A walk round Kerrera
Remember this view from last time? Our window in Oban looked out on the island of Kerrera which we were determined to explore. A small passenger ferry runs from Gallanach, a couple of miles along the coast from Oban. Unless you live on Kerrera (current population about 35) no vehicles are allowed.
There are two possible walks suggested, the southern loop taking in Gylen Castle (and nearby tea garden – vital!) or a linear walk to the northern tip where there is a monument to David Hutcheson, one of the founders of the Caledonian MacBrayne Ferry service. We chose the 11km loop to castle and tea garden / bunk house.
From the ferry, we turned left along Horseshoe Bay and Little Horseshoe Bay. We hadn’t gone far when we discovered the tea garden owners were enterprising in a quirky sort of way. The slates read Hello! Is it tea you’re looking for? Lionel Rich Tea.
From here on our walk was punctuated by teapots – and cattle. At one time, Kerrera was a stepping stone for transporting cattle from Mull (the much larger island behind it) to the mainland.
Sometimes the teapot messages were really helpful. Cake!
The path to the castle was just before the tea garden but we chose to go for a cup of tea first, then explore the castle and return for lunch. Might as well make full use of the place! It was a lovely sunny day, but even if it hadn’t been there was comfortable indoor seating in the old barn.
The quirkiness continued in the bike park (an old tree trunk, click to enlarge to make it clearer).
And the toilet which is twinned with a toilet in Pakistan.
The ruined Gylen Castle, dramatically perched on a rocky outcrop, was built in 1587 by Duncan MacDougall of Dunollie, the 16th chief, on the site of an earlier fortification.
From the castle and tea garden, the path followed the more rugged western edge of the island before crossing back to the ferry point. And, of course, just in case anyone was walking the loop in the other direction, there were more teapots.
This was an absolutely beautiful day and I’d love to go back to Kerrera. The next day, we were heading back home from Oban and the weather was not so kind to us. We still made some interesting stops, though – next time!
I’m linking this post to Jo’s Monday Walks. Pop over for some Portuguese sunshine, I could certainly do with that today!
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
Kerrera is nice place to visit specially the Ferry ride is wonderful.
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Thanks for visiting. I love ferries, however small.
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A great idea for a day out next time I’m in the Oban area!
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It really is! And hopefully you will get a lovely day like this one was.
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How lovely those teapot signposts are! I enjoyed tagging along on your walk and could enjoy a cuppa and cake right now. 😃
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I hope you succeed in having one!
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Hi Anabel – sounds wonderful … love your descriptions, but also their teapot creativity … clever – cheers Hilary
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Thanks Hilary!
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I love all those tea signs, and that tea pot is fantastic! I’d definitely stop in for a cuppa (and some cake!).
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The tea garden certainly made the walk. We loved it.
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It’s a really nice island. No tearoom when I was over around 20 years ago but the walk looks the same. Think there’s a woman who runs a parrot sanctuary on Kerrera if she’s still there.
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I hadn’t heard that, but I’ve looked it up and apparently she retired a few years ago and the parrots have moved to a the mainland. That would have been interesting to see and would have added to the quirkiness!
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A great walk + scenic views + quirkiness + a hot drink = perfection to me! Thanks for sharing this, Anabel.
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And sunshine! We were SO lucky with that.
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What fun . . .would have been rude not to have stopped and sampled the tea! And as ever your Scottish posts continue to work their magic, and keep Scotland high up the list for next home.
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It would have been very rude. Honesty forces me to point out that not every day is as sunny as this one was. But I have a tiny suspicion you know that …. Are you definitely going to move somewhere else or is it just an idea at the moment?
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Definitely moving . . .just don’t know where! We’ve set ourselves a target of a year to decide where, then 6 months to find the property. So 2019 should be the year we move.
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Good luck! It’s a big decision.
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Thanks x
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Lovely post Anabel.
I’ve never heard of Kerrera before, it looks a beautiful place to visit. I love the quirkiness of the tearoom and that tea pot you were given is amazing!
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I had hear of it, but never been. It’s a lovely outing though, I’d definitely go back.
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How cute and quirky that tea pot Trail. It had me smile all the way. Such creative owners, and something different for the visitor. The scenery looks very Scottish to me. Kerrera looks like a wonderful island to visit! I’m glad you lucked out with the weather.
