KYQ4: Tiree

Tiree Flags

Saturday 2 May - Monday 4 May 2026

We departed Coll for Tiree on Saturday morning. The CalMac ferry was full of cyclists and runners for the May Bank Holiday Half Marathon and 10k Races. As always, it was a rueful experience to be leaving Coll, which was Aileen's special place. I spoke to the people running Tigh na Mara before leaving, and they confirmed their dismay at their view having been ruined by the construction of Controversial Cottage. Robert Sturgeon Jnr. still owned Tigh na Mara, and he had let it to them to run the B&B. It was only a kilometre to the ferry terminal; I could freewheel most of the way there with my rucksack, holdall and bag of provisions. As we waited for the ferry, we chatted to Uschi, a German woman and her daughter, whom we had spoken to on the ferry going to Coll and on a couple of other occasions as we cycled round the island. She had lived in southern Bavaria until moving to Halifax, Yorkshire, 15 years ago. She summed up her move by saying it was by serendipity that she had moved from the location of The Sound of Music to Happy Valley.

The sail across to Tiree takes less than an hour. We disembarked with a peloton of cyclists. Our rented house was at Vaul, near the start of the previous route of the half-marathon, but it had been switched to the old route starting at Traigh Shorobaidh, the beach near An Talla, the community centre at Crossapol. We had a 5-mile cycle to get to our house, so we booked a minibus to take our luggage. Gregor and Emily rode straight to the house, whilst I went to the coop in Scarinish to buy provisions and then cycled to the house. On the way to Vaul, I passed the flat we had rented in 1981 with our eldest daughter, who had her first birthday there. She learnt to walk on the deck of the CalMac ferry the next day as we returned to Oban. Oh, Happy Day.

I arrived at the house as the minibus delivered our luggage, and it then took G&E to Crossapol for the start of the race. I unpacked, had some lunch, and then cycled to Crossapol to watch the race. The start and finish of both the 10k and half marathon were along a long sandy beach, not the easiest surface for running. Emily came 5th in the women's race; 20 minutes later, Gregor charged across the beach to win the half-marathon in a course record. We retreated to An Talla, G&E had booked a lift back in the minibus. I had an 11-kilometre cycle, but the roads are flat, and there was only a gentle breeze. We loaded up with some carbs before being picked up by the minibus for a night out at the Ceilidh.

With the world in a mess, wars in Ukraine, Gaza, Iran, a rogue President in the United States, and the UK going through a mid-century crisis, we needed some solace. It happened. The atmosphere at An Talla for the Ceilidh was hugely convivial, almost electric and sustained by the bar. We found new friends around crowded tables, the dancing got wilder, and the laughter louder. Tiree was evaporating troubled thoughts, and nurturing fecund friendships and fun. I even attempted to teach Amanda from Shropshire the Eightsome Reel and Uschi the Gay Gordons. They survived.

On Sunday, we had a lie-in, and I then explored the nearby beaches at Vaul and cycled to the north of the island at Caolas, where I bumped into Carolyn, a Glasgow GP, whom I had met on the ferry. She was a Tiree devotee and off for a cold water bathe. In the evening, the clouds had dispersed, and Gregor and I went for a walk to the nearby headland. We were inspired by the light, the frolicking lambs, the distant views to the Sma' isles and the inventive conversions to the original cottages. The ferry back to Oban on Monday was running late and full of tired Tiree weekenders. Retrieving the car from a distant car park and fixing the bikes onto the car for the journey home was the only blight on a perfect long weekend on Coll and Tiree.