Sea Eagles and Otters on Mull – Loch na Keal, Ulva, Loch Torr
Two days by car, from Craignure and back.
The route
White-tailed eagles, also known as sea eagles, were brought back to Scotland's west coast and live on Mull all year, and otters hunt among the rocks and seaweed of its sea lochs.
Nobody can promise you either, so these two days from the Craignure ferry are about being where they live and knowing how to look. The first follows the north shore of Loch na Keal to Ulva Ferry, where a boat has gone out to the eagles in past seasons and a ferry crosses to the car-free island of Ulva. After a night near Dervaig, the second starts above Loch Torr in a hide, a wooden shelter for watching wildlife, and carries on to Tobermory and the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust's centre. If neither animal shows, the days are still a sea loch under Ben More, a painted harbour and, on weekdays, an island without cars.
Before you go
Book the ferry from Oban to Craignure
Book the car both ways on the Oban to Craignure ferry, with a morning sailing out for day one, as soon as your dates are set.
Book a bed near Dervaig
Book a bed near Dervaig for the night between the two days, and book dinner at the Bellachroy in Dervaig (not Wednesdays): the inn serves it from 5pm to 8pm. On a Wednesday, try Am Birlinn at Penmore on its open days, or drive to Tobermory.
GlenborrodaleBorradill HouseSleeps 6
13 miles awayBorradill CottageSleeps 4
CrogganFern CottageSleeps 4
25 miles awayGlenhurich LodgeSleeps 11
25 miles awayThe Old SchoolSleeps 4
25 miles awayCurlew CottageSleeps 5
25 miles awayElastic CottageSleeps 4
25 miles awayPier CottageSleeps 2
25 miles awaySeaview CottageSleeps 2
25 miles awayThe Gate LodgeSleeps 4
25 miles awayThe Old Post OfficeSleeps 2Book the sea eagle boat, if it is running
Check first that Mull Charters' Sea Eagle Adventure is running this year: its booking page, or 01680 300444.
Day one
Loch na Keal
A day on the west side of Mull. The road follows the north shore of Loch na Keal, where otters hunt, to the pier at Ulva Ferry, and the watching is done there on foot. Then it's over the narrow water to Ulva and its woods, before the road climbs north across the hill to Dervaig for the night.
1 hr 1 min at the wheelAbout 31 miles
Ulva Ferry
An attraction
It's 41 minutes' drive from Craignure by Salen to Ulva Ferry; allow longer. The last 6 miles follow Loch na Keal's north shore, a one-car-wide road with no car park: passengers can watch, but don't stop on the road or the verge, and never in a passing place. Park at the pier's car park and watch on foot: a curved back in the seaweed is an otter; scan the skyline for eagles. If Mull Charters' sea eagle boat is running and you book, it replaces Ulva's walk. Nothing is promised.
2 min on foot
Isle of Ulva
An attraction
Ulva's ferry crosses in 2 minutes, then it's a 1-minute walk up from the slip. Turn the signal board at the slip to red and the ferryman comes over, Monday to Friday, April to October. The Boathouse, a seafood restaurant by the landing, opens those weekdays, with lunch from about 12 to 3. The island guide maps a Shore and Woodland Walk of 6 km, two to three hours. At a weekend, drive on to Eas Fors waterfall instead. Dervaig is 20 minutes' drive north over the hill; allow longer.
If it rains
Rain alone changes little at Ulva Ferry, where the water can be watched from the car in the pier's car park. On Ulva the Boathouse is the roof. The Ulva ferry is a small open boat and stops in bad weather: the ferryman has the last word. If the channel can't be crossed, carry on to Dervaig by Eas Fors and take day two's hide in the afternoon. If you are booked on the eagle boat, it sails or not on the skipper's word.
Worth a detour
- Eas Fors Waterfall
Five minutes' drive on from Ulva Ferry, on the road you take to Dervaig anyway, a burn drops in three falls beside the B8073, the last of them straight over a cliff into Loch Tuath. There's a small parking area just before the bridge; if it is full, drive on rather than stop in a passing place. The upper and middle falls are by the road. There are no barriers above the last drop and the grass is slippery, so keep well back from the edge.
Day two
Tobermory
A shorter day in the north of the island. It starts in the quiet of the hide above Loch Torr, moves on to Tobermory for the harbour and the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust's centre, and ends on the road down the Sound of Mull to Craignure.
58 min at the wheelAbout 28 miles
7 min by car
Loch Torr Wildlife Hide
An attraction
From Dervaig, drive 7 minutes up the Tobermory road's hairpin bends to the Quinish Forest entrance, a track on the left; allow longer. Don't count on parking at the hide: use the space at the forest entrance only if it is clear and you are wholly off the road, then walk about 300 metres up the track. Forestry and Land Scotland says the hide sits high enough to look out for stags on the open hill, waterfowl on Loch Torr and possibly a larger bird of prey on the skyline.
11 min by car
Tobermory
An attraction
It's 11 minutes' drive on to Tobermory and the Ledaig car park, at the south end of the harbour front; allow longer. This is Mull's main town, its painted houses lining the harbour. Buy lunch on Main Street, or bring it. Mull Museum, on Main Street too, is free and run by volunteers, and opens Monday to Saturday from March to the end of October.
4 min on foot
Hebridean Whale Centre
An attraction
The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust has its centre at number 28, 4 minutes' walk along Main Street. Its exhibitions cover the whales, dolphins and porpoises of these waters and the trust's work to protect them, and the staff and volunteers can tell you what has been seen lately. The trust gives its days as Monday to Friday; on a Saturday give the time to the museum, and on a Sunday to the harbour front. Craignure is 40 minutes' drive back down the Sound of Mull by Salen.
If it rains
This is the easier day in the wet. The hide is a roof with a view, and a grey morning is as good as any for watching the loch. In Tobermory the Whale Centre and Mull Museum, a few doors apart on Main Street, are both indoors; the days each keeps are under its own stop. Leave Tobermory in good time for the road to Craignure and the ferry.
Worth a detour
- Fishnish wildlife hide
Between Salen and Craignure, take the turn-off for the Lochaline ferry: Forestry and Land Scotland's car park is on the right about a quarter of a mile before the terminal, and it's free. The hide looks out over the Sound of Mull, and the forestry body lists otters, sea eagles, dolphins and porpoises among the animals seen from it, with panels of recent sightings inside. You'll know it by its 18-foot totem pole. It adds a couple of minutes' driving and as long as you care to sit.
Where to eat
The Glass Barn, a café in Tobermory.
Calgary Bay Co, a café in Calgary.
Photograph by Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust via Google