When planning my trip through Scotland, my friend had a lot of suggestions. I had wanted to visit Islay and Jura, but accommodations and ferries made that idea overly complicated. It was better to take my friend’s advice and head for the Isle of Mull, a short ferry trip from Oban. But with this plan, I had to figure out how explore the island without renting a car, which is when I found Nature Scotland.
I decided a tour with Nature Scotland would be the best choice to get around Mull — the buses aren’t frequent, and stops aren’t always convenient; there are also few taxis. I wasn’t sure of the weather, so riding in a van to short hikes sounded like a great idea. It just meant that I had to take the 6 am ferry from Oban to Craignure where I’d catch the first bus to Tobermory. I had to be sure not to miss either the ferry nor the bus — there was little room for error.
The ferry was easy. I purchased the ticket online in advance and stayed at a hotel less than a 5-minute walk from the port. I made a point of stopping at the grocery store the night before for some fruit and granola bars as I would depart before the hotel breakfast. As much as I wanted coffee, I was reluctant to run across the street from the bus stop in Craignure as I wasn’t sure how soon the bus would depart (I also wanted to ensure I got a seat for the hourlong ride).
For £80 (but now £90), the Nature Scotland tour was a full day starting at 10 am and ending at 5 pm from the last bus stop at Ledaig Car Park, right next to the Tobermory Distillery. With some time before the tour began, I walked around the single road with colorful buildings and stopped in the corner grocery for a bite to eat and something for lunch — I didn’t want to venture much into town as I wanted to be sure I wasn’t late.
Although I had anticipated rainy weather on my trip, I had clear skies and warm temperatures for almost the entire stay in Scotland — it made the trip to Isle of Mull even more impressive. The hope was that the clear weather would bring out more wildlife, or at least make it more visible on the tour. We weren’t as fortunate as hoped, though part of that might have been because most of the tour was late morning and early afternoon when wildlife tends to be less active. Nonetheless, the weather provided some wonderful views of the landscape, which included a distant view of the Isle of Skye.
The biodiversity of Mull includes several birds of prey, including hen harriers and golden eagles, red deer, seals, and some snakes. But as wildlife is not predictable, there’s no guarantee of seeing anything — this is not like visiting the Galapagos.
Our first wildlife stop was in a logging area — our guide explained the management of the logging area, with planting and clear cutting the plots. There was, however, one small patch that the government couldn’t touch because it was home to nesting white-tailed sea eagles. The rest of the forest would be replanted in the coming years and clear cut again in another 20 or so years.
The eagle was perched high in the tree, but the closest we could get required using the guide’s scope to see it. I was able to align my phone camera lens with the scope to get a picture of the white-tailed eagle. There were some other non-predatory birds harassing the eagle, which is common on the island.
We were still far from the eagle’s nest and weren’t allowed to venture farther into the logging area. Even with binoculars, it was impossible to see the eagle perched in the tree. We all got a turn with the guide’s scope to get a clearer view. He even offered a trick to align the phone camera with the scope — the zoom lens on my Panasonic camera was not nearly enough to do that.
The rest of the avian wildlife we saw throughout the day flew by too quickly to get a picture.
After lunch, we took a pleasant walk with some grazing sheep. Off in the distance, we could barely make out an otter. There is no picture of the otter because it wasn’t staying still in the water and it was too far out to capture on the camera without a professional telescopic lens. Even with the guide’s scope, the otter was nothing more than a little blob in the distance.
On the way back to the van, we came across some small flowers that we were told are common butterwort (also known as bog violet), which is a carnivorous plant. Unfortunately, the long stem makes it difficult to photograph well. I got much better pictures of local flora while walking around the trails at my hotel. Much of the flowers around the Isle of Mull are violet, though I came across some bright yellows.
We arrived back at the parking lot in Tobermory on schedule, and with some time before the bus back to the ferry port. I took a short walk along the road in town and picked up some fish and chips to enjoy the lovely weather on the coast. That didn’t leave me much time to relax and explore though. I opted for some whiskey at the pub in the parking lot to ensure I saw the bus arrive.
As the tour ends a bit late, the bus back to the ferry port is crowded with most people returning to Oban — I had to stand most of the way to my hotel stop (it was the same the following day). I returned the following day for a wonderful hike and closer look of the town before the ferry back to Oban.
On my way back to Oban the next day, I was told there’s an otter that regularly shows up in the harbor around dusk, but I missed seeing that one because I got distracted by dinner and whisky. Overall, a good time around town sans otter.
Even though I didn’t get to see much wildlife on the Isle of Mull, I would still recommend a tour with Nature Scotland. The guides are knowledgeable and provide a lot of great information. It’s also much easier to see the beauty of the island when someone else is driving. Of course, most visitors are unlikely to have the clear weather I was fortunate enough to enjoy.
