History & Heritage
Raasay
By Robin McKelvie Raasay walking stamp available in the app It was at one of Skye’s landmark castles that the extent of tourist overcrowding on…
Canna
By Robin McKelvie The Isle of Eigg shines brightly as an example of a Scottish island where a community buy-out has not only halted depopulation,…
Shaping Our Islands
Shaping Our Islands travelogue By Robin McKelvie In the world of glossy TV documentaries the soaring mountains and tumbling glens of Scotland are left, front…
Bute: community, farmers and Stuarts
By Robin McKelvie I cannot think of many islands in the world where one family dynasty has as tightly controlled a whole island for so…
Gigha, a community buy out success
Gigha ferry By Robin McKelvie Sometimes I approach Scottish islands with a degree of trepidation, concerned that the hurdles facing the local community may have…
Rum
By Robin McKelvie Rum information I’m writing this on the Lucy Mary, a small ship dragging me away across the surf from Rum. This remarkable…
Papa Westray – the ‘remote’ isle that does not feel remote
Robin flying to Papay Westray By Robin McKelvie Within my first half hour on the island I’ve already had real conversations with more people than…
Getting away from empty beaches: A passport to real community
By Annie Delin. Published in Scottish Islands Explorer. February / March 2023. Everyone knows that Scotland’s islands are wild, deserted, spectacularly…