Winter Dolphins

There can't be many shops in the world which one can stand outside and watch a magnificent acrobatic display by a large pod of dolphins - which is what a group of people did today outside Kilchoan's Ferry Stores.

We first saw them fairly well out in the Sound of Mull, outside Kilchoan Bay - they're seen here with Ardmore Point light on Mull beyond them - at first moving eastwards towards the entrance to Loch Sunart, but they changed direction....

....and began to swim towards the northern end of the Sound.

We followed them up the Ormsaigbeg road hoping to reach its end before they did, but once dolphins get going they travel, so we only saw the tail-enders pass directly below us.

However, the pod, instead of passing round the point and out of sight, suddenly began to mill about....

....as if they had stopped to do a bit of communal fishing, before....

....they rounded the point and headed out to sea.

These looked like common dolphins, which, according to the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (here), should have moved south in October to warmer waters, but winter sightings are becoming more common.