Jura travel blog

• Inverlussa Bay

As you would expect for a place with such a rich and eccentric heritage, Jura is an island that will throw up many surprises as you travel around.

The quirkiness of its character is summed up best on the deserted windswept beach of at Inverlussa Bay where a solitary table, complete with walkie-talkie, is stationed for passers-by to summon tea which is

then served by a resident from a nearby house.

A very pleasant woman will pop down with a tray complete with tea, coffee and scones.

You simply enjoy your beverage take in the view and then continue exploring the island.

We took a taxi trip around the island where our driver pointed out notable points of interest.

The island's three 'pap' mountains tower over the its rich green landscape which is peppered with patches of thick forest.

The land, which has seen considerable depopulation, is scarred with the remnants of abandoned crofts.

Jura, like many other outlying Scottish islands, has suffered from migration through the centuries.

On the mile-long stretch of beach which makes up the Corran Sands many residents left in the early 1800s to depart for Canada where they were promised 100 acres of land on arrival.

Unsurprisingly hundreds took up the offer.

Our first stop was the island's only church which serves the islands population of 180.

The loft of the church is kitted out with a self-serve book stall where visitors can buy a book for a very reasonable 50p.

The island has a mystique around it brought on by tales of its dark past.

Plots of rubble are all that are left of a village which used to stand next to one of the island's cemeteries.

In the late 1600s the village became a no-go area when it was hit by the plague.

Its residents were isolated within with well-wishers bringing food hampers to the entrance each day.

When these packages stopped being collected it was clear to those on the outside that all in the village were dead.

The village was demolished afterwards with the dead buried underneath the debris of their former homes.

The island is full of legends and stories that have been past down through the generations.

One heart-warming tale involves a member of the Black family who stumbled across a tin of gold coins, travelled across to Islay to cash in his find and returned to build a grand house in the village of

Keills.

Many whisky enthusiasts who visit Islay during the whisky festival fail to make the ten minute crossing to Jura.

This is a pity as they will find an island and distillery which is packed with both character and intrigue.

Jura travel blog - Day One