Season: summer
Located in the north western corner of Mull, Calgary Bay has one of the finest beaches in Scotland. The dunes behind the beach are home to varied flora and fauna. The Friends of Calgary Bay offer guidance and information on topics such as wild camping and how to protect the sensitive natural balance of the beach environment, whilst welcoming the many visitors that flock here. This is one of the few beaches on Mull that are backed by shell sand dunes and machair, Gaelic for a low-lying, fertile plain. To one side of the beach and above is the “Art in Nature” initiative, a wooded nature trail that features various art installations, well worth a visit.
The scene at Calgary Bay.
A view of the beach from the machair.
Our beach, at Calgary, is the place I go to enjoy a stroll through the sands with my dog. She loves to investigate the smells found amongst the dunes and the rocks. There are flocks of oyster catchers and gulls on the shore to be chased off, waves to crash through as she tries to find the seashells thrown into the water, rabbits to chase after on the stretch of machair (which she never catches). This is her idea of heaven. And I like to stroll here with her, searching for interesting flotsam and jetsam, my head full of nothing very much at all. Even on the cold, wild and windy days, there is peace here.
Calgary is a beautiful bay with crystal clear turquoise waters and sparkling white sands. I am very lucky because it is part of my daily life – we drive down here twice a day during term time to drop off and collect our daughter from the school bus, giving us plenty of opportunities to walk on the beach!! It might be first thing in the morning when the rising sun colours the sands a warm pink at low tide and Oystercatchers run along ahead of me. Or later in the day when the sun is setting on the horizon and casting shadows at the waters edge.
There is something very exhilarating when a storm is raging and the wild waves roar as they tumble up the beach. Something very peaceful when the sea is still and calm and quiet with barely a wave and no one else around. And in the height of summer, when the tide is out and the sands are dotted with family groups all enjoying a day on the beach, there is still room for me to walk and enjoy being there too.
If you are lucky you might see an Otter on the shore, or a White tailed eagle soaring high above you, or a pod of Dolphins breaching in the bay.
This is where we went after we got married. We stayed in a hut that had a boat for a roof, we had a boot full of champagne and our walking boots, a place to sleep and a camping stove. This is where I started writing again.