Many of our guests take a day trip to The Isle of Mull or combine their holiday at Mingarry Lodges with an additional week on Mull taking advantage of the regular ferry service to the island.  Mull has deservedly acquired a reputation as a great wildlife destination, especially for raptors and otters.  The Island is also home to many smaller wildlife treasures including the slender scotch burnet moth which is endemic to Mull and Ulva, though was formerly recorded from Lochaline and Drimnin on the Scottish mainland.   Having recently seen the transparent burnet on The Ardnamurchan Peninsula we were keen to learn more about the slender scotch burnet and its habitat.  Another good excuse for a day trip to Mull...

There are two ferry routes to Mull nearby, one from Kilchoan on The Ardnamurchan Peninsula (a 50 minute drive away) and one from Lochaline in Morvern (a 55 minute drive away).  The ferry from Kilchoan arrives at Tobermory and is a great way to explore Tobermory as a foot passenger or to explore the North of the Island by car or bicycle.  The ferry crossing between Kilchoan and Tobermory takes around 25 minutes.  The ferry can get quite busy and it is advisable to arrive early if you are travelling by car.

Tobermory has many attractions including a distillery, arts centre, chocolate shop, museum, craft shops, pubs and restaurants.  We particularly recommend Cafe Fish if you have time for a leisurely lunch.  Tobermory is also famous as the setting for Balamory, a favourite with our younger guests... 

On this particular trip we headed off to Glengorm Castle, just north of Tobermory.  We spotted cuckoo en route to the castle, enjoyed tea and cake at the cafe before heading out in search of the slender scotch burnet moth.  The slender scotch burnet moth flies between early June and early July and is restricted to a few sites on The isle of Mull.  Similar to the six spot burnet but with five spots, the outer two being fused together on slender scotch to form a single kidney shaped spot. The slender scotch burnet also have pale edge to their legs and are not as black or dark blue black as in the common six spot burnet.

Heading south from Glengorm we continued along the B8073 passing the Mishnish Lochs and onto the hide at Loch Torr.  The B8073 continues on through Dervaig to the lovely sandy beach at Calgary Bay, a great place to look for ducks and divers as well as ravens and eagles.  The B8073 skirts along the coast line providing great opportunities for otter spotting before returning to Mingarry Lodges via the ferry from Fishnish to Lochaline.

A great day out on The Isle of Mull...