Kerrera Tea Garden

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Introduction

Every good island walk needs a halfway reward, and on Kerrera it's this one. The Tea Garden sits at Lower Gylen on the southern end of the island, a few minutes from Gylen Castle and slap in the middle of the circular walking route, which is exactly where you want it after an hour on the track. Martin and Aideen took over in 2013 and have built the place a serious reputation: homemade soups, stews, salads and a counter of cakes, with lemon drizzle and rhubarb crumble among the regulars, alongside fairtrade teas and coffees. The eggs in the baking come from the island's own hens wherever possible, and you can see them from the Byre window. Anita Rani and the Countryfile cameras have been out to make scones.

Groups of seven or more are asked to ring ahead so there's enough cake baked, which tells you most of what you need to know about the scale of the operation. If you'd rather not rush back for the ferry, the bunkhouse next door sleeps seven, there's a bell tent in season, and the Byre offers sofas and a wood-burning stove for group getaways under some of the darkest skies on the west coast.

Location

The Tea Garden is at Lower Gylen, near the southern tip of Kerrera. The CalMac passenger ferry crosses from Gallanach, a couple of miles south of Oban, in about five minutes, and no visitor cars are allowed on the island. From the slipway it's roughly 45 minutes on foot by the eastern track, or around two hours if you take the western route with its views to Mull and Lismore. The café opens seven days a week from April to the end of September, roughly 11am to 4pm, and closes for the winter. Cash is preferred, though there's a card machine. The last scheduled ferry back is 5.55pm, with a 7pm sailing bookable at least 24 hours ahead through CalMac, so keep an eye on the clock.

What's nearby

Gylen Castle is a few minutes' walk away, the MacDougall tower house burned by Covenanters in 1647, standing on its cliff above Castle Bay with free entry at all times. The southern circuit of Kerrera passes Horseshoe Bay, where King Alexander II died in 1249, and the whole loop runs to around seven miles of coast, hill and farmland. At the north end of the island, reached separately by the marina ferry from Oban's North Pier, the Waypoint Bar and Grill at Kerrera Marina serves evening meals with island produce. Back on the mainland, Oban's distillery, galleries and seafood are ten minutes from the Gallanach slip.