Atlantic West Coast Voyager – Shiants, Butt of Lewis, Flannans, Mingulay, Barra Head – 11 night cruise

Dates: 12th to 23rd June 2023

Destination:

Guests arrive at Oban for around 1530 on Monday 12th June with vessel Hjalmar Bjorge departing shortly thereafter. Our initial destination will hopefully be Canna, after which we will cruise up the west side of Skye and on to the Shiant Islands. From the Shiants we will continue north rounding the Butt of Lewis (perhaps with an overnight stop at the Port of Ness). After rounding the Butt, we will turn south with an overnight anchorage in West Loch Roag before venturing out to the Flannans. From there our route south will include other islands such as Scarp, Taransay and the Monachs. We will finish our exploration of the Hebrides by visiting the southern isles of Mingulay and perhaps Barra Head (Berneray).

Our return to Oban will be Friday 23rd June with guests disembarking after a final hearty breakfast.

Highlights: 

If the weather is kind to us then possible highlights include the seabird colonies on the Shiant Islands, puffins, gannets and more seabirds on the Flannans and Mingulay plus golden and sea eagles on virtually all. There should be dolphin and other cetacean sightings throughout; in recent years some of our better sightings have been in the north of the Hebrides, particularly off the Butt of Lewis, such as those involving orca and humpback whales (fingers crossed). There are numerous sites of archaeological and historic interest on Canna, the Shiants, Flannans, Mingulay and Berneray (Barra Head).