The Land of Tiree 



the Cairngorm Hills. In fine weather these conditions are 

 indeed magnificent, for the sun shines with intense power, 

 and his rays are reflected from the sea with additional 

 brilliance. But of shelter there is none, so that even in 

 midsummer one may vainly seek some protection against 

 the north wind which sweeps down from the Minch, with 

 winter, even at this season, in its breath. And the potato 

 haulms may, even in June, be flattened and rendered black 

 by the gale. 



Tiree is famous for its sands. These extend for miles 

 at a stretch, and are of a remarkably white colour, for 

 they are composed entirely of the remnants of shells. When 

 the sun shines on them, their dazzling whiteness is 

 such as to tire the eye, and the dark form of the skua, 

 as he stands in wait for the tern and its catch near the 

 water's edge, seems even darker by contrast. Of all the 

 sands the longest is Traigh Mhor, which extends in a great 

 crescent to a distance of several miles. Here in summer 

 terns glide and wheel, and in winter many shore birds 

 find feeding at the edge of the tide. One sees turnstones, 

 dunlin, sanderling, purple sandpipers, and godwits on this 

 wide shore, while a little way out to sea solans hunt, and 

 long-tailed ducks ride buoyantly. Farther west lies Traigh 

 Bhagh, where terns have their eggs and where the small 

 burn from a chain of lochans enters the sea at its eastern 

 end. Here at times grilse and sea trout attempt to run in 

 from the sea, but there is rarely sufficient water to cover 

 them, so they pass on to the streams of Mull, maybe, or 

 to the far-distant Irish coast. At the south end of the 

 island are the beautiful sands known as "Traigh Bheidhe," 

 from where the dark rock of Skerryvore can be seen, and 

 the tall lighthouse of flashing granite that rises there. 



At the extreme south-western end of the island stands 

 the hill known in the Gaelic as "Ceann a* Bharra." Con- 

 cerning the meaning of this name some uncertainty exists. 

 It may have to do with the fact that from here is a fine view 



