Blogging at 21:05 on Monday 30th December at tonight's intended overnighting spot N 55.79628°, W 05.45494° / http://maps.google.com/maps?q=loc:55.79628%2C-05.45494
The wind and rain continued overnight last night and, by this morning, we concluded we had reached the official meteorological descriptor of 'Being Pounded'. At least the overnighting spot was really well sheltered, so our sleep wasn't affected.
Given the strength of wind and the hideous driving (genuinely-horizontal) rain we did the sensible thing this morning and set off for the most rugged, exposed and highest-altitude roads on the entire island to explore the Oa peninsula.
In our defence, this is the acknowledged best area on Islay for both golden and white-tailed eagles, and the people we met yesterday had given us a couple of spots on the peninsula where sightings were most likely.
Unsurprisingly - given the ferocity of the wind and rain - the eagles were a no-show: and no-one could blame them for hunkering down.
The truck shrugged the conditions and steep inclines off with no bother, but the human components of the travelling unit were a little relieved to get off the peninsula and back to lower ground in one piece.
Pretty much all we had time left to do thereafter was a quick grocery shop, take lunch and then make our way back to Port Askaig to catch the CalMac service back to the mainland.
That all went off without incident and the only point of note was the eye-watering price of absolutely everything in Port Ellen's Co-op. No man should have to pay north of £2 for a 300g packet of Jacob's Cream Crackers anywhere in the UK in 2024.
The Islands of Jura and Islay have been, as indicated, very different. Jura is definitely our preference. This is not to say Islay isn't smashing and indeed the area around Loch Gruinart is one if the best birding places I've ever been to in the UK.
Islay is though, for us, a little bit too populated and touristy. It also seemed to hold a disproportionate number of residents with very strong middle-class English accents. And there was a truly disappointing amount of roadside litter: a pretty reliable indicator of the zeitgeist and all that...
Islay's natives seemed friendly enough, though, and we had loads of friendly waves and pleasant casual conversations. One chap in particular was very helpful and shared a couple of good overnighting spots should we need them. He was building an AWD camper based on a Sprinter and had travelled, so knew the crack.
At the coordinates shown now. It's basically just the first spot we came upon having decanted from the ferry in the dark, and which we'll quit first thing in the morning (before first light) in order to sail to Arran (hopefully).
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