FoxMog Scottish Holiday 2008

Was this a pilgrimage or a pub crawl? The evidence is confusing. We began with Europe's finest Benedictine monastery (Durham Cathedral), and travelled by easy stages to Iona Abbey, where the Iona Community is still active. Many tales were told during the journey, in the best Chaucerian tradition, and many diversions gladly undertaken.

So there we were, most of us (for starting and stopping where-so-ever was positively encouraged by the secretary) at the Farnley Tower Hotel, Durham, which had proved something of a challenge for one of the company's SatNav, which sent them to the Bus Station instead. Then we discovered a mishap. One of the Morgans would not turn its radiator fan off. Help was summoned. The cause diagnosed (perished rubber sealing washer), and the unhappy Morgan towed to nearby Lanchester.

Meanwhile the pilgrims left were led by a secret route to Prebends Bridge, and the subterranean entrance to the Cathedral Close, arriving from literally under the Dean's house. Durham Cathedral is rare, inasmuch as it was built inside 30 or so years, and so all of the same Norman style. Our architectural member was ecstatic about the Galilee Chapel (resting place of the Venerable Bede).

Next day we had all to go to Lanchester, having been informed of a magnificent collection of Lagondas at the Morgan Garage there, and we duly paid homage, and were extremely grateful for the guided tour and the kindness of the proprietor in giving us at least an hour of his time to do so, as well as fixing the poorly Morgan so quickly the previous day. Then on to our official destination of the day: Hadrian's Wall, and the Housesteads Museum. A cold wind but no rain, and Houseteads really is worth a visit. That evening we all assembled, the full complement of six couples, but were sorry that only five Morgans would proceed.

Day three saw us going by different routes (the Galloway Tourist route being favourite) and even different ferries (one member thought he was joining the queue for the 3:15 only to be invited to board the 1:30 ferry - not shown on any timetable) to the Isle of Arran. Here we had the best beer of our pub-crawl: Arran Blond - a 5% ABV brewed very locally.

Several of us did Brodick Castle on day four, while for most the highlight was the Lochranza Distillery. This distillery (even to a hardened distillery visitor who can compare it with Oban and Talisker) is something special. Arran was once renowned for its distilleries, but the last had closed in 1837. Then a dedicated whisky man thought to revive distilling on Arran, and a new distillery was opened in Lochranza in 1995. Arran 10 Year Single Malt was tasted, and your whisky expert was so taken that a bottle was duly bought, along with a Lochranza Blended. Onward, by another ferry to Cloanaig, and so to Ardrishaig, where the Crinan Canal starts. Two sailing boats put on a display of lock usage for our benefit, and on the next day most of us found the Kilmartin House Museum fascinating as we drove towards Oban for the ferry to Mull.

So three nights at the Isle of Mull Hotel at Craignure (with the view from a bedroom window as shown), for the climax of the pilgrimage: the drive across Mull (a single track A road) and the ferry to Iona. We were given a guided tour of the Abbey, and learnt much about St Columba (he got to Iona in 563 AD) and the origins of Celtic Christianity in Northern Britain.

We had hardly had more than five minutes of hood-up time till the last full day on Mull, when the locals were glad of a bit of rain, even if we were not. The distillery at Tobermory had even to close down after six weeks of no rain, we were told, as their water supply had dried up. We had hoped for another distillery guided tour, but this was not possible. So Abbeys 2 - Distilleries 1. It was a pilgrimage after all. We gathered for the final ferry journey back to Oban, and we all agreed it had been a magnificent time together, and hoped that something similar (Ireland?) might be planned for the future.