Walk pictures

Introduction

We spent a week at the end of July in Oban, which is a port town on the west coast of Scotland.

Saturday

The journey from Glasgow (where we had stayed the night before) was on the West Highland Line, which has allegedly been voted the ‘most scenic railway line in the world’ on a couple of occasions, and is definitely very pretty. It also takes ages to go not very far, basically because there are quite a lot of mountains in the way. We weren’t in a hurry, so that was okay.

Once in Oban it didn’t take long to find where we were staying, above shops on the main road by the harbour. The flat was in a nice Victorian building and really big (a one-bedroom flat with two lounges, presumably in case the couple staying there really hate each other) and had a good view too.

Either one garage selling brakes, batteries, and bells, or possibly two different garages.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′38″N 5°28′16″W

Doorway to the flats.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′51″N 5°28′20″W

Stairs. The stone steps were nicely worn down in places.

1/125 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′51″N 5°28′20″W

At night, the main road is lit by a string of coloured lights.

Inside the flat, with shadows from balcony ironwork.

1/2 at f2, 23mm, ISO1600

Ferry in the harbour.

1/30 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO800

The road with coloured reflections, Columba Hotel, and a ship moored at the pier.

1/30 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO800

Sunday

We had a little wander around Oban.

Largely green door.

1/125 at f4, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′56″N 5°28′23″W

Monday

We walked around town, visited the small and quite interesting town museum, and tried out the Oban Chocolate Company tearoom (verdict: positive).

Shaped stone above entrance to flats.

1/60 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′51″N 5°28′20″W

Tuesday

We took a short walk north of the town to visit Dunollie Castle - the actual castle tower is ruined. but the house lower down the hill is a museum.

View from the Dog Stone (so called because the giant Fingal tied up his dog there).

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′24″N 5°28′59″W

Children’s toys in the museum.

1/30 at f4, 23mm, ISO400 56°25′37″N 5°28′59″W

Archway into the area by the tower.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′3″W

Ruined wall and view toward the island of Kerrera.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′5″W

View out from the basement level of the tower.

1/60 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′4″W

Scaffolding supports.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′4″W

Tower and tree.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′4″W

Tower and climbing plants.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′35″N 5°29′3″W

Afterward, we walked back into Oban.

View towards Mull with Kerrera, and a Mull ferry, in foreground.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°25′20″N 5°29′1″W

Part of the Regent Hotel, an art deco building (with slightly ugly extension up top).

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′56″N 5°28′25″W

We climbed the hill to McCaig’s Tower, which is not really a tower. It’s basically a replica of the Colosseum with a park inside, because why not. The story is actually pretty neat – it was built mainly to provide employment for local workers during times when there was not much else going on – and the end result is also a really nice monument.

Some knitted vent posts, halfway up the hill.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′57″N 5°28′16″W

Inside the ‘tower’.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′57″N 5°28′8″W

Another view inside the tower.

1/500 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′56″N 5°28′9″W

After visiting the tower, we went back down into Oban.

Chimney of Oban whisky distillery.

1/1000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′53″N 5°28′13″W

Being gluttons for punishment, we then climbed the hill at the other side of town to reach the lookout point.

Part of the port.

1/1000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′46″N 5°28′29″W

View of station, harbour, and town (McCaig’s tower in upper centre).

1/1000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′34″N 5°28′53″W

Circular wrought iron bench.

1/500 at f4, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′34″N 5°28′54″W

In the evening we went for a short stroll just after sunset.

Slipway, moorings, and Catholic cathedral in background.

1/125 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′55″N 5°28′25″W

Moorings, with Kerrera island behind.

1/125 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°24′56″N 5°28′27″W

View from flat towards Kerrera and (mountains in the distance) Mull.

1/15 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO200

Wednesday

On Wednesday we went to visit the pumped hydro-electric power station at Cruachan, which is also a tourist attraction. It works by pumping water from Loch Awe up a mountain (Ben Cruachan) to a reservoir, overnight when electricity is going spare, then generating electricity by letting it flow down again at times when electricity is expensive.

Before our visit we took a short walk up the Ben Cruachan path (but with no intention of getting anywhere near the reservoir, let alone the summit).

Nice tree from path.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′42″N 5°6′47″W

Mysterious vent near path.

1/250 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′38″N 5°6′42″W

Low bridge under railway (on the other side it says ‘Mind yer oops! head’, which is even better).

1/30 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′37″N 5°6′42″W

I don’t really have any good pictures from the actual tour of the underground bit of the power station (you only get a view of the turbine hall through glass) but it was fairly entertaining, and included coloured lighting and plastic dinosaurs.

And some wiring conduits.

1/30 at f5.6, 23mm, ISO1600 56°23′36″N 5°6′44″W

Intake/outlet.

1/250 at f11, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′39″N 5°6′59″W

River leading away from Loch Awe, with road clinging to side.

1/250 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′42″N 5°7′2″W

Another view of the railway bridge.

1/30 at f5.6, 23mm, ISO200 56°23′37″N 5°6′42″W

Thursday

Thursday was our ferry trip - since we were staying in a ferry port, it seemed rude not to. We took the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry to the Isle of Mull. Because of the good weather, the sea views were really great.

Sea and sky.

1/1000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°26′46″N 5°34′50″W

More sea, more sky.

1/2000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°26′53″N 5°35′37″W

Duart Castle.

1/1000 at f8, 23mm, ISO200 56°27′50″N 5°39′12″W

Once on Mull we took a long, rather expensive, but almost equally pretty bus ride to Tobermory, which is famous for being named after a Womble and for being the setting for a children’s TV programme that we haven’t seen.