The Beacon

18.4C starting cloudy then brightening up. Warm afternoon. Moderate ESE then SSE breeze.

Grocery shopping over by mid morning.

For a change from our usual Sunday beach walk we decided to drive along Kilkerran Road on the South shore of Campbeltown loch, park at the Doirlinn car park and walk from there. Maeve the Deerhound came too. Even though it is a minor road there can be a car every now and again so the walk was a bit stop start. We walked for about a mile, almost to New Orleans (thank you OS map!), then came back. The distance was easy to know as we passed a mile marker for the Kintyre Way near the car park and went past the next one about a quarter of a mile before the point we turned round. There were lots of birds to be seen on the way. Terns diving in Kildalloig Bay, gulls of various sorts, gannets out at sea.

We put Maeve in the car and set off across the Doirlinn to the beacon which marks one side of the channel the boats use to enter and leave Campbeltown loch. I had been across once before but Apothecary7 wanted to see the view from out by the beacon. Close up the beacon is much larger than it looks from the shore. I'd estimate the concrete base is 12 feet or so from the bottom of the ladder to the platform.

Apothecary7 did agree with me that the Doirlinn isn't a walk for Maeve, the surface is deep shingle and shells and gives way easily underfoot. One day we will go all the way over to Davaar island.

On the way back we saw one seal, which popped up not far from shore and had a look round before disappearing under the surface again.

E-PL5 f/10 1/640 sec. ISO-200 14mm

Extra: Davaar island from the beacon on the Doirlinn (colour shot on 31st May). Also, the longer view to the beacon from the North shore of the Loch 1st June (the extra is the best shot of the beacon).