Читать книгу The Isle of Mull. Mull, Ulva, Gometra, Iona and Erraid онлайн

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Calgary Bay (Walk 1.9)

Geologically, Mull’s origins are violently volcanic, but dramatised in such a complex evolution that the island is the stuff of dreams for geologists. The visiting walker soon comes to realise that it is this underlying foundation, the bones of the island, that provides a landscape both varied and demanding, blessed with considerable beauty and diversity. High (and not-so-high) mountains, remote glens, coastal paths along raised beaches, forest walks and island treks make Mull one of the most resource-full of the Scottish islands for the walker. Although a great deal of the coastline is rugged and rocky, in the south-west there are splendid beaches of glistening shell sand set against machair lands and sheltered crofting communities.

Like much of western Scotland, especially the islands, Mull has seen its share of that shadowy period in Scottish history known as ‘the Clearances’, but on Mull, the story of depopulation is not as clear-cut as elsewhere. Surprisingly, perhaps, for an island so close to mainland Scotland, Mull is relatively undeveloped, with few of the ‘town’ facilities and services of Oban. You come to Mull to escape and to enjoy its fundamental simplicity, for that is its charm. And the exploration of the winding narrow roads, all of them feeding into heathered and loch-filled glens, is the island’s greatest pleasure.