The Small Isles	Walking on The Small Isles, on Muck in the South, on Eigg with its tooth-like Sgurr, and on Rum, mountainous and mysterious in the clouds.

Introduction to your walking holiday on the Small Isles, Scotland

Eigg and the mainland from Rum

The Small Isles are an archipelago of four little islands, Eigg, Muck, Rum and Canna south of the Isle of Skye. Each one is distinct and differs in geography, local economy, population and ownership. From Muck in the South, Eigg with its tooth-like Sgurr, and Rum or Rhum, mountainous and mysterious in the clouds, to Canna in the North, the Islands offer a wonderful variety of scenery, wildlife and lifestyle. Together they have a population of around 130 people, with most of them living on Eigg.
This walking tour takes you for hikes on three of the Small Isles: Eigg, Muck and Rum. Rum is the largest and most mountainous island; once the core of a giant volcano, its jagged outline is one of the most famous in Scotland. Rum has been a National Nature Reserve since 1957 and it is one of Britain's last wildernesses.
Eigg is mostly made-up of a basalt plateau, 1000ft above sea level, and a great lump of columnar lava known as An Sgurr. Eigg has a fascinating, eventful history, including a lenghtly feud between the Macdonalds and the Macleods that lead to the death of the island's entire population. Since 1997, the island has been owned by the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust. The island is powered by renewable energy, a mixture of hydro, solar and wind.

Manx Shearwater chicken on Rum.
Picture taken during bird-ringing.

Muck is the smallest, is the smallest, flattest and most fertile island of the group, but there is still lots to see and do for those who enjoy getting away from it all.
All the islands have a rich history, the traces of which can still be seen.

Wildlife
The Small Isles are of international importance for many of its plants, habitats and land- and sea-birds, including sea eagles, puffins, manx shearwaters, kittiwakes and fulmars. During our walks we may be rewarded by sightings of deer, otters, seals, goats and eagles. Over 100,000 Manx shearwaters nest in the hills of Rum. When sailing between islands we may see minke whales, basking sharks or dolphins.

Day-by-day Programme

The programme will be subject to variables such as weather and the abilities of the group and changes may also be made to take account of lambing, deer stalking, etc. Any such alterations will always take into account the need to maintain the overall character of the holiday.

1. Sunday: An Sgurr
2. Monday: caves on Eigg and the Isle of Muck
3. Tuesday: Bay of Laig and boat to Rum
4. Wednesday: Hallival
5. Thursday: Guirdil Bay
6. Friday: Kilmory

An Sgurr, Isle of Eigg

Sunday: An Sgurr
An Sgurr, (The Notch) the highest and most distinctive hill on Eigg, is the largest exposed piece of pitchstone in the UK. There are spectacular views in all directions as you walk up and from the top.
From the top of An Squrr we descend to the west to upper and lower Grulin. These villages were deserted during the Highland Clearances.
12 miles/19km and 1200ft/400m ascent.

Monday: Caves on Eigg and the Isle of Muck
In the morning we will visit the Massacre and Cathedral Caves. The Massacre Cave is the place where the island's entire population suffocated in an act of clan warfare between the Macdonalds and Macleods int he 16th century.
In the afternoon we take the boat to Muck, taking time on the way to see seal colonies and if we are lucky, whales and dolphins too. We have two hours to spend on Muck. The island's coastal scenery, birdlife and variety of plants and flowers are well worth seeing.
Up to 8 miles/12 km and little ascent.

Isle of Skye from the slopes of Hallival on Rum

Tuesday: Bay of Laig, Eigg and boat to Rum
We will walk to the Bay of Laig, a sandy bay lined with beautiful sandstone erosion and with the spectacular backdrop of Rum in the distance and the cliffs of Cleadale behind.

