Bumblebee Weather

We have another beautiful day here, with the bees out again on the heather in the front garden - except that we're now seeing some of the big bumblebees, the ones that fly erratically with a great deal of noise, as if they're only just in control.

It was a day for the hills, so I parked the car at the Community Centre and walked up into the area at the back of the Pier Road houses, across land that varies from bog to brambly thicket to open, close-cropped grass. The land rises steadily to a peak, Torr Solais, the hill of light, from which there are good views around Kilchoan. This picture looks west. The ridge called Druim na Gearr Leacainn is on the right with Ormsaigbeg in front of it, the island Glas Eilean is at left, and Mull lies in the distance across the Sound.

This picture looks across Kilchoan village to Beinn na Seilg. To the right is the Kilchoan Hotel, with the Community Centre at centre and, in the left distance, the shop.

To the north is Glas Bheinn, the grey or green hill, a hill divided by the line of a fence separating Estate land to the right from the Kilchoan common grazings to the left.

From the southern end of the hilltop there are good views east, over Mingary Castle to Beinn na h-Urchrach, Ben Hiant and Maclean's Nose. The refurbished castle is being prepared for its first guests, due in May, and has a new website - here.

The visit to Torr Solais had a purpose, to find the ruins of a building. It's the ideal time of year for looking for archaeological remains as the vegetation has died back completely, but this one almost escaped as it is covered in brambles. It's in the right foreground, and no distance from the Pier Road houses.