THERE was understandable controversy recently when a large cruise ship reportedly barged in – off-itinerary – into St Kilda. There is another side to Scottish cruising, though, with a wee flotilla of small ships easing around the west coast with a lighter touch that opens up this spectacular part of the world and benefits local communities. These cruises offer a unique window into our Atlantic littoral, which I’ll share with you.
I’m writing this aboard the Hebridean Princess (www.hebridean.co.uk) on the last day of a week-long cruise. This former car ferry only hosts a maximum of 50 passengers – some other companies can take as few as eight – so her impact is more manageable as I’ve found on this snapshot.
Our first port of call is Canna. Here I meet Gareth Cole of Café Canna, who is delighted with the ship’s arrival as the guide sets up a tab for the passengers. He is buoyant too at the recent release of his brilliant Café Canna cookbook, which our ship’s guide Jean buys for the lounge and other passengers snare too.
I meet National Trust for Scotland ranger Tom too, who has moved to the island with his partner – a ray of positivity on an island looking to follow nearby Eigg and build its population. Tom welcomes small cruise arrivals with leaflets with a map showing the myriad walking routes and ways of learning more about the community.
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Next is Skye, where overtourism is a hot topic. We arrive just as Dunvegan Castle is opening – a wise move as the castle guide says it can get so busy later, they have to temporarily close the castle to new arrivals. The guide sees small ships as a positive – “their tenders come into the wee jetty so they don’t clog up the car park and they try to visit at less busy times too, which helps”.
Pushing on into the Minch we head for the Shiants. Again, working with the islands is key. We make contact with the island’s owner, who requests we stick to the landing beach as it is nesting season. It’s a spectacular experience as seabirds splash around our tender and the waters break to reveal a couple of porpoises. Sitting on the pebbles, our senses are assaulted by the thousands of seabirds who nest on these uninhabited isles.
Each day usually brings two trips ashore, covering more ground than any other way of exploring our coast. We reach the Outer Hebrides and Harris. Under continuing brilliant blue skies we eke in, timing our arrival to catch the Isle of Harris Distillery as it opens. They are delighted to see us, giving us a shortened tour and tasting. Many of the passengers scoop up souvenir bottles, before spending again at the Harris Tweed centre next door and the local arts and crafts shops.
“We’re always delighted to get the wee ships in. It’s not overwhelming at all, often with fewer people than you get off a bus. And as their tours are included, they usually spend here too,” says our whisky guide.
The windows that these real-time interactions with destinations create are priceless. I hadn’t realised just how young the production team is in Harris. And how many people the distillery employs with 50 jobs – massive in such a small community.
I’d found it hard to find the distillery’s maximum production, but here, the stillman works it out, reckoning they could push up to 200,000 litres a year.
I also get their first-person takes on what they make of the remarkable Hearach malts.
Back across the Minch, it’s another early morning tender ashore at Inverewe Garden. How such exotic flora grows so well at the same latitude as St Petersburg has been a mystery to me.
A mystery the head gardener soon solves: “It’s a combination of the mitigating effects of the Gulf Stream and also the belt of protective trees that protect the garden from storms.”
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Storm Corrie in 2022 wreaked havoc in the garden and the protective tree belt. Again our arrival educates passengers and also puts money in the garden’s coffers early morning when we are the only visitors.
Arriving in Ullapool, I pop into the Ferry Boat Inn. When I tell the barman I’m on a cruise ship, he immediately mentions the St Kilda situation.
When I point out our bijou vessel he smiles: “Oh, right, I thought you were on one of those floating cities. We always welcome the wee ones in – passengers often pop in for a pint.”
This attitude is reassuring. The positivity reaches its zenith on Isle Martin in the Summer Isles. Although it is community-owned by Ullapool, it is uninhabited.
“We want to rebuild a community here, but it takes money,” walking guide Steve says. “That is where your visit comes in – it is a real shot in the arm for an island – it takes £13,000 a year to run. And it helps raise awareness and interest in what are trying to do.”
As our engines start up and we ease away from Isle Martin, I think of Steve telling us how keen he is for us to return. Scottish tourism has many issues to address with its impacts and within that, there are layers of complexity.
I’m glad I’ve spent this week on a small ship, reaching communities I’d struggle to get to otherwise in a week, rather than just bundling in on a massive ship to St Kilda
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