Mornish Morning Meander

Sunday early morning after a night on the uisge beatha from the distillery at Tobermory (recommended). It's cool and the wind is blowing hard but it's not raining, and we might even get some sunshine. I'm thinking of a longer meander around the Mornish peninsula starting and finishing outside our self-catering at Calgary Farmhouse (also recommended). I'll start on the Calgary Art in Nature woodland walk here, then head inland over the small hills, off to the north-west tip of Mull at Caliach Point, and return as much as possible around the coast on the raised seabed.

Calgary Farmhouse

Woodland Walk

Sculpture - igloo?

Sculpture - tunnel?

Sculpture - stag!

Heading uphill on woodland trail paths

The trail reaches a small summit and I can see the hills above. There is a little sunshine now and the colours are wonderful. I'll climb a few fences and head up over the tops here. It's rough marshy boggy ground underfoot but I don't mind today. I startle a a few small groups of deer. The views to the east and the north are excellent. I can make out Langamull Beach from here, perhaps I've been going a little too much in a northerly direction. I need to stop and remove my jacket, so it's a good time to check the map now.

The hills above and wonderful colours

Marshy boggy ground

I've startled a small group of deer

Fine views to the east and more deer

Views to the North

I need to turn a bit to the east toward Caliach Point, but first I'll stop off at a Standing Stone marked on the map. I continue on rough marshy ground following the overhead electric wires which lead to Caliach Farm near the point. There are more deer running away across the tops of the crags to my left. Soon Caliach Point comes into sight and it's a beauty. I'm a little nervous working through a herd of highland cattle with calves near Caliach Farm, the cattle also seem nervous. The views toward Caliach Point and to the north are sublime here.

Standing stone

Following the overhead power lines toward Caliach

Deer running away on top of the crags

Isolation

Caliach Point and farm

Careful around the cattle

Sea cliffs at Caliach Point ...

... with fine views to the north.

It's a bit of a slog up to the top of Caliach Point but well worth the effort. Today visibility is pretty good. To the east in the distance we see Coll and Tiree. To the south Staffa and the uninhabited Treshnish islands. I turn south here and head back toward Calgary along the coast along an undulating route, with occasional spectacular views of the sea crashing onto the rocks below. The're a stiff wind to my face and it's hard work along this section of the run, but that's okay, the sun is shining and the scenery is superb.

Summit of Caliach Plateua, views of Coll and Tiree to the east ...

... Staffa and the Treshnish islands to the south.

Waves crash onto rocks below

The undulating route goes down ...

... and up for a few miles here.

There are charming steep sided coves, and sometimes the cliffs relent allowing me to get nearer to sea level for a moment. I reach a prominent rocky outcrop which is a landmark on the route today. Soon I shall rejoin and reverse the paths I took coming away from Calgary Bay a couple of days ago.

Small steep sided cove

The cliffs relent and I can approach sea level

This rocky outcrop is a landmark for me today

Rugged coastal scenery

I'm enjoying running along the raised sea bed here in the sunshine with views of the waves crashing over the rocks below to my right. The path soon returns me to Calgary Bay where I pass through a very tall kissing gate back onto the Woodland Walk bringing me back to Calgary Farmhouse.

Nice running along raised seabed in the sunshine ...

... with views of blue seas and waves crashing onto rocks below.

I'm soon back at Calgary Bay ... 

... and through a tall kissing gate back onto the Woodland Walk

I've had a marvellous outing this morning, sometimes easy, sometimes hard, but always the sights have been a feast for my eyes, the sounds of nature music to my ears, and the smell of the sea air was wonderful. I've gone about 15.5km and overall the climb was about 450m. I've been on the go for a little over two hours and I never saw a soul from the moment I left Calgary Farmhouse until I reached Calgary Bay almost two hours later.

Update: I've uploaded the complete photo set from this outing here.

Enjoy!

Calgary Bay

Friday early morning, the winds of last night are gone, the rain is light, little more than drizzle. While seven slumber in their beds, one is heading out for a bit of a scamper by Calgary Bay, in the north-east of the Isle of Mull.

I'm starting from a small car park by the beach at Calgary Bay. Sheep are grazing on the machair above the beach. This is a beautiful place. To the right there's a track running along the coast toward an old stone pier. The track turns right leading uphill to a sheepwash and there I leave to the left on a small footpath around the south of the Mornish peninsula. The terrain is delightful. The scenery is stunning.

Sheep grazing on the machair

Calgary Bay

Calgary Bay

Track from Calgary Bay along the Mornish peninusla

Nice view over the sands of Calgary Bay

The old stone pier

Track turns and ascends

Leading to a good small footpath

Stepping stones

Delightful terrain 

Stunning scenery

Standing stone

The sun is making a valiant but fruitless effort to break through the clouds this morning. The rain is a little heavier but I don't mind, I'm really enjoying myself this morning. What a fantastic contrast with the conditions in Pune last week. I'm continuing around the peninsula and turning north. There are lots of small clusters of abandoned dwellings here. The inhabitants must had led hard hard lives, in these small stone houses, in this wild and isolated place, exposed to the force of the elements.

