A'Chill – An Early Christian Cross in a Field on Canna

The walk

The walk starts at St Columba's Chapel, on the harbour road beside the Square. Visitors can't take a car to Canna, so leave yours at Mallaig: the West Bay car park charges and is five minutes' walk from the ferry, and the East Bay one is free and 10 to 15 minutes away. A'Chill was once Canna's main settlement, and a signed field path leads up to it from beside the chapel. It goes by Heron Rock and an information board, then through a small wood, past the grave of John Lorne Campbell, Fear Chanaidh, the Man of Canna. In the field beyond stands an early Christian cross, carved between the 7th and 9th centuries and still covered in worn decoration. Two of its arms are gone, shot off, the story goes, by cannon at target practice during the Napoleonic wars. Further up the field, on a low mound, is the Punishment Stone, a standing stone with a hole in it. Legend has it that an offender's thumb was wedged into the hole. The cross is a few hundred yards from the chapel, so allow an hour for the walk with time to look.

The way is over fields and through gates, with a stile, and livestock may be grazing: keep dogs under close control. St Columba's itself was built after 1770 and was the island's main Catholic church until 1897. It was rededicated in 1965. The toilets are at the Visitor Hub near the pier. Canna belongs to the National Trust for Scotland. Tighard Guest House asks for at least two nights and means to stay open all year. It cooks its guests a two-course dinner on a Tuesday and a Thursday, for £30, makes packed lunches and meets the ferry to carry luggage. Café Canna is shut until April and the campsite is shut for the winter. The Canna Community Shop is open day and night, every day of the year, on an honesty system.

Book a bed on the island before you book the boat, and bring food. On CalMac's winter timetable, from 19 October 2026 to 25 March 2027, the boat for Canna leaves Mallaig at 9.50am on a Tuesday and a Thursday and lands at 12.40pm. It sails again 20 minutes later, at 1pm, and is back at Mallaig at 3.50pm, so a winter visit means at least two nights, Tuesday to Thursday. A Sunday boat runs only if it is asked for on 0800 066 5000 by 4pm on the working day before: it leaves Mallaig at 9am, reaches Canna at 11.05am and leaves again at 1.25pm. No boat runs on Tuesday 1 December or Tuesday 2 February, nor on 25 December or 1 January. Book the crossing ahead: CalMac's Mallaig office, on 01687 310240, option 2, takes bookings until 4pm on the working day before, and foot passengers check in 20 minutes before the boat sails. Winter weather cancels sailings and can keep you on the island a night or two longer than you planned, so look at CalMac's service status page before you travel. From April to October, the island's own site says, Canna can be a day trip on a Wednesday or a Saturday.