Haveacracking timeonthegreat escapetoEigg

The Hebridean island epitomises clean, green modern living and the special values of community living, as Robin finds out

The idea of having your own island is a Robinson Crusoe dream for many people. Well, there is somewhere in Scotland I’ve been to recently whose inhabitants already own their island and it’s a deeply special escape at that, awash with epic scenery, bountiful wildlife and a beguiling proud sense of place. Welcome to Eigg.

Like many Hebridean islands, Eigg has endured a tumultuous history and suffered badly during the Clearances.

Its travails continued in the 20th Century when a succession of landlords clashed with the island residents.

This came to a head in 1997 when the islanders – in conjunction with the Scottish Government and the Scottish Wildlife Trust – snapped up the chance to buy out their own island.

Last year Eigg celebrated entering its third decade as a communityowned oasis and so much progress has been made in that time. And I’m not just talking about the symbolic value of saying you own your own island. Impressively, Eigg is now nigh 100% electricity self-sufficient thanks to an innovative community-owned combination of hydro, solar and wind power. A new ferry port, funded largely by the European Union, has brought better CalMac ferry services and helped make life on the island easier.

As life on Eigg has become more manageable – there is decent broadband now, a host of local businesses and a community hub by the pier – newcomers have been attracted to its remote idyll. This includes the sort of young couples and families that are essential for securing the island’s future. I was very reassured to see a few of them on the ferry over from Mallaig.

I was here with young ones too, partly to show my two daughters a totally different way of living than the one we are used to. The first thing that greeted us off the ferry was a plaque hailing the buy-out and another hailing a ‘Big Green Footsteps’ award. On checking into our community-owned wooden pods, we were politely informed we’d have to take all the rubbish we couldn’t recycle back on the ferry with us.

Our wee wooden pod (www. eiggcampingpods.com) was seriously cosy and great value at only £40 a night. It was basic, but had electricity and a heater that works when there is enough water and wind. We loved the firepit outside our pod and spent a lovely first night roasting marshmallows after we’d enjoyed a sunset scanning for otters in the bay just below.

A wee road along the fringes of that bay led us the next morning around to a sprinkling of white sand beaches. Here we paddled, foraged for clams and made dams. The kids loved having the freedom to roam around and we appreciated being able to relax not worrying about cars and the kids’ safety.

We could have stayed on the sands all day, but we were embarking after a picnic – culled from the well-stocked wee shop by the pier – on an adventure in search of dinosaurs. Seriously. Ok, dinosaur fossils, but that was enough to get my girls and daddy excited.

Our guide was Craig Lovatt of Eigg Explorers (Tel 01687-315088). Handily, he picked us up and whisked us over to Laig Bay. Soon, we were armed with wee magnifying glasses and scanning the rocks for fossils. We found a fish tail and then bone fragments from all sorts of weird and wonderful creatures that walked, swum and flew over these sands million of years ago. The girls’ little minds were truly boggled.

Craig then steered us further north in search of the famous Singing Sands. The