Glasgow to Iona

The trip from Glasgow to the Isle of Iona is not quick and direct no matter how you do it. This time, we were heading straight to Iona without a car (they don’t allow them on the island anyway). From Queen Street Station, we caught the West Highland line on ScotRail. We’ve done it a few times before, but not always on such as beautiful day. About an hour into the three-hour journey, you begin to see the soft, green hills dotted with sheep and dramatic, steep-sided lochs, everything that makes you think about Scotland.

After two hours, the train splits at Crianlarich – one going north to Mallaig, where you can catch a ferry to the Isle of Skye, one to Fort William (all the back packers) and one to Oban, our destination. You get five minutes to hop off and get something in the tea room, before the two cars begin the last leg to Oban, a good-sized port town with the Oban Distillery, plenty of lodging, restaurants and seafood.

You have to leave early in the morning to make it from Glasgow to Iona in one day, and we did not, so we stayed in Oban. There are some hotels along the waterfront, as well as reasonably priced bed and breakfasts within walking distance of the train station and ferry. We stayed at the Kathemore Guest House, which was a nice B&B, about a 15-minute walk up a hill from the center of town. We picked up some supplies — always a good idea before heading to Mull or Iona (which has no ATM machines) — and had a leisurely dinner along the water.

In the morning, we caught the 11:10 ferry to Craignure on the Isle of Mull, before catching the 1:30 bus west across the island, about 75-minute ride. The buses are synchronized with the ferries, so they usually wait. They had double-decker buses for the first time offering great views. And we had time, so we had time to run across the street to the cafe for a sausage roll (Gary only) and an espresso. The weather changes fast on the islands, so after traveling through mist covered mountains through Glen More, the sky cleared and there were great views of the lochs and rugged landscape.

At Fionnphort, which sits on the western extremity of Mull, we caught the small Iona ferry for a 10-minute ride to Iona. We’ve included a photo from the ferry landing of a rainbow over Iona, from a previous trip. When we arrived on Iona, our hostess Barbara was waiting for us, and had us safely in our cottage by 3:30. Clouds were forming again, but there would be plenty of sunshine ahead of us.