Being somewhere makes all the difference in understanding a place and finding unexpected pleasures. While driving around Mull I discovered that I could take a ferry from Fishnish to Lochaline – where lies the Ardtornish Estate, my home in January for two weeks! I decided it was worth the 20 minute ferry ride to explore and see what I had booked myself into for the winter! One of the most important castles in the Lords of the Isles saga is Ardtornish Castle, which sits on the edge of Lochaline and is part of the Ardtornish Estate. https://ardtornish.co.uk/ The castle was constructed in the late 13th century and consisted a semi fortified two story building enclosed in a defensive curtain wall. Very little is left of the original building and most of what is left exists in the form of foundations and scattered remnants. Nevertheless, it is an imposing structure and one can easily conjure up visions of the Lords of the Isles ruling over it. John of Islay, the 6th Chief of Clan Donald, is said to have died at Ardtornish Castle. Political alliances, treason, greed, intrigue and ambition all were a part of the history of this magnificent structure. https://www.wildlochaber.com/ardnamurchan/history/ardtornish-castle
Once back on Mull, I decided to drive to Fionnphort where I will catch the ferry to Iona tomorrow – not realizing that it was over an hour drive over a single track road! But the vistas presented to me as I drove were spellbinding. Mull easily rivals the more popular Isle of Skye in sheer natural beauty. I was fortunate to be blessed with a rainbow on my drive back to the hotel and I even can say I was at the end of the rainbow. The pot of gold I discovered was Scotland itself!
