STAFFA

Staffa’s great wonder, Fingal’s Cave, was given its name by the English naturalist and botanist Sir Joseph Banks, when he visited the island back in 1772. In those days, this almost oval isle of approximately 1 mile in length and a quarter of a mile wide was very much inhabited. Nowadays, it is essentially a grassy plateau, with steep rocky sides made of basalt. Fingal’s Cave is one of several deep caves that puncture these rocky ledges. The cave was made famous by Felix Mendelssohn, who was so inspired by his visit to see the great wonder that he composed his Hebrides Overture in its honour; though history records that, on the day of his visit, he suffered terrible seasickness.

It is possible to visit Staffa from Tobermory or Fionnphort from Mull, or from Iona. But whatever route is chosen, there will be a plethora of bird and mammal life to see along the way, and, on Staffa, the highlight, apart from the cave itself, must be the puffins.

Fingal’s Cave, a sea cave on the isle of Staffa, was formed from hexagonally jointed basalt columns within a lava flow and is known for its acoustics.