All Things Scottish, Day 8

After enjoying a nice fine breakfast at the Argyll, I headed out to the ferry for the trip back to Mull. Rooms aren't always cheap in Scotland, but they almost always include a fine breakfast -- in this case, homemade yoghurt, excellent oatmeal, and a selection of local animal-based fats and proteins; I don't think the pineapple juice was local, though!

The incoming ferry had two transport trucks, and it looks like someone's entire New House was on those trucks ready to go. It's interesting to realize that on these isles, *everything* comes over by ferry... Pianos, roof trusses, appliances, etc.

Back on Mull, the goal for the day was the Carsaig Arches, natural sea arches in a layer of columnar basalt (http://www.explore-isle-of-mull.co.uk/carsaig-arches-walk.htm). The weather started out grey but quickly turned sunny. The walk is certainly as challenging as the website describes -- in fact I avoided the final segment that leads you "over" the arch to the other side -- a path on a narrow goat track a few meters from the cliff edge down to the rocky sea -- and the path is on a 50 degree lateral hill.

By the time got back to the car area, the place was crowded -- the arches are mentioned in The Lonely Planet and this was a Bank Holiday weekend, and the weather was beautiful. I had to warn a few tourists who didn't seem like seasoned walkers that the trip was *long* and challenging -- 8 miles round trip but half of that walking on very rough basalt and granite talus -- 4-6 hours if you keep a decent pace.

Given that the walk took longer than expected -- it was a mad rush back to the north of Mull to catch the car ferry back to the mainland. Two of us were rushing back at rates of speed probably not recommended for the roads we were travelling on. But in the end we made it, and ultimately I made it to Fort William in time for the night, as planned at The Cruachan Hotel.

Despite reading up on Gaelic, Norse and Scottish pronounciations, I still don't know for sure how to pronounce a lot of these places. Usually the things I get wrong are the syllabic accentuation, which is almost never on the first part of the word. Except here is CREW-aCH-ahn.