Coll

The Isle of Coll (Gaelic "Cola") is an island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.

Understand

Coll is about 12 miles long by 3 miles wide. Its population is about 200, mostly around the settlement of Arinagour (Gaelic Àirigh nan Gobhar), near the ferry jetty. Like other parts of the Highlands, its population was much greater in the 19th C, but it was then systematically and sometimes forcibly depopulated. Coll is rocky and tussocky, dotted with little lochans and lochs, and with sandy beaches heaped up into sand dunes. If it looks familiar, it’s because the author Mairi Hedderwick grew up here, and used it as the basis for her “Katie Morag” stories set on the fictional island of Struay. Coll is separated by a short strait from the island of Tiree, and the two are easily combined in a visit.

Get in

By boat

Ferry loading at Coll - cars for Oban drive forwards, those for Tiree reverse on

Most visitors reach Coll on the Calmac car-ferry from Oban. The crossing takes about 3 hours, with the ferry continuing from Coll to Tiree. Daily sailings in summer (April to Oct), with one ferry per week (currently Weds) continuing to Barra. Sailings are on Mon, Tues, Thurs, Sat, and Sun in winter. Most sailings depart early from Oban, so you’ll probably spend the previous night there. You will certainly have to do so if you come by bus or train, as these take 3 hours from Glasgow, with the latest service leaving around 18:15 the previous evening. The ferries from Coll back to Oban, if they’re on time, connect with public transport to Glasgow same evening.

For times, fares and bookings see www.calmac.co.uk. But roughly, a simple return fare is £115 for a car plus £21 per person including the driver. A “Hopscotch” ticket, visiting Coll plus Tiree, is £130 per car plus £25 per person. Pedal bikes go free.

A day-trip from Oban to Coll is possible in summer on Weds and Sats, giving you 8-10 hours ashore. The other days' sailings only give you two hours, hardly worth the bother - it's pointless to come to Coll if you have to keep glancing at your watch.

The ferry follows a scenic route across the bay from Oban, through the narrows between Mull and Ardnamurchan (without stopping at either) then across the open sea. Unless the weather’s foul, stay on deck and look out for marine life such as dolphins, porpoises and seals.

The 🌍 ferry jetty on Coll is half a mile from Arinagour, the main settlement.

By plane

• 🌍 Coll airfield (COL  ^IATA). Hebridean Air Services fly between Oban (Connel airfield) and Coll on Mondays and Wednesdays, with these flights also serving Tiree. During school term, there are extra flights on Fridays and Sundays which can only be booked from the previous Wednesday. The whole operation is basically an airborne school bus, subsidised by the local authority, using BNF Islander light aircraft and with a 10 kg baggage limit. Hebridean Air Services also fly to Islay and Colonsay but with no connection to Coll, you’d have to backtrack to Oban.  

Get around

There's no public transport or taxi. Most people bring their own car on the ferry. The hotel can pick up guests from the jetty or airfield. Bikes can be hired from several places eg the Post Office, call in advance 01879 230395 or email [e-mail].

See

• 🌍 RSPB Bird Reserve, Totronald, Coll PA78 6TB (Follow B8070 SW to its end, then turn right up the narrow lane.). Any time, day and night. Information room and viewing benches. Their signature bird is the corncrake, a summer visitor, now rare in the UK. Check RSPB website for expected and observed birds by season. Two suggested walks. Please keep dogs under close control. Free, donations welcome. (updated Dec 2017)
• See Dark Skies: There’s no street lighting, and Coll is far from mainland light pollution. On a clear night stand on the beach (or anywhere clear of car lights), give your eyes five minutes to adjust, and see the stars and planets brighter than ever before. "Coll and the Cosmos" is a special star-gazing event on 6-7 Oct 2018.
• Breachacha Castle: there are actually two, at the SW end of the island near Crossapol. Admire their exteriors from the lane, but neither can be visited. The old castle is a 15th C tower house, now in private ownership. The “new” castle was built nearby in 1750; in 1773 Samuel Johnson and James Boswell stayed here on their tour of the Hebrides. It’s structurally unsafe and its new owner (as of Nov 2017) faces an immense repair task. See also Wikipedia entries.

