A pilgrimage in search of a burger

I was understandably unenthusiastic about joining the christians on their Hajj to Iona after  recently watching and groaning my through The Way starring Martin Sheen.

If you have any inkling to walk to Santiago de Compostela, see that film and leave the shell on the beach.

The first trip to Iona was aborted at Fionnphort as the skipper feared the shipping forecast which predicted putting in a full day's work. You just don't get that reluctance on the IoW Red Funnel do you?

I was shocked to find mobile signal had come to Iona and missed Mull, so I immediately declared a miracle for consideration by the Vatican.

I am missing mobile far more than a flush toilet without traces of sawdust on the seat.

Everyone piled off the ferry disappeared into a mandatory gift shop, abbey, church or Spar leaving me to have my first spiritual moment alone with my mobile to say hi to my daughter.

I did the obligatory circuit of thousand year old Celtic crosses, monasteries and churches whilst avoiding conversation with anyone likely to share their rapture or speak in tongues.

I suspect I was a mountain goat in a previous life as I legged it quickly up the side of Dùn Ì to get spectacular views over the island.  No obvious sign of paths but time was on my side to exit down the other side to improvise a way back over barbed wire fences.

Having eaten so healthily for so many days in a row, I was driven to hunt down some unhealthy food and succeeded by sharing the love by paying £10 for an inorganic beef burger and fries.

This may be Scottish beef and BSE free but that is a heck of a markup in the name of the Lord and Caesar.

In the end I only had three hours on the island to find god and failed miserably. It is a beautiful island, particularly if you like all your crosses Celtic.

My personal Damascus  came with a vision of  a distant pub spotted from a hillside and quickened my pace.

Now I have been very good on Erraid, in fact totally dry if you exclude alcohol by osmosis from the Geordie fumes opposite.

I admit I did say a silent godless prayer of thank-you this afternoon to a cold cool pint of 80/-, but I can live with letting the side down in this moment of weakness.

Btw -  for those of you with amnesia before February 1971 that's 80 shilling - so praise be and that granite statue is called Fallen Christ by Ronald Rae.

It's Friday already

A late night enjoying the sky at 11pm, still light here strangely, but Mull looking inviting across the water.

A second week may be feasible and I will find out today what's the go, meanwhile fine weather recommends a trip to Iona.

Those leaving tomorrow have to clean and tidy their rooms today for a new group arriving tomorrow.

The residents here say it's like the world coming to stay with them and they enjoy the changing personas of each week.

I'm finding the early mornings are best here whilst everything is quiet except for Roger in the hen-house collecting the eggs at 6am.

My poached eggs this morning traveled all of, say, 10 metres, how's that for a zero carbon footprint?

Harry Potter and The Quorn Curry

After four hours in the kitchen and vegetable gardens timeout to visit Rachel, Glenn, Abi and Emma, long term Erraid residents with Zehra, another ex-resident.

Glenn and Emma  have now moved across the water to a cottage with million dollar views onto the mainland.

Young Emma was born on the boat between Craignure and Oban, the nearest hospital is Oban way and babies don't wait for any ferryman!

A relaxed afternoon helping Abi with her homework and letting her proudly show me Harry Potter on their Nintendo DS.

Rachel banged out a fantastic quorn curry and we sat chatting about how life on the island has and hasn't changed over the years. Time to go to catch the tide and an offer from Abi to walk with us some of the way.

Abi walked us down the country lane in her pyjamas to show us the gate to the field we needed for the shortcut home to Erraid.

Not something kids could ever do in cities anymore but something totally normal and safe out here.





A wade through chilly low tide water back onto the island and then a slow serpentine walk back up the hill into the yellow setting sun.

Everything looks so different and calming as the the wildlife settles down for the evening.

Got back to find some of the younger visitors going for it with the clippers in the garden carving patterns into eachother's hair.

I saw they were  surrounded by a  fine but worrying cloud of midges also similarly interested in the bare heads and necks.

A detour through the polytunnels to check out how they are coming on and sampled some peas, strawberries and blackcurrents.

I heard the news about E.Coli and the impact of the outbreak on Europe's vegetable growers. In the interim I would recommend vegetables grown here, not that much of it travels off the island, but it's totally safe.

Tomorrow is a second attempt to join the christian Mecca to Iona, now that the weather here is spectacularly calm and sunny. The ferry is sure to run so it's a quick trip to get to a nearby island.

Findhorn have a centre on the island and we have an invite to go and meditate there - sounds like a plan to me as it must be time to finally get my recalcitrant aura sorted.

The best laid plans

The blustery day turned out to be just that and then some, so the ferry captain cancelled the day's sailings to Iona dammit.

Instead a walk along the cliffs near Fionnphort enjoying wind lifting me up onto my toes and trying hard to knock me over.

The tide turns at 13:30 so I got back to the estuary half an hour early in case the wind bought the tide back early - which is exactly what it did!

So boots and socks off, for a wade back through shallow tidal water to get back onto Erraid, walking back through one of their gardens looking at the polytunnels growing our food and wild flowers.

The cottage Rayburn and water supply decided to give up the ghost, or spirit, given it's Erraid, but I am so well into this by now to worry.

No chance of the compost toilet going on the blink, so when the apocalypse comes, or at least global warming - I'll make a fortune from the queues for my sawdust loos.

 My axe work is getting better as well as the use of farm machinery so I can now knock out a wheel-barrow of firelogs and a basketful of kindling wood without losing a finger, more useful skills rarely needed in Zone 2.

Here is Orlando showing me how to split wood and remove the bark.

Looking forward to tonight's meal to catch-up with everyone else's adventures today.

Day trip anticipation

A lovely night in the company of others invited round to a resident's cottage spent sitting in front of a red hot Rayburn sipping whiskey. Despite the late hour it is still light outside, very contradictory as it would be a dark night in London.

I have yet to achieve any basic competence in matters Rayburn, so I will try again today to get and keep a home fire burning.

It's Wednesday on Erraid, a day for a trip off the island so we are all going over to Iona, an historic ancient Iron Age island with a monastery dating back to 560AD.

A day off logging too so a chance to relax in the company of others as we take small boats and ferries to get to our destination.

It's a blustery day out there so hopefully the water won't be too rough.