Postscript

A bicycle, laden with panniers and clearly touring, came down the green ramp of the ferry, bumped onto the jetty and cycled off across the tarmac. The sun had come out and the sea sparkled, while across the water the shore was green, edged with grey rocks. But this time, the cyclist was me and the port Oban, not Armadale. I had been right - a bicycle is undoubtedly the best way to explore the islands of the Outer Hebrides. Having completed it, even the grim bits, battling against the wind and the rain, seemed enjoyable, while the best bits were transformed out of this world. The best day was perhaps Luskentyre to Roghabal when sun and scenery came together to leave a magical impression. The clear blue waters of Loch Langabhat, glinting in the afternoon sunshine, in which I swam and then beside which I ate dinner have left an indelible impression in my mind. Even looked at purely objectively, the Outer Hebrides are undoubtedly a superb place for cycling. Although they have spectacular scenery - high mountains, empty beaches, beautiful islets - by virtue of the fact that the roads tend to run round the edges, they manage to provide relatively flat cycling. When the weather was good, they were quite unbeatable. If the weather had been worse, they could undoubtedly be pretty grim - and if I were to do it again I'd do it from south to north, with the prevailing winds!

Would I do it again? Well, probably; there are still places I left unseen. Barra I never reached at all, it having basically dropped off the schedule when I stopped early at the beach at Traigh Iar. I never saw the best preserved dun at Dun Thorcuill, and I never saw a medieval "wheelhouse" (so called because of its circular-with-spokes construction). Likewise, the beaches at Uig on Lewis, I missed once again. So I probably will be back, but possibly next time by boat - the deep sea lochs of the eastern coasts and the numerous tiny islands would be very tempting to explore under sail, and having fulfilled one dream, maybe that can be the replacement.

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