Claire from Lussa Gin gave us a tip-off about the Islay Woollen Mill, which is just off the main road to Port Askaig.
Started in 1883 and still going strong, the mill supplies high-end tailors in Savile Row and further afield.
It is most famous for weaving the tweed used in Braveheart and other big name Hollywood productions. Their fabrics are produced on two traditional Dobcross looms and shipped all over the world.
The vibe inside is distinctly down-to-earth – an old building with lots of character filled with old looms, yarn cones, rolls of fabric and weaving paraphernalia, all higgledy-piggledy.
Lucky visitors can get an impromptu tour from the owners and try out the big scissors.
Following on from A Day on Jura: part 1 – Nothing To See Here. Once you’re out of Craighouse (the main town on Jura) there’s virtually nothing there, and what is there is often out of bounds.
Barnhill, where George Orwell wrote 1984 is beyond the end of the public road, as is Corryvreckan, the third largest whirlpool in the world. Jura is covered in private estates, so we couldn’t see where the KLF burnt a million quid (YouTube) either. Ah well!
At the end of the road we did find Lussa Gin, a gin distillery run by three local women. Claire, who kindly gave us a tour first came to Jura with the KLF. There’s not much work for women on Jura, so three friends started Lussa Gin.
The botanicals are all grown locally (right outside the door!) and it tastes gorgeous.
It’s a horse box converted into a tea room with a selection of freshly-made cakes and an honesty box, run by local school kids. A lovely place to stop before the ferry back to Islay.
This the main road on Jura that runs from the west coast to Ardlussa on the east. There isn’t a lot to see, but the wilderness is part of its charm. George Orwell wrote 1984 here, calling it an ‘un-gettable’ place.
What you can’t miss is ‘the Paps’ of Jura. These three mountains are visible for miles around, and make the island’s skyline easy to identify from any direction. Even though they are omnipresent, they are also strangely out of reach.
Jura is also famous for having more deer than people (around 7,000 deer v 200 people), so there’s always that.
Colonsay is a small island (population 125) in the Southern Hebrides (part of the Inner Hebrides) off the west coast of Scotland. The ferry runs daily from Oban, or from Islay twice a week in summer.
There is a bookshop, a microbrewery, two gin distilleries and Colonsay house and gardens (closed when we visited). It is also covered with beautiful quiet beaches and has its own species of bee.
We hung about on Colonsay Golf Course, which has a fantastic setting, like the Bunabhainneadar tennis course on Harris. It operates via an honesty box, and local rules allow “a free drop for balls disappearing into rabbit-holes or taken by the ravens”.
It was covered in relics of something or other and led down to a deserted bay.
After a trip to Oronsay (of which, more later) the last stop was something to eat at the excellent Colonsay Pantry before the beautiful journey back to Islay.
Portnahaven Church was designed by Thomas Telford and built in 1828. The two doors are reputed to allow the populations of Portnahaven and the neighbouring village of Port Wemyss to enter separately and remain segregated when inside. Very Christian!
It is one of the best remaining examples of a ‘parliamentary church’, part of a wave of church-building (funded by Parliament) designed to better serve churchgoers in remote areas. Thanks Maraid for the tip-off.
Kilarrow Parish Church, more commonly known as The Round Church sits at the top of Bowmore’s main street. It was built in 1767 and is one of few round churches in the UK. The story goes that it was designed to be round so the devil couldn’t hide in any corners, but this seems to be more fiction than fact.
The church is not usually open apart from Sunday mornings, but you can arrange a visit by contacting the parish clerk on the number at the entrance.
Carraig Fhada Lighthouse on the Mull of Oa is a beautiful thing from any angle. We visited at 7.30am on the hottest day of the year.
It is Scotland’s only square lighthouse, and was commissioned by Walter Frederick Campbell, the Laird of Islay, in memory of his wife Lady Ellinor Campbell who died young in 1832. There is a beautiful dedication to her on one side of the lighthouse.
You can walk across the little path to get right up close (except at high tide). The lighthouse itself is not usually open to the public.
