Sunday (Day 5) dawned cloudy with a few blue spots peeking through. It turned out to be a great day as we bid Kenmore adieu and headed (by coach) for the ferry from Oban to the Isle of Mull. The seafood lovers amongst us bought fresh catch on the wharf in Oban and had lunch on the ferry. The rest of us made do with whatever we could find!

Upon arrival in Craignure, Isle of Mull, it was off to Duart Castle, a very imposing and fascinating 13th century fortress, and home base of the Clan Maclean. After visiting the castle we reversed direction to head up the coast of Mull to Tobermory, having a look at Torosay Castle and visiting some excellent craft shops along the way.

The Isle of Mull is an interesting place for drivers - especially of bicycles! Most roads are narrow single lane, with frequent small pull-offs. When confronted with an oncoming vehicle, the one nearest a pull-off in his direction of motion is obliged to pull over, while the other one waits, and then proceeds. This is not a big problem for bikes on level ground (of which Mull has virtually none), but the frequent stops and starts sure complicates the process on hills and curves! Nevertheless, it works (sort of!). Oh yes - remember, drive on the LEFT! And decorum dictates that you somehow free up a hand from the handlebars to wave to the driver who pulled over for you - or return his wave thanking you for pulling over!

The ride to Tobermory was a bit of a challenge. The sun decided to make the occasional appearance (which means at times it was HOT), and the headwind was something fierce. To top it off, about 5 miles south of Tobermory (i.e. at the end of the day) there's a mile-long hill that's a real !@#$%&^*!!. Steep, narrow, busy, and seemingly never-ending! An easy match for Ireland's Corkscrew Hill, but apparently it prefers to hide in anonymity.

Tobermory itself is also not without challenges. Picture a miniature San Francisco and you get the idea road-wise. Anyway, I made it to our hotel around 6:30, completely exhausted, but content that at least I'd made it. And the Western Isles Hotel is a wonderful sight at the end of the day.