Hi,

Paid my first visit to the Island of Tiree for the 10k race. Stopped at Oban on the Friday night and caught the 0700 ferry which stops at Coll briefly en route.

The weather was good for the first part of the day so got a great shot of the Clan MacLean pile of Duart Castle on the way past. Had to get sorted for the race on arrival and being on my own means I have no photos of the race. Possibly I will be able to scalp some off the net in due course. Friendly island hospitality meant I got offered a lift three miles up to the race start from local man Cameron who hailed me as he came out of the Co-op!

The race went as well as expected despite the blustery winds and starting and finishing on the beach. Came 16th out of 127 runners with a moderate time of 46:59. Having missed all of my winter training due to family circumstances I would have have settled for anything under 50 minutes!

The weather was starting to turn as the race finished. I met David from Cambuslang and we hitched back to the Scaranish Hotel, getting a lift from the first car that passed.

The following day the weather was poor but I enjoyed more local hospitality at the home of Donald and Andrea MacArthur at Middleton Farm near Sandaig and felt privileged to share their company. Went on a run around the island on the way back and stopped at the 6th Century Dun Mor Broch at Vaul.

The weather was better on the day of departure so I managed to get a few photos on the way to the boat. Tiree is a beautiful island and well worth a visit. All being well I would like to get back for the half marathon next year.

I hope you enjoy the small number of photos. Thanks to all the locals for their kindness to me during this trip.

All the best

Murdo