economically dynamic and ecologically sustainable. Order your copy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk |
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Eigg: the Story of an Island
Written by Camille Dressler (a French resident on the island). Following the ownership battle for the island in 1997, this text tells the story of Eigg, from its earliest inhabitants to the present, detailing its recently-acquired independence and community ownership. The book draws extensively on oral history from the islanders themselves and from local archives, with stories of clans, pastimes, wartime, childhood and crofting. Paperback. 228 pages. Order your copy from Amazon.co.uk |
Other accommodation is available on the mainland around Mallaig, Morar and Arisaig.
See the Road to the Isles web site accommodation page.
External Links:
The Hebridean Trust
Local news from the islands each month
Small Isles DVD by Cinescene
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