Seek some sanctuary

Walking from Colonsay to Oronsay is one of the pleasures of a trip to these islands. The walk is only possible when the tide is out and there is always a thrill in knowing that at any other time there would be metres of salt water above your head.

Nowadays many walkers are going over to see the Augustinian priory ruin on Oronsay, which is second only to Iona in importance. There was a lot more at stake from a trip across the Strand for earlier island residents. Halfway across is the sanctuary cross: any Colonsay fugitive who reached it was immune from punishment provided he stayed on Oronsay for a year and a day.

These islands have been inhabited for 7,000 years. On the south side of Kiloran Bay, in Uamh Uir ( the cave of the grave-dust) the bones of domestic animals and Neolithic flint tools have been excavated. There are many pre-Christian and early Christian relics. A Viking warrior who had been given a ship burial in 855 with his weapons, horse and coins was uncovered in the sand dunes here in 1882. Although it was a pagan burial, two crosses incised on stone slabs were included as an additional guarantee.

Both islands have deeply indented coasts with numerous rocks and reefs. Colonsay, in general, has good soil, although the higher ground is moorland and scrub. Raised beaches on the west coast and sea beach debris in the interior mark a time when the land was lower in the sea and these were four separate islands.

The economy depends on crofting, farming, a little fishing and tourism.

Visitors may wander freely throughout the island, although cars are restricted in some parts. In the extreme north, in a low valley of sand dunes running down to a fine beach, the remains of Kilcatrine (Catherine’s chapel) are marked by a standing stone and cross. Historians believe this may have been the site of a 13th-century convent.

According to legend, the first residents, the MacNeils, came to the island with their cattle in an open boat. MacNeil’s wife gave birth during the voyage and, to keep her and the baby warm, they slaughtered a cow so that mother and child could shelter inside the carcass.

Palm trees and bamboo now grow in the mild and sheltered Kiloran valley where Malcolm MacNeil built Colonsay House in 1722. He is said to have salvaged stones from an old church or abbey nearby. The gardens were once considered equal to Inverewe, Crarae, and Achamore on Gigha, and are still beautiful, but Colonsay House is now partly converted to holiday flats and the work that used to be done by 18 gardeners is now done by one man.

There are dozens of interesting legends. According to folklore the Piper’s Cave, where a piper and his dog went to hunt for Hell, is on the coast at Port Bn. Rumour has it that only the dog reappeared, but from a cave four miles south with his fur burned off.

The ferry pier was built at Scalasaig in 1965. This is the main village and two other centres of population are Kilchattan and Kiloran. The island has a junior school, a church minister and a resident doctor, but no policeman. There is a hotel, some summer cottages and a reasonable supply of B&Bs.

The hotel at Scalasaig provides all the local tourist information. By the road between the hotel and the harbour is the Well of the South Wind, where fishermen used to pray for a south wind, and overlooking the village is an Iron Age fort called Dun Eibhinn, the most important of many on the island. There is another one to the north-east on Beinn nan Gudairean which offers possibly the best viewpoint.

On the west coast, opposite Scalasaig between Tobar Fuar and Port Lobh, is an 18-hole golf course.

This stretch of Colonsay coastline has many skerries and off-shore islets in contrast to the east coast which boasts only one islet - Eilean Olmsa.

Across the sea from the old burial ground at Balerominmore in the south-east of Colonsay, which has a cross and carved slab, the Paps of Jura glow in the summer evening sun.

Nearby at Garvard, overlooking the Strand, are the foundations of a cell or chapel, with a dun, and a standing stone.

• Extracted from The Scottish Islands by Hamish Haswell-Smith, published by Canongate at 35.

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FACT FILE COLONSAY

Getting there

To visit Colonsay you first have to get to the ‘Gateway to the Isles’ - Oban. Oban is easily reached by taking the A82 from Central Scotland (this takes two to three hours) or by travelling with Citlink www.citylink.co.uk or Scotrail www.thetrainline.com From Oban take a Caledonian MacBrayne ferry - they operate three times a day. The two-and-a-half hour journey passes between the mainland and islands of Kerrera and Mull and past the islands of Seil, Luing, Scarba and Jura. A more cost effective way of visiting Colonsay is to invest in an Island Hopscotch ticket which will allow you to visit the other islands as well. Log onto www.calmac.co.uk to view timetables and make reservations.