Review : Far-flung islands: Mingulay to the Shiants

The best way of telling you what a marvellous time I had on this cruise is that I have arrived home and promptly booked another for next year, 8 nights instead of 6, on the “Lucy Mary” again! From ease of booking with Emma to arriving back in Oban on the final day, everything was given careful attention in order to ensure the trip was a special one. The boat, “Lucy Mary”, is extremely comfortable, well-equipped and of a design enabling me to spend hours with binoculars looking out over the sea or mountains in the hope of spotting wildlife, whether outside in the sun or snugly inside in the rain or wind! An important feature is the presence of a wildlife spotter, Indy, whose knowledge and enthusiasm enabled me to notice and identify many animals, birds and plants that I would not have seen by myself. This was also greatly contributed to by skipper Rob’s ability to take us to the ideal places to see the wildlife, as well as beautiful and spectacular scenery and buildings. In addition he chose routes suited to the weather conditions, and ensured that all of our wishes were considered. The food prepared by chef Perry was really excellent, with exceptionally good and varied vegetarian dishes for me. We had beautifully presented fresh fruit included at every breakfast, and fresh cakes or cookies to greet us on our afternoon returns to the boat after onshore visits. These excursions were varied and interesting, with a high degree of flexibility to satisfy all of us. Last but not least, Abbie kept all the accommodation on board clean and neat, adding many nice touches such as prettily-folded napkins, plus all the hard work involved in serving the food, cleaning the cabins and many other tasks. All the crew were friendly, cheerful and skilful. There are many more complimentary things I could say but really I’d just like to thank all of you for a uniquely memorable holiday