The Sun tries to shine through the clouds

Turning to the north along the peninsula

Abandoned dwellings

Abandoned dwellings

The scenery continues to captivate me. The track I'm following turns and ascends to the right of this prominent rocky outcrop. The ground higher up is waterlogged but I don't care, my feet can not get more wet now anyway. There are more abandoned dwellings here. I'm going to cross the fence and then continue ascending on sheep tracks and rough ground. I don't have much clue where I am or which direction I should go, but no matter, I'll just keep going up for now. Hacking through the heather on the high ground Calgary Bay comes into sight below. This is good, I now have a vague idea where I am, and in which direction to continue.

The track ascends here to the right of the prominent rocky outcrop

The ground here is waterlogged, nice and soft

More abandoned dwellings

Ascending on rough ground

Calgary Bay comes into sight below

I'm running over rough ground and sometimes sheep tracks above the crags heading back toward the beach. I just love this kind of running. I can see the sheepwash above the old stone pier down below me, I could descend here, but I've got plenty of time, so it's up again for me, then down the other side I drop onto a farm track and there's another cluster of abandoned dwellings. The farm track turns to the right and descends past the sheepwash returning me on the track back to the beach car park.

Heading back toward the beach on rough ground ...

...and sheep tracks

The sheepwash by the old stone pier is below me ...

...but I'll head up here and then down the other side.

I drop onto a farm track and there are more abandoned dwellings ahead

I've descended to the track back to the beach car park

I can't resist the sight of white sands and the sound of the sea, I'm going to run across the bay on the sand, and return on the machair. The tide is well out, the exposed sand still wet is great underfoot. I meet some folk on the beach at the other side of bay, and receive some kind assistance with the camera.

I cant resist the sight of the white sand ...

... and the sound of the sea

The exposed wet sand is great underfoot

I've had a brilliant morning outing of running and exploring and perhaps a little too much time spent snapping. The terrain has been great, the views have been wonderful. I've been going for about eighty minutes, at an easy pace, and I've done a little under 10km, with about 330m of climb.

Update: I've uploaded the complete photo set from this outing here.

Enjoy!

Kildavie and Langamull Beach

Today we've travelled from Edinburgh to the Isle of Mull for a long weekend. I feel like I'd been behind the wheel forever, and although it's a very wet and very windy late afternoon, I'm out for a wee stretch of the legs and my first little exploration on Mull.

There's a small car park off the B8073 between Dervaig and Calgary. From here I'm heading to the north on forestry tracks. There's tree felling work in progress here with great piles of logs on the sides of the track,   acres of stumps and stripped branches on the ground. The rain is falling and there's a strong wind behind me at the moment, I'm feeling good. After a few minutes I reach the end of the forestry track and I've no choice but to stumble over the acres of stripped branches. This doesn't feel so good but soon I reach a clear area with the ruins of the old (perhaps ancient) village of Kildavie.

Today I start from the car park on forestry roads ...

... there's tree felling work in progress here.

I've reached the end of the road and I have to stumble across this stuff ...

... to the clearing where we find the remains of the village Kildavie

There's a pretty little stream flowing past Kildavie in the general direction I want, so I'm happily running along the edge until the way forward is blocked by felled trees. I have some more stumbling until I reach a small area of more natural woodland. Now sharp branches are dense and stumbling is replaced with crawling until I reach a fence and tracks on the other side. This is a deer fence, tall and weak, I cannot get over, so more crawling until I  find a point strong enough to clamber over, and onto the track at last hallelulijah.

Some runnable track at last ...

... soon leads to lovely running terrain.

I'm happy running down toward the coast now and it seems like no time at all before I reach Langamull Beach. It's a pretty place, white sand formed from sea shells, and black rock. I seem to have acquired a smudge on the lens of the camera, but I'll plough on with the photo-blog anyway today.

Langamull Beach

Liking the coastal running thing now 

Black rocks ...

... and white sands.

Despite the earlier stumbling and crawling I've a little spare time so I decide to run along the headland to the east for a while, and then head back toward the south of the forestry on rough ground, through the orange/brown of the dead bracken. I reach a wide stream with slippery stepping stones ... luckily I do not end up in the water. I'm soon back on the tracks, the wind has picked up a lot, and it's right into my face, this is hard work now. I'm back onto the forest traks and more tall piles of logs. Just a few hundred metres from the car park there are warning signs telling not to go where I've just been ... oh well!

Headland to the east of Langamull Beach

Wonderful rough ground on return

Slippery steeping stones

More tree felling work here

Warning, warning, don't go here  ;-)

This was an alright run today, good to explore somewhere new, and a beautiful beach. Not so good the stumbling over brances of trunks stripped in the forestry works, and likewise the crawling through woodland. The head wind on return was very hard work, but, hey ho, good exercise, and variety is the spice of life. I went out to exercise the legs after hours of driving, and for sure the lags have been exercised. I've done about 8km this afternoon, a small climb of about 150m, running and stumbling and crawling for just under an hour. I feel so much better now than I did getting out from behind the wheel a couple of hours ago this afternoon.

Enjoy!