Do

• Swim with basking sharks: in recent summers these huge beasts (Cetorhinus maximus, Gaelic Cearban) have often been seen around the island, most often in July & August. Sightings are sporadic but they tend to gather in the narrow sound between Coll and Tiree, where the tides concentrate their plankton food. Contact baskingsharkscotland.co.uk, who run boat trips from Arinagour.
• Surfing is mainly on the exposed Atlantic beaches of Cliad, Feall, Grishipoll and Hogh, plus south-facing Crossapol. Check prospects at www.surf-forecast.com.
• Folk & other concerts throughout the year, frequently in summer, usually at the community centre An Cridhe.
• Homecoming Coll: anyone with connections to Coll (eg family or former resident) is especially welcome 15-22 Sept 2018. Programme of events and activities around the island, register your interest on homecomingcoll.co.uk.

Buy

• 🌍 Island Stores, Arinagour PA78 6SY, ☎ [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. M W F 10:00-17:30, Tu Th 10:00-13:00, Sa 09:30-17:00. General store, stocks basics including fuel. You can order ahead by phone or email. (updated Sep 2018)
• An Acarsaid shop within the Post Office, stocks maps, woollies, crafts, gifts and postcards. There's an ATM here.
• T.E.S. Co is a small health & organic food shop next to the Island Café.
• The Art Den sells island arts & crafts.
• ReCyColl is a second-hand store, in the Old Hall at the western edge of Arinagour.

Eat

And see “Sleep” listing for Coll hotel restaurant.

• 🌍 The Island Cafe, ☎ [phone]. Wed, Thurs, Fri & Sat 11:00-14:00 & 17:00-21:00; Sun 12:00-18:00. Open all year round. Licensed café doing lunches, dinners, take-aways and roasts. (updated Dec 2017)

Drink

Coll is too small to have its own brewery, distillery, or even pub – the only bar is in the Coll Hotel.

Sleep

All the short-stay accommodation is in Arinagour. For longer stays, a dozen or so cottages around the island can be rented by the week, see visitcoll.co.uk.

• 🌍 Coll Hotel, Arinagour, Isle of Coll, ☎ [phone]. Cosy hotel, better than its 2 stars suggest, with good restaurant. (updated Dec 2017)
• 🌍 Coll Bunkhouse, Arinagour PA78 6SY, ☎ [phone]. Hostel constructed in modern pine, 16 beds in two mixed dorms of six and one room of four. Self-catering kitchen. (updated Dec 2017)
• 🌍 Tigh na Mara B&B, Arinagour, PA78 6SY, ☎ [phone]. Seven rooms for bed and breakfast, plus “Wee House” for self-catering. Double room from £75. (updated Dec 2017)

Connect

4G reception is passable in and around Arinagour since a mobile mast was erected in 2015. Patchy elsewhere, especially east end of the island.

Go next

Tiree is one hour away by daily ferry, and is best done on a Calmac “Hopscotch” fare (see “Get in”.) In summer a day-trip is possible on Wednesdays using the ferry to Barra, as this continues beyond Tiree giving you six hours ashore. The other days’ ferries are immediate turn-arounds so you can’t go ashore, but Saturdays in July & August have a double sailing that allows you nine hours on Tiree. It’s not possible to day-trip from Tiree to Coll.

For Barra, in summer the Wednesday ferry takes four hours from Coll via Tiree (no winter service). From Barra you could return to the mainland on the daily five-hour ferry to Oban. Or you could take the 40 minute ferry (4 or 5 per day) to Eriskay, which is linked by causeway to North & South Uist and Benbecula, and thence by further ferry to Harris & Lewis.

Oban, back on the mainland, can be the jumping-off point for most of the Highlands & Islands. The buses and trains will take you back to Glasgow.