Argyll - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 87

GETTING AROUND AND INFORMATION
By minibus Tiree has a Ring'n'Ride minibus service
(Mon & Wed-Sat 7am-6pm, Tues 7am-10pm; T 01879
220419), which will take you anywhere on the island,
though you should book in advance.
Bike/car rental Based at Scarinish Pier, MacLennan
Motors T 01879 220555, W maclennanmotors.com)

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offers both car (£45/day) and bike (£10/day) rental. They
can also drop cars at the airport.
Tourist information For a map of the island and the daily
papers, you need to go to the supermarket at Crossapol. The
website W isleoftiree.com is also a useful resource.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Balinoe Camping Balinoe T 01879 220399, W wild
diamond.co.uk. Located in the southwest of the island,
six miles from Scarinish, the island's only formal campsite
is operated by Wild Diamond Watersports, and is well-
equipped with showers, t oilets , a self-catering kitchen and
washing/drying facilities. £24 /pitch
Elephant's End Kirkapol T 01879 220694. Homely,
wonderfully named restaurant serving local goodies such
as crab, lobster and langoustine, alongside lamb and beef
from the island. Mon-Sat 10am-4pm & 7-11pm, Sun
12.30-2.30pm.
Millhouse Hostel

W tireemillhouse.co.uk. This superbly converted, early
twentieth-century barn now accommodates a colourful
hostel, with two dorms each sleeping six and a couple of
doubles. The excellent open-plan kitchen/lounge opens up
onto a patio where you can kick back with a beer and watch
the sunset. Dorms £17 ; doubles £40
Scarinish Hotel Scarinish T 01879 220308, W tiree
scarinishhotel.com. Super location overlooking the old
harbour offering six pristine rooms (a couple with shared
bathroom facilities), furnished in solid, if not spectacular,
fashion. The Upper Deck lounge is a lovely spot to while
away an hour or s o w atching the comings and goings
around the harbour. £80

near Loch Bhasapol, in the

northwest of the island T 01879 220435,

Isle of Colonsay and around
Isolated between Mull and Islay, Colonsay - measuring just eight miles by three - is
nothing like as bleak and windswept as Coll or Tiree. Its craggy, heather-backed hills
even support the occasional patch of woodland, plus a bewildering array of plant and
birdlife, wild goats and rabbits, and a very fine quasi-tropical garden. The population of
around a hundred is down from a pre-Clearance peak of nearly a thousand, and with
only one hotel and infrequent ferry links with the mainland, there's no fear of mass
tourism taking over. Colonsay organizes its own annual, small (but very popular),
four-day folk festival , Ceòl Cholasa ( W ceolcholasa.co.uk), in mid-September. The ferry
terminal is at Scalasaig , on the east coast, where there's a post office/shop, a petrol
pump, a brewery, a café and the island's hotel.

Colonsay House
Two miles north of Scalasaig • Gardens April-Sept Wed & Fri noon-5pm • £3 • T 01951 200316, W colonsayestate.co.uk
Colonsay House was built in 1722 by Malcolm MacNeil, and in 1904, the island and
house were bought by Lord Strathcona, who made his fortune building the Canadian
Pacific Railway (and whose descendants still own the island). He was also responsible
for the house's romantically dilapidated woodland gardens , which shelter the strange
eighth-century Riasg Buidhe Cross , decorated with an unusually lifelike mug shot
(possibly of a monk) - ask for directions from the tearoom.

Kiloran Bay and around
To the north of Colonsay House is the island's finest sandy beach, the breathtaking
Kiloran Bay , where spectacular breakers roll in from the Atlantic. There's another
unspoilt sandy beach backed by dunes at Balnahard, two miles northeast along a rough
track; en route, you might spot wild goats, choughs and even a golden eagle.