Afoot on Kerrera 10

Standing tall on the north end of Kerrera is this memorial to David Hutcheson. In 1851 Hutcheson, along with his brother Alexander, and David MacBrayne, became the owners of the steam ship company that survives today as Caledonian MacBrayne. I climbed up to the monument, intent on sitting on its massive base. But the five-foot-high fence that surrounded it, tipped with needle-sharp iron spikes, looked too evil to climb. The wording on the memorial reads: ‘Erected by a grateful public in memory of David Hutcheson by whose energy and enterprise the benefits of greatly improved steam navigation were conferred on the West Highlands and Islands of Scotland’.

It's great fun to sit here and watch Hutcheson's legacy sail by, either the 'Isle of Mull' on the short crossing to Mull, or the 'Clansman' on its long trek to Barra. Thousands of people see this monument every day, but few ever see the other memorial to Hutcheson, the one that marks his grave, high up in the cemetery just north of Oban.

Afoot on Kerrera 9

On Rubh a’ Bheàrnaig, the headland that marks the northernmost tip of Kerrera, lies Cladh a’ Bheàrnaig. The name may mean the burial ground of St Marnock, and on a 1750 map it is called “Clyvernock, an old monastery”. Marnock was a bishop in the early 600s, and there is a chapel dedicated to him at Kilfinan, thirty miles south of Kerrera, where he had a retreat.

The oval enclosure is split in thirds by low walls. Inside sit the remains of several buildings, one that looks like a beehive cell. Tourists in the thousands sail by Cladh a’ Bheàrnaig every year on their way to Mull and Barra. But few ever train their binoculars on these overgrown ruins, for what grabs their attention here is a giant obelisk that stands on a knoll above the monastery. Tomorrow we’ll climb up to see it.

Cladh a’ Bheàrnaig

Afoot on Kerrera 8

Built around 1750, this is the old jetty at Bàrr nam Boc (height of the roe-buck). After being ferried over from Mull cattle were driven from here to the north end of Kerrera, where they swam to the mainland at Ardentrive (aird na t-snàimh, the headland of swimming). Even after large ferries started transporting cattle in the nineteenth century, bypassing Kerrera, the mail continued to pass through here until 1864.

Barr nam Boc

Afoot on Kerrera 7

At the end of chapter 22 (book 1) I mention not having seen the Children's Graves near Cnoc na Faire, the hill of watching. Just after the book was published I returned to Kerrera to find them. It took some doing, for dense bracken cloaked the terrain.

It is a circular enclosure of stone, barely visible under the bracken in the photo below. I had a hint to it's location after spotting it on Google Earth. If you enter these coordinates you will see it: 56°22'59.15"N, 5°34'50.51"W. Here's one version of the story behind the graves as recounted on the Kerrera website.

"A group of stones is found here although it is uncertain what they mark. One legend says that a family from Mull who had been forced to go to Glasgow for work had the misfortune to lose their children to typhoid or cholera. The heartbroken parents decided to bring the children back to Mull for burial. In those days the main route to Mull crossed the island to Barr nam Boc, the boat then sailed to Grass Point on Loch Don on Mull. It was autumn and the weather was particularly severe. After a week of waiting the parents carried the children to a sheltered spot as close to Mull as they could get and buried them there using the stones to mark the children's graves."

Tomorrow we'll visit Barr nam Boc.

Bracken covers the children's graves - Mull in the distance

Afoot on Kerrera 6

The folks that run the Kerrera tea garden also offer bunkhouse and yurt accommodation. The yurt looked interesting, but no one was around when I passed by, so I did not take a look inside. 

A few months later I came across a photo of its interior here. I have been inside several yurts that the State Parks in the US offer, but their interiors have nowhere near the character of the Kerrera yurt, not to mention the complete isolation.

Kerrera Yurt

Afoot on Kerrera 5

One of the highlights of a walk on Kerrera is lunch at the tea garden, and I have had several. But once, after a long search to find the Children's Graves, I was starving and looking forward to a bowl of soup. But I had not checked on their hours, and when I reached the cafe, late in the afternoon, I was very disappointed to see the 'Closed' sign. I had to hike back to the ferry on an empty stomach.

Kerrera Tea Room

Afoot on Kerrera 4

This is a view of the oriel window in the north wall of Gylen Castle. Its floor could be lifted and hot oil dumped on unwelcome visitors. Inset in the window is a carving of a woman’s head; her long hair spreading down and out in both directions to become a cable moulding that runs along the bottom of the window. One braid of her hair winds around to the carving of a man in a skull-cap, who is pulling on this rope of hair (left side of photo). Her other braid winds around to the carving of what looks to be a man wearing a helmet or, as was reported by a visitor in 1800, a bagpipe player, who is also pulling on the rope of hair. It would be interesting to know the story behind this tug-of-war for the lady’s attention. Which course in life do you think she chose? Life with a musician, or life as a religious?

Oriel Window - Gylen Castle

Close up of the carvings