Early evening light over Maiden Island

Maiden Island is the small grassy island at the entrance to Oban Bay. There are various legends about how the island got its name. One says that a young girl was accused of a crime, and was tied up on the shore to try to force admission out of her. She didn't confess, and drowned when the tide came in. The other main legend says that Murdoch, a Celtic warrior, was in love with Mhairi, the daughter of a local man. A rival cast doubts about Mhairi's chastity while Murdoch had been away, and so she was tied to a rock by her hair. As in the witch trials in later years, Mhairi could not win. If her hair stayed strong and kept her tied to the rock, she was deemed innocent but she would drown. If her hair broke, she was guilty and would survive so that Murdoch could punish her. At the eleventh hour, Murdoch relented and tried to swim out to the island to save her, but treacherous currents caught him, and they both drowned. Some say this is the more romantic version, but it has no romance in it for me. I look out at the island every day, and I prefer the version that applies to more than one Maiden Island in Scotland, that these islands sheltered women during times of war, and kept them safe. Isn't that a more wholesome view to live with?