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Although still raining at breakfast, the weather soon cleared so we headed towards Southend. Southend is at the southern end of the Kintyre Peninsular.
We parked a mile along the coastal road from Southend at Keil Point. From here I embarked upon a walk that took in a few historic sites. Round the corner from the car park are a series of caves that were occupied for centuries. Rarely for Scotland, some Roman pottery was discovered here.
Next to the caves are St. Columba's footprints. When he arrived from Ireland and first set foot in Scotland, the story goes that he recorded a footprint for prosperity. A second one was added many centuries later. Near the footprints is a well also associated with St. Columba, who went on to found the abbey on Iona and is credited with introducing Christianity to Scotland.
Continuing the walk along the coastal road, there are a collection of ruined buildings that was once a private school, plus a massive concrete monstrousity that was once a hotel but became an off-white elephant. It's a fine example of how not to blend a building in with its surroundings.
At the other end of a beautiful sandy beach lies Dunaverty Rock, the site of a castle since the 7th century. In 1647 the Royalist forces holding the castle succumbed to the Covenanters Army who, upon the order of their chaplain, proceeded to kill all 300 of the surrended forces. After this shameful incident, the castle was destroyed.
In Southend I stopped at the Muneroy Shop and Tearoom, where I tucked into a very tasty brunch. The tearoom staff were very chatty and friendly. I vowed to return later to sample one of their huge selection of homemade cakes.
After returning to the Minx we made our way to (cue earworm) The Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse. Described on the Walk Highlands website as the most torturous road in Scotland, the Minx and I thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful drive.
The public road ends a little over a mile from the lighthouse. From there it is a simple, easy downhill stroll following the twisty road down to the lighthouse. From up high it looks like it is at sea level but in reality is about 300ft up the cliffs. Built by Robert Stevenson (is there a Scottish lighthouse not built by the Stevensons?) it is now automated and the buildings are holiday cottages. Once at the lighthouse, there was time to take in the beautiful and desolate views of this isolated location before heading back up the steep 1000ft (305 metre) ascent.
On the way up, I clambered off road to pay my respects at the memorial to those killed in the Chinook helicopter crash of 1996 which took the lives of 29 people.
After that climb, we headed back to Southend and the Muneroy Tearoom where I tucked into a massive butterscotch fresh cream cake that was simply heavenly - so light it was almost like eating flavoured air!
To get back towards Campbeltown and my final walk of the day, we drove along the picturesque east coast road. The destination of this walk was Davaar Island. This can only be reached by a causeway that is passable for 3 hours either side of low tide, which today was at 8pm, hence leaving it until the end of the day.
The main claim to fame of the island is that in 1887 a fisherman discovered a painting of the crucifixion on a cave, and believed it must be a miracle. In reality, it had been painted by local school teacher Alexander MacKinnon, who said the image came to him in a dream.
The cave can only be reached by a clamber over a very rocky beach strewn with large ankle turning boulders. As my dodgy ankle was already complaining I decided to give it a miss and head back over the causeway.
In Campbeltown I made for The Crew Chippie for my first Haggis and Chips and Cheese meal of this trip, which was delicious!
Today we drove 76 miles.
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