The Paps of Jura We sail for Colonsay on a beautiful July day of vistas and calm seas An opportunity to map out islands of the Inner Hebrides. The Paps of Jura show on the horizon - sun on cliffs and sandy beaches . The island is rugged and wild. We’re almost within sight of the whirlpool of Corryvreckan off the northern tip of Jura. The brilliance of gannet fishing, the spectacle is unrivalled from the power of the dive to the white wings caught in sunlight.
Estuary of the Corran River with the Paps of Jura beyond
Leaving Colonsay in the early evening of a long summer’s night we make out Loch Tarbert, the sea loch penetrating the west coast of Jura at the island’s narrowest point. Tarbert of the Crossings, for thousands of years a short-cut across a kilometre of land avoiding the perils of Corryvreckan to the north and strong tides in the Sound of Islay to the south. Tarbert, an isthmus ,once a focal point and now a place of solitude.
Leaving Colonsay, we sail south into the Sound of Islay, looking out toward the rugged west coast of Jura.. An inspirational prelude to our week on the island. Dim evening light with streaks of sunlight illuminating the wild west coast with basalt dikes, intrusions which outlast the Jura quartzite, raised beaches, terraces of pebbles and cobbles. Red deer forage on the beach, framed by dark dikes of basalt, by caves, stacks and rock arches. The sacred places where man has trod lightly, leaving the faintest footprint. With twilight glimmer cast over the wilderness of Jura we step through a portal into myth
The wild west coast of Jura is inaccessible, wilderness walking. The Paps dominate our horizons as we explore the Inner Hebridean islands: Colonsay, Jura and Islay. On Jura, we have a sequence of fair days, still, calm and clear- so we compose walks focusing on The Paps – a challenge which is irresistible. Throughout our trip, we admire these mountains in ever-changing mood.
I plan a Jura sequence of nature writer’s blogs. Sometimes experience ( like an evening sail in fading light) is evocative but not photogenic. The Paps of Jura in fine weather can hardly fail to yield an abundance of good photographs. I am immersed in editing and reflecting on the experience.
Corra Bheinn
Beinn Shiantiach
Beinn An Oir , Hill of Gold
Beinn a Shiach , the consecrated hill,
Beinn a Chaolais, The Hill of the Kyle
In a sequence of blogs, I hope to show why the Paps of Jura are so distinctive.
Leaving Colonsay, we sail south into the Sound of Islay, looking out toward the rugged west coast of Jura.. An inspirational prelude to our week on the island. Dim evening light with streaks of sunlight illuminating the wild west coast with basalt dikes, intrusions which outlast the Jura quartzite, raised beaches, terraces of pebbles and cobbles. Red deer forage on the beach, framed by dark dikes of basalt, by caves, stacks and rock arches. The sacred places where man has trod lightly, leaving the faintest footprint. With twilight glimmer cast over the wilderness of Jura we step through a portal into myth
The wild west coast of Jura is inaccessible, wilderness walking. The Paps dominate our horizons as we explore the Inner Hebridean islands: Colonsay, Jura and Islay. On Jura, we have a sequence of fair days, still, calm and clear- so we compose walks focusing on The Paps – a challenge which is irresistible. Throughout our trip, we admire these mountains in ever-changing mood.
I plan a Jura sequence of nature writer’s blogs. Sometimes experience ( like an evening sail in fading light) is evocative but not photogenic. The Paps of Jura in fine weather can hardly fail to yield an abundance of good photographs. I am immersed in editing and reflecting on the experience.
Corra Bheinn
Beinn Shiantiach
Beinn An Oir , Hill of Gold
Beinn a Shiach , the consecrated hill,
Beinn a Chaolais, The Hill of the Kyle
In a sequence of blogs, I hope to show why the Paps of Jura are so distinctive.
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