Brown Trout in Barra

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It's a five hour ferry from Oban to Castlebay but the hours went by in no time and when I arrived here I knew this place was going to amazing.

There is something about pace of life here on Barra at the southern tip of the Outer Hebrides which took me in. All I have to worry about here is whether or not I'll catch a fish to cook for supper and if not then what I'll have from the local Co-Op instead. So far I've caught and cooked Brown Trout and Mackerel fresh from the sea and lochs here.

There is a tourist information office here but there isn't a vast number of tourist attractions; no yellow banana boat, no paragliding off the hills or quad bike safari. What is amazing about this place is the scenery, the people and how easy it is to relax. You can hire a bike, walk up a steep hill, visit white sand beaches and fish the sea or a loch. There's a pub with a few typical drunk Scotsmen and the hostel has a really good atmosphere. The buses and ferrys are really good and have regular services connecting all the islands from top to bottom so it's really easy to travel. If there is no bus that's not bother, you can always hitch hike; people are friendly and often happy to stop.

Not all parts of the Western Isles are as nice as Barra but I'm impressed with what I've seen so far. Next I will work my way up the islands, Eriskay, South Uist, Benbecula and North Uist towards Harris and Lewis.

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Photos

Arrived in Castlebay
Smell that fresh air

Oban - Barra Ferry
The Ferry arrived at 8pm

Castlebay Harbour
A view across the bay

Vatersay
Cows chill out on the beach at Vatersay

White Sandy Beaches
Barra has some lovely beaches - in summer it is paradise - except the sea is freezing

Rainbows on Barra
Short showers create some big rainbows

Friends at the Hostel
Phil, Hannah, The Cook Family and me

Brown Trout
The big one got away - no joke

Me
About to go fishing