Madeleine's Adventures in the Big Wide World: October 2012

Madeleine has allowed her Mummy to write today's blog post.

~Madeleine having fun on the Isle of Mull
Possibly my most favourite picture of all time!

The Isle of Mull, the second largest of the Scottish Islands - breath-takingly beautiful, gob-smackingly remote. Almost entirely served by single track roads with passing places, there is only one settlement that extends beyond a smattering of houses and a tiny shop, and then only to one street and a few tiny shops. As soon as the ferry left Oban, our mobile signal was gone. It never came back. With no softplay, no libraries, no internet, and pretty much nothing aimed specifically at children, would we survive? More importantly, on an island where the average number of rainy days each October is 22 out of 31, would we have any fun at all?

Of course, Mull is just stunning - even through the swirling mist and haze. The light is fantastic. It teems with wildlife. Though small children are not exactly famed for their landscape appreciation, and Madeleine prefers to pat things, rather than watch them from 300 metres. We rented a little cottage called But 'n' Ben on the Ardura Estate. Miss Madeleine made the best of its lack of child-friendly safety features - frequently making a break to crawl up the stairs in the open plan sitting room, or trying to investigate the oven in the open plan kitchen. No doubt we only survived by virtue of the amazing weather - 6 days of glorious, completely atypical autumn sunshine.

Don't despair - there are lots of things to pat....

Apart from the swimming pool at the Isle of Mull Hotel, there is pretty much nothing aimed at small children on the island. The pool, built with private/state funding welcomes the public for a small fee and doesn't charge under 5s either, and at 31.5 degrees - is also the warmest pool I have ever been in. It was a bit like a bath! Nearly everything else to do seems to be a 6 mile hike over rough terrain to see another particularly interesting geological feature, or involves looking with binoculars or drinking whiskey. Without some unseasonable sunshine, I think we may well have struggled through the week, but instead we had a brilliant time... collecting shells on empty beaches... walking down deserted roads or across decently buggy-able forest tracks... lunching on good steak pie.. riding the ferry to visit Iona and watching the world go by...

Here are some photos we took...

The Isle of Mull Cheese Factory

We're all partial to a nice piece of cheese, and this home-produced offering is especially tasty! We were surprised to follow the signs to the factory and farm shop and find it completely deserted. Clearly the factory was working, but with hardly any visitors, they just left out some samples to try and some packs to purchase and an honesty box! Miss M got excited everytime the packet came out. It didn't last long. The cheese that is, not her excitement.

This is the approach to the Mull Cheese Factory - just go through the Kissing Gate, the sign suggests, and cross the garden... not your average factory setting...

But n Ben - possibly the least child friendly cottage in the world... ok, I exaggerate, but Miss Madeleine's interest in the stairs did take several years off my life

Is it a Kestrel or an Eagle? We saw an immense variety of birds. Miss Madeleine declared that everything bird like - no matter what it actually was - was a duck, even the gulls. To be perfectly honest, Mummy and Daddy weren't much clearer, but they were magnificent to watch...

Mull traffic jam? Madeleine was very patient and slept conveniently though a 2 hour scenic drive of the island. Other than that, Teletubbies on the in-car DVD kept her suitably entertained. I also now know all the words.

Evie Waterfall

Waiting for fish and chips at Dervaig Inn. What could be more exciting than an old cracker box filled with shells - you won't need to look hard for these on the beach.

We asked in the local tourist office if there were any paths suitable for a buggy. Apparently there are not. Total rubbish! There are lots of back roads where you barely have to break off to let a car go past. It has to be said, the remoter roads in Mull are the worse roads I have ever seen in my life. If I wasn't reading the map, I would not believe they are adopted, let alone classified. Yet, despite the grass growing up the centre, they are fine for a pleasant stroll with a buggy. This is actually a forest bike trail - lots of those too - but it is in better condition than some of the roads.

Tobermory - famous for its connections with the Womble of the same name, and also as the setting for Balmory - the children's tv show. We sang Balamory's theme tune a lot, which apparently distresses the local. I can understand why. Although it is the biggest place on Mull, it is infact no more than a simple High Street with a handful of shops and a brewery. Strangely enough, nearly all the shops are tat shops - you know, they sell ornate candlesticks, and twee scarfs and modern prints. There isn't a butcher or a fishmonger or a deli. The odd farm will sell you some local meat, we managed to find a wholesaler who will sell fish to the public in Salen and the aforementioned cheese shop, but you really need to take your food with you.

Madeleine was very taken with this deer head. Don't worry - it's paper mache and priced at £100. - so £20 more than the return trip on the ferry for all 3 of us and the car. Tobermory is full of shops that sell stuff like this - but no butcher! Hrrumpp. We didn't buy a deer's head anyway.

The Old Post at Lochbuie - if it looks a bit like a shed, that is because it is a shed. It has no staff - just an honesty box, and a kettle to make a cuppa for 50 pence. You can help yourself to the home baking or the frozen local meat - zero food miles, the sign boasts. Quite. I loved it.