Argyll & The Isles
Argyll is the name given to the south-west Highlands, an area of great diversity and beauty and one with a long and illustrious history. With its numerous narrow, wooded peninsulas and points and elongated off-shore islands – the Inner Hebrides – and the ever-present sea, Argyll richly deserves its title: Scotland’s “Sea Kingdom”.
Mainland Argyll has two long peninsulas, one stretching south from Appin north of Oban to the Mull of Kintyre, the other, the Cowal Peninsular, running parallel to the east and stretching south to the resort town of Dunoon and the Firth of Clyde. Low, rolling, well-wooded hills, with small farms and crofts wherever the land is suitable characterise this area, but it is the very long coastline, with its narrow, picturesque sea lochs, sheltered bays and pretty fishing villages that makes it really special.
The Isles of the Inner Hebrides include Mull and Iona, Jura and Islay to the west and the Isle of Bute in the Firth of Clyde to the east. Each island has its own distinct character and spirit: the spirits of the past; the spirits of the people today; and the plentiful whisky spirit, particularly on Islay!
The Mull of Kintyre is a mere 12 miles from Northern Ireland, clearly visible across the sea, and the two have always been close culturally. It was almost certainly the Irish who established the first Scots kingdom of Dalriada in Argyll in the early 1st millennium, and it was from Ireland that St Columba came to establish his base on Iona in 563AD. Needless to say, prehistoric and historic monuments abound and make touring Argyll particularly fascinating.
Argyll really is a wonderful area to explore. The road network provides some excellent circular routes for car or cycle tours, but with so many exotic islands nearby you can island-hop to your heart’s content using scheduled ferries – or you can join a wildlife boat trip to see whales and dolphins. You can also enjoy some outstanding walks around the coast or over the hills, pony trekking, kayaking and more.
