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Carsaig - Carsaig Arches
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Click
here for panorama of Carsaig
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The road turns off from the hamlet of Pennyghael and takes you to Carsaig
Bay. One of the most scenic bays on the south coast of the Ross of Mull.
Carsaig lies in an amphitheatre of 215M cliffs and at the bottom of the
road are the remains of the Pier, constructed by prisoners of the Nepolionic
wars. To walk to the Arches and the Nun's cave,keep to the shore,
proceed west from the old stone pier along to the Nun's Cave, named
after the Iona Nuns who took refuge after being expelled from the island
at the time of the Reformation. In there, carved on the walls, crosses
of various designs, some ageing back to the 6th Century can be found.
Several dates, the earliest being 1633 and a carving of a sailing ship.
Walking another hour and you arrive at the arches.
OSM Pathfinder Sheet NM42/52 |
| Of all the coastal walks on Mull this has to be the most magnificent.
The Carsaig Arches are not only breathtaking in themselves, but the walk
to them, from either direction, passes under some of the highest and most
spectacular cliffs in Britain. This is goat country, eagle country and,
in spring, nesting country for kittiwakes and fulmars. Like most of the
coastal walking in Mull, this is rough going - the stunning scenery is
the result of eroding sedimentary rocks underlying the Mull volcanics.
As the younger rocks crumble, the volcanic cliffs above are dramatically
steepened. |
| The arches themselves are rather different in character - one a massive
tunnel floored with rounded boulders the size of footballs. With any swell
running, the sound of the sea booms through the cave and the boulders roll
restlessly grinding themselves smoother and smother through the centuries.
The other arch is a crazy, 36 metre tower - a gothic freak of nature with
a keyhole slot through its centre made for a gigantic key 20 metres high. |
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The walk in to the arches is not long, but it is extremely
hard going and there are only two easy access points, the cliffs being
unscaleable for almost all their length.
References:
Olive Brown and Jean Whittaker, Walking in South Mull and Iona
(Revised & expanded ed. 1996)
ISBN 0 9528428 0 7
Mull in the Making by Rosalind Jones
Text and photos copyright © Jean Whittaker 1997
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