Around midday, we will take the boat to Rum where we will stay for the rest of the week.
On Rum we will have a tour of Kinloch Castle and a walk short walk near our accommodation.
Up to 10 miles/16km and little ascent

Wednesday: Hallival
We will walk up Hallival (2372ft/723m), one of the Rum Cullins. From Kinloch Castle we will hike through Coire Dubh onto Bealach Bairc-Mheall, the saddle between Barkeval and Hallival. From the Bealach we can look into Glen Harris with the mausoleum in the distance. We contimue up the rocky slope of Hallival, which houses the world's largest manx sheerwater colony. They dig nesting burrows in the soft volcanic Peridotite. They come ashore under the cover of total darkness in order to prevent predation.
There will be some easy scrambling to reach the top. On a bright day, the views from the top in all directions make our effort very much worth it: the mountains of the Highlands to the east, the Isle of Skye to the north, the Western Isles to the west and Mull, Jura and the other isles of the Inner Hebrides to the south. After we have taken in the view, we descent down the east slope looking towards Eigg and follow the rough pony path back to Konloch Castle..
7 miles/11.5km and 2378ft/725m ascent

Kilmory, Isle of Rum

Thursday: Guirdil Bay
The walk will take us to Guirdil Bay on the west coast of the island at the bottom of Bloodstome Hill. where we will be surrounded by great views to Skye, Canna, the Outer Hebrides and the mainland. Our highest point will be Fionchra (1450ft/463m). There’s a good chance that we will see deer and wild goats along the way.
13 miles/21km and 1450ft/463m ascent

Friday: Kilmory and journey back to Glasgow
Our walk of today goes to Kilmory. This glen and its beautiful sandy bay is where the BBC Autumnwatch programme reported about the annual deer rut. During the summer the stags are in the hills most of the time and we probably have seen some during the walk to Guirdill Bay. In the summer Kilmory is the domain of the hinds ad their calves. The red deer in this part of Rum have been researched for more than 50 years and they are never culled. This makes it possible to get quite close to them.
13 miles/20km and little ascent
We will take the late afternoon ferry back to Mallaig and from there we will travel back to Glasgow by minibus, arriving in Glasgow in the late evening.

The Small Isles walking holiday photos

Click on the picture to enlarge.

Am I fit enough?

This walking holiday is designed for people who are fit and used to walking all day. We will walk up to 11 miles (17 km) per day with an average 1000ft/300m of ascent. On one day it might be as much as 3000ft/900m but there are also easier days. Our routes sometimes traverse pathless glens, climb mountains or thread remote passes and there may be some scrambling. On most days as much of our time is spent off path as on it. Scotland can be very wild and tough going: 10 miles here is often much harder than 10 miles elsewhere. All that said, we don’t want to break any speed records, especially not when going uphill and you’ll have all the rewards of walking in one of the most beautiful and fascinating parts of the Highlands and Islands.

We partnered with Fit for Trips to make sure that you will fully enjoy your hiking trip to Scotland and reduce the risk of injuries. They have developed fitness programmes specific to our walking tours and hiking holidays to help you to get in shape. Customers of About Argyll Walking Holidays will get 20% discount. Click here for details.

If you're still not sure whether or not you can cope after you've read this and the details of the week's programme, please get in touch to discuss it further.

Accommodation

The accommodation during this holiday is more basic than during our other holidays, simply because this is the only accommodation available. You will share a room with 2 or 3 other members of the group and the bathrooms are shared between rooms. All meals will be at the accommodation.
On Eigg we will stay at Glebe Barn. This barn is converted to comfortable accommodation and the food is excellent.
On Rum we will stay at Kinloch Castle Hostel. The rooms are in the old servants' quarters.

Clothing and Equipment

You will need to bring boots with a good tread that provide adequate ankle support, warm clothing, waterproofs (top and over-trousers) and a rucksack big enough for your spare clothes, a packed lunch and whatever else you normally like to have with you (binoculars, a camera, etc.).
Boots are especially important. They don't have to be particularly heavy, but wearing ultra lightweight ones may mean your feet get wet and trainers definitely aren't adequate nor, on some of the rougher and steeper going, however short it may be, are they safe. Trekking poles can be very useful, especially for anyone with knee problems.

Dates and Prices for 2012

The price includes:

• The services of our well-qualified, informed and welcoming guide.
• Small group - usually between 4 and 8.
• An attractive, well-thought-out walking programme (6 walking days).
• Accommodation on Eigg and on Rum in twin/triple rooms, breakfast, picnic lunch on walking days and evening meals.
• Transport by train, ferries, (charter) boats and minibus, as needed, throughout your holiday, including from/to Glasgow at the beginning and end.
• Entrance fee to museums, if visited.
• Short evening get-togethers to set the scene for the next day's walking.
• 20% discount on Fit for Trips customised fitness programmes.

and most especially

• Personal care and attention in all that we do for you.

For general information and booking, please click here.