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Yes, it is very typically Scottish, right down to the sheep. And we do like a nice cup of tea!
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I just love all the signs and that bungalow at the end of the trail! So cute! You make the best destinations come to life with the photos too. Love it all.
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Thanks – it was a great walk (and nice to look back on all that sun at the moment when we seem to have nothing but rain).
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The cafe owners must have a wonderful sense of humour. What a fun walk, with so much beautiful scenery as a bonus.
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The whole thing was fun! The sunshine was another bonus.
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The looped walk would have been my choice too because I hate having to walk (or drive) back on the same route. I think the tea signs might have started to irritate me a bit though. But if they serve cake I might forgive them 🙂
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Definitely cake, but (shock horror) we didn’t have any!
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Oh, no! A missed opportunity.
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I’m not a big fan of tea, but I’m definitely a fan of Kerrera (from your pictures, I’ve never been there). I love that picture of the big fluffy sheep in the tea garden… looks like someone needs a shave!
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I think that sheep was the welcome committee!
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Another lovely walk, Anabel. It would have been hard to pass on stopping for a cup of tea with all of the less than subtle, though quirky, advertising. Nice one.
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That was never going to happen! Thanks, glad you liked the post.
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I love, love, love all the signs and teapots! What a fun and whimsical way to encourage people to stop at the tea shop!
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I know! They deserve lots of customers (and it was full with some people having to wait).
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What a fun place to visit! I would have definitely taken the route to the tea house as well.
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Forgot to check if they have chocolate chip cookies … oops!
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Now I’ve heard of many things, but toilets being twinned?! That beats it all! LOL
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It was a new one on me too!
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Wonderful! I’m always en route for the Ferry when I’m in Oban these days, so hard to take a day out to visit Kerrera. It features in my books, although I’ve used the name as an alternative for Oban.
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We’d never been, but now we’ve discovered it I’m sure we’ll be back.
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What a fabulous choice you made, going to the tea garden and the castle! The quirky little signs and teapots along the way are adorable; no wonder you stopped for tea and then back again for lunch. And the Gylen Castle is so beautifully situated along the rocky coast. It’s stunning. I want to go here!! 🙂
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It’s the first time we’d been. Oban is usually a day trip for us so I suppose we’ve never had time before.
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I’m so glad you enjoyed it and shared with us. 🙂
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Fabulous! I’d never even heard of Kerrera but now it’s firmly on my radar (though maybe not this winter 🙂 ). Brilliant to have the humour and enterprisingness for the teapot markings and what a lovely castle and situation, Anabel. Thanks for a wonderful share.
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Thanks, Jo, glad you like it. You need a lovely sunny day like we had, we were very lucky,
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I haven’t been to Kerrera in a long time and it was certainly before that very witty tea advertising. I love it. The prospect of tea is definitely a good motivator to keep walking.
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Yes, I’d worked up a huge thirst by the time we got there!
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Looks wonderful. How do the Islanders get fuel for their allowed vehicles? No filling station I presume?
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The ferry can carry one or two cars so residents can get over to the mainland. I called it a passenger ferry because visitors can only go on foot but that’s not strictly accurate I suppose. I expect a tank lasts a long time!
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Oh, now this is my kind of place! I absolutely love the quirkiness, the not many cars, the water, and the emphasis on tea. I even love the name of the place. Kerrera is going on my bucket list right now.
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Oh good! We were very impressed with it.
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Loved the tea-trail. I t would be worthwhile going there just for the cups and the pots.
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They were a surprise but they definitely made the walk more interesting.
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Looks like a great place for a walk – I love the quirky bits and all the tea pots 🙂
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We were gasping for a brew by the time we got there! The power of suggestion definitely works.
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This was a very interesting post! I loved your teapot photos and all the other quirky pictures that you included!
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It was certainly different! Very imaginative.
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Love it, especially the little motivators along the way 🙂 Very creative and thinking out of the square!! 11kms was a decent walk to have tea and cake. Enjoyable post.
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Thanks, the tea pots were such a great idea.
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Plus, the signs saying about cake not being too far away 🙂
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That too puts a spring in the step!
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Kerrera looks a wonderful place for a walk. You will never get lost with all those quirky signs! I had never heard of Kerrera before you wrote about it in your last post. X
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I was very impressed with the signs. The tea room stopped you getting lost and directed you right to its door at the same time. Everybody wins!
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