Clach Thoull – The Hole in the Rock at Port Appin
About 1.6 miles on foot.
At the end of the road in Port Appin, a track sets off round a small headland to Clach Thoull, a natural rock arch that the sea carved and then left behind above the shore.
The name is Gaelic for the hole in the rock. It's an easy walk of about a mile and a half, with the island of Lismore just across the water and lunch by the pier at the end.
- Time
- An hour to an hour and a half: a circuit of about 2.5 km with about 70 m of climbing. A stroll.
- The path
- Tracks round a headland, gentle but unsurfaced.
- Where to start
- The small car park by the Lismore ferry slip in Port Appin, just before the Pierhouse Hotel; look for any time limit on the signs.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. From November to January set off by 2pm. Lunch at the Pierhouse is 12.30pm to 2.30pm.
- Dogs
- Under close control.
- Children
- A short, gentle walk to an arch in the rock.
- Toilets
- Public toilets beside the car park at the ferry slip.
The walk
Port Appin is at the end of a minor road off the A828, and the walk starts from the small car park by the Lismore ferry slip, on the left just before the Pierhouse Hotel. Look for any time limit on the signs when you park. There are free public toilets beside it. The circuit is about 2.5 km and takes an hour to an hour and a half, with about 70 metres of climbing.
The Appin Community Council calls it a gentle walk on tracks round the Appin Rocks headland. The thing to see is Clach Thoull, a tall arch through a crag beside the track. The sea cut it, and it now stands above a raised beach. The views are across the Lynn of Lorn to Lismore, with the hills of Morvern behind the island.
It's easy going for most ages. Keep dogs under close control. From November to January set off by 2pm, or by 11am to be back as lunch begins.
If it rains
It's short and on tracks, so it goes in light rain with a waterproof, though Lismore and Morvern vanish in low cloud. The Pierhouse's Ferry Bar has a wood-burning stove for afterwards.
Afterwards
The Pierhouse Hotel
Lunch
The Pierhouse is the whitewashed hotel beside the ferry slip, a minute from the car. Lunch is served every day from 12.30pm to 2.30pm, and seafood leads the menu: cullen skink (smoked haddock soup), an Arbroath smokie soufflé and oysters, with a burger, scones and home bakes besides, and a roast on Sundays. You can reserve a table indoors on 01631 730302, while the terrace facing Lismore is first come, first served. Dogs are welcome in the Ferry Bar and the Lismore Dining Room only. Over Christmas and New Year, check before going.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Slochd, 4 miles away. Sleeps 2.
For further reading, before you go.
Photograph by Anne-Marie Simpson via Google