Isle of Islay
As we have never been on that island before I researched it a little bit with the help of google and photography sites about it. Especially for finding photography locations and places to stay overnight, this was really helpful.
After arriving in Port Askaig we took the only road west until we reached a junction where we drove north to Sanaigmore on a single track road (single lane road with siding places for oncoming traffic). The further north we got, the more rough the street got until we reached a little parking place near the end of the road where we planned to stay overnight. As we had enough time left, we donned our wellies (which is one of the best options for Scotland) and left for the beach with our cameras.
Somehow I managed it to get surprised and almost encircled by the incoming tide (which is not my first time ... ) and I just barely made it back with a giant leap and dry feet. I also tested the weather sealing of my camera when I got a little too close (another specialty of mine) to the incoming waves while trying to photograph them ... I have to say, Canon did a great job!
On our way back we could experience our first fantastic sunset of our vacation. Sadly without ocean view but with amazing colors and great light patterns which were spectacular. After that we enjoyed a nice beer by our bus and cheered to the great experiences to come. And we got a little taste of the midges-problem to come ... some really nasty and tiny moskitos which occur in great numbers ...
We started the next morning with a little breakfast and a walk as means of morning-sport and exploring the surroundings. Nothing better to fulfil both purposes than to climb on the highest „hills“ nearby. After a little while we reached the north-west corner of Islay ... a steep coast (about 70m high cliffs) with only the Atlantic Ocean between us and Canada ...
After that little hike we drove south to Portnahaven where we looked around and tried to find a little place for the night ... as we haven’t found one we turned around and decided to go to Saligo bay instead where we found a good place for the night and some really great locations to photography the expected sunset as well.
On our first exploration walk to the beach we managed it to get our wellies filled with saltwater ... brimful ... ;-) As we stood on the beach Ines distracted me with a kiss ... and one wave was just bigger than the ones before ... :P
On the evening we pretty much knew where to go to capture the sunset (thanks to our scouting) ... well almost: the incoming tide made our favourit spot a „little bit“ wet, so we had to occupy a secondary location. The sunset wasn’t one bit less spectacular than the one the day before ... and as further bonus this time we had the ocean-view so I tried to get some of the crushing waves into the frame as well ... which worked out pretty well (my opinion).
On our next morning we started a little bit lazy as we wanted to visit the Bruichladdich Distillery which only opened at 10:00. As one of their whiskies is one of my favourites, we could’t visit Islay without stepping by. After a great tour there, some great tasting and a little „shopping“ (besides some other whiskies we could bottle one whisky directly from the cask, along with personal and signed labeling) we headed south. After arriving in Port Ellen we wanted to check when we would be able to book a ferry back to the mainland and were able to jump on the one which was just preparing to depart ... lucky us!! This way we missed the southern part of the island, but I’m sure we weren’t on Islay for the last time ... ;-)
Some impressions from Islay:
Comments