We opted for an early morning adventure today as the sun was out and we wanted to see Kiloran Bay in the morning light. Getting there was easy on the secondary single track road – which was almost indistinguishable from the main road. We passed an old abandoned stone cottage behind which was a towering wind turbine providing a real contrast between the storied history of this island and the encroachment of modernity. Farther down the twisting and hilly narrow road we took a hairpin u-turn and made our way to a tiny area for parking cars overlooking the magnificent bay and the Atlantic Ocean. This is a stunning beach and it is not difficult to imagine the medieval war ships, (birlins) pulling into the bay and preparing for battle against the Viking long ships. The rock formations are as inviting as they are forbidding though the many sheep wandering about seem to have no difficulty in negotiating the constantly changing terrain. Sheep are literally everywhere and as this is lambing season we have seen our fair share of these miniature balls of white wool with black faces and legs frolicking in the fields.
Although we have not been able to go to Oronsay we did go to the Strand and walk across a good portion of it. It stretches farther than you might imagine and it is quite a hike to Oronsay. We will explore other ways of getting there. Not far up the road from the hotel is the ancestral home of Somerled with a plaque alongside the road. It is difficult to wrap ones mind around the fact that these ancient people were present in the very spot on which we are standing. There is much to explore on Colonsay – indeed entire books have been written about the island. Colonsay was part of the territory controlled by the Lords of the Isles
