Day 15 - the parting of the ways

Today is the day that everyone goes their separate ways. The G and I and the alone Australian head for another tour of Iona and the Highlands. The Oregon Pines go onto some other tour that involves a castle. The Vikings fly back to their Motherland. The Canucks are off somewhere as are the Alaskans.

I had been wary if the idea if a coach tour - there is enough of the Englishman left in me to think that spending time in the company of people to whom one has not been introduced is likely to be difficult. Strangely English think that - but I was to be abused of my reservations. Or at least on this particular tour!

We had got on the bus as 17 people (I include Jamie in this number because he was such a wonderful guide) and we parted with hugs and photographs. That much is not. That is perhaps not surprising on reflection - it does often happen in life with meetings and training courses. In this case of course the common bond was whisky.

We are to drive to Inverary where The G and I and the Lone Australian are to join another tour and the rest of the party proceed back to Edinburgh.

Port Ellen was named after the wife of its founder, Frederick Campbell of Islay. Its previous name, Leòdamas, is derived from old Norse meaning "Leòd's Harbour"

Unloading the day's catch - crabs and lobsters all wriggling like crazy

Handling lobsters at Port Ellen - these ones were bound for France. Lobsters are sexed by examining the first set of appendages behind the walkers. Some lobsters have the crusher claw on the right side while others have it on the left.

War Memorial at Port Ellen

We headed off over the island to the ferry at Port Ellen. Port Ellen is a lovely little town where fish is landed – and in particular, shell fish and some massive lobsters and crabs still squirming as they were sorted out. The chaps doing the sorting said they were bound for France. An uneventful, and mercifully calm, ferry ride saw us disembarking at Kennacraig. One can imagine that the ferry ride would be pretty uncomfortable in rougher weather.

There is little to see from the ferry apart from the highlands coloured a greyish purple against the blue-grey of the sea. There are seabirds a plenty but mainly fairly noisy terns. I did discover that I had been dumped on from a great height but The G told me as she wiped me clean that this is a lucky sign. I did not take a picture from the ferry as my photographic skills (not to say the iPhone camera) were not equal to the task!!

The drive to Inverary is through typically lovely Scottish scenery. Loch Fyle is on the left for much of the journey which takes you through villages such as Ardrishaig (population about 1500) and Lochgiliphead (a planned settlement dating from 1790). Loch Fyne is the longest sea loch in Scotland at 40 miles long.

We arrived at Inverary at lunchtime and pulled into a car park with a piper playing. The G could not resist sidling up to him to be photographed.

The G with the piper: he looks the part but whether he can play the pipes I cannot say

Loch Fyne at Inverary and the inevitable War Memorial

There was much hand-shaking and hugging as we all parted company. We were due to meet our new tour in a couple of hours and so, with the Lone Australian, set off to find luncheon. I must say Rabbie’s Tours organise things well. Our bags were transferred between buses with our having to do anything. This may seem small but it’s important.

Inverary – of course – sports a castle which was built over a period if 40 years starting in 1744 by the Duke of Argyl. The end product is more of a Georgian mansion than a castle. Queen Victoria stayed there in 1847. The good Duke also rebuilt much of the town which is situated on the Western end of Loch Fyle.

We had a good lunch in Inverary – I had one of the finest blackberry and apple pies I have ever eaten, and I suspect the finest ever made!! I should have photographed it. The secret on a blackberry and apple pie is to ensure not only that the pastry is crisp and light but also that the flavour of the blackberries does not overwhelm that of the  apples. We see blackberries rarely in Australia (because they are pests and grow like crazy) but here we have been picking them from the hedgerows – and some very sweet ones we have had. This is part of my heritage so I was amused when The G asked (at Kilmartin) whether they had been sprayed. “Only by the rain, “ I said “only by the rain.”

Fentiman's Ginger Beer - not as interesting as the Blackberry and Apple Pie which I should have photographed

At the due time we found our new tour bus. Jamie had said that we would recognise our new guide, Sue, by her read hair. We did. To say she has red hair does not do justice to the ornament of feminine beauty that we beheld. We beheld moderately tall woman wearing a shortish kilt with what looked like Doc Martin’s (but weren’t) and the biggest, thickest, curliest mane of red hair I ever seen. This was clearly an alternative woman!! Our kind of woman.

The same edginess and individuality could not be attributed to our companions on our new tour. I will say more later as the tour unfolds. We climbed aboard cheerily and greeted our fellow passengers and were met with either blank looks or downcast eyes or both. Mmmm. We set off to Oban.

As we went Sue regaled us cheerily with tales of the locations we passed through. Some of these are dubious veracity but all were amusing and some were different versions of ones that Jamie had told us!!

We reached Oban without incident becoming increasingly intrigued by the lack of general bonhomie on the bus. At first I thought that I was comparing the tour we had just come off – which had been so friendly and funny – and that anything would have been found wanting against that baseline!!

We had booked to eat at Ee-usk (www.eeusk.com) which we had learned of through some TV program we saw a year or so back. Seafood appears at the pier and is in the pot in a fraction of a second. The Lone Australian joined us and we had a tolerable meal which we preceded with a glass of Oban whisky. The tolerable meal included, I have to say, mussels which left our Eden black lips way behind in the quest to find the perfect mussel. Sweet and succulent they were!!

Ee-usk: the scallops - amazing

The back of the Rabbie's tour bus as it drove away into the distance