Day 2: Oban to Barra

It was goodbye to Margaret and her cosy airbnb this morning and we had three hours to fill before boarding the ferry to Barra. We decided to head out of Oban on the bikes to Ganavan Sands, which was the location some years ago for an orienteering competition which started on the beach. It's a beautiful little bay but a little strange too because of what, we can only assume, is a 'holiday village', silent and empty at this time of year.

We turned back towards Oban and called in to see if we could get a cuppa at Dunollie Castle - sadly you had to pay to go through to the cafe so we forgot that and headed back in to town where we stocked up on provisions and then locked up the bikes alongside the harbour.

We enjoyed scrummy cakes (cranberry, ginger and pistachio tiffin for me and apple & blueberry cake for Tony) and cuppas in a return visit to the Chocolate Company Cafe.

We were early to the ferry queue but the chap in charge of loading bikes let us on and we warmed up in the observation lounge and settled in for the five hour crossing.

The first part of the sailing passed along the length of Mull and gave us a brief glimpse of Tobermory's colourful cottages before we headed out across the Minch, Skye in the distance, towards the islands which make up the Outer Hebrides.

We had a magical, fleeting glimpse of dolphins crossing the bow which brought passengers to their feet.

Eventually we were mooring alongside the wharf at Castlebay, which is the subject of my blip. I think you can see how it acquired its name from Kisimul Castle! It has been the stronghold of the Clan MacNeil since the 11th century. Apparently the Castle was handed in to the care of Historic Scotland in 2000 on a 1000 year lease with an annual token rent of £1 and a bottle of whisky! The ferry appears to dwarf the cottages! On our way out of Castlebay we passed the Barra Heritage Centre which features in Peter May's crime trilogy. The centre records the lineage of all the Hebridean families and is popular with tourists hoping for ancestral links to the islands.

We cycled three or so miles to the village of Borge and to our b&b, Croat an h-Aibhne, standing on a hillside with views out to sea. It's very comfortable but furnished in a much more spartan way to Margaret's last night which was bursting with stuff!

Arriving at seven we decided to stretch our legs on the bikes and attempt to reach the southern island of Vatersay. There were a couple of testing hills and we turned back when we had gone just over five miles but we did manage to cross the causeway to Vatersay! I'm writing this having showered and snuggled up in bed looking out at the hills, it's nine thirty and still light!

The landscape is as lovely as we expected. Barra's hills are not mountains and, in some respects, akin to the Lake District fells. There is much rock and also wonderful bays and small islands so also a bit Swedish! Our cycling holiday begins easy with the more challenging terrain to come further north when I will demonstrate why our transport is sometimes called the pushbike!