On Sunday 6^th April at 8pm we set off on our mini adventure to Scotland. After 8 hours of travel, we arrived in the town of Mallaig on the west coast of Scotland. By the time we arrived it was 4am in the morning and we needed to wait 6 hours for our ferry. The time flew by and before we knew it, we were ready for the second leg of our journey. We set sail for the remote Isle of Eigg where we would be spending the next 4 days. Upon arrival, the island looked very quiet apart from a shop and a pub. We went to settle into our accommodation and felt very welcomed with the little pods and a main hut where we set up our cooking equipment. Whilst some of us had a well-deserved nap the rest did shopping for lunch, dinner and breakfast the next morning. To make the most of the weather we went to the beach and had a paddle in the water which was extremely cold but strangely enjoyable. Before long we headed back and started cooking dinner, which was spag bol, an absolute classic. After a long day everyone headed to bed.

Tuesday morning everyone got up and seemed in very high spirits after a good night sleep. After breakfast we set off on a journey up An Sgurr, a mountain standing at 400m tall. Upon reaching the top it was only right that we took in the views before descending. We returned to base and decided to set off on another walk to the other side of the island to go and explore where we found a beautiful beach. Of course, everyone went in the sea and had a paddle which seemed even colder than the day before. By this point everyone was knackered and so we found a taxi service (Charlie) that took us back.

On Wednesday we took the chance to have a more laid-back day as we had paddle boarding organised with John and Kat. We played several games on the paddle boards and of course there was lots of falling in involved which was all part of the fun. After that we were all exhausted and so went back to have dinner followed by a journey over to the other side of the island by Charlie to watch the sunset which was absolutely stunning as we watched the sun gently lay down for the night behind the rolling hills on the island of Rum. After that Charlie took us back to a woodland area where we set up a fire as it wouldn’t be Scouts without it.

It was Thursday which dawned on us all as the last full day that we would get on this truly remarkable island. To make it count we went snorkelling which was an amazing experience where we saw several star fish and other sea creatures. We learnt that the island was doing a big regeneration project in the form of planting sea grass to soak up carbon dioxide and do their part for climate change. After that we headed down to the local caves and learnt about their fascinating history which was also a little on the gruelling side. To finish off the trip we went to the local pub for pizza night and enjoyed it with lots of Irn Bru.

We were up first thing on Friday and began to pack down equipment. It was then time to board the ferry back to the mainland. When we got there, we were sad not to be back on the island but there was still an 8-hour journey back filled with laughter and joy. It is sure to say that Eigg will forever live in our memories.

John.