Isle of Muck

The name Muck comes from the Gaelic muc, a pig, after the porpoises that Gaelic calls sea-pigs, and you may still see them offshore. It’s the smallest of the four main Small Isles, about two and a half miles across, and the MacEwen family have owned and farmed it for more than a century. Ferries come in at Port Mòr on the south side, where there’s a tearoom and craft shop and an honesty-box shed selling island eggs and crafts. The only road runs about a mile and a half north to the farm at Gallanach and its sandy bay, with views across to the other islands. Beinn Airein, the highest point, is only 137 metres high, and the walk round the coast takes five or six hours. Muck is known for its seals, and puffins and golden eagles are among more than 140 kinds of bird recorded here. CalMac ferries from Mallaig call all year, and from April to mid-September a passenger boat also runs from Arisaig.