Lunga (Slate Islands)
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Lunga is one of the
Slate Islands The Slate Islands are an island group in the Inner Hebrides, lying immediately off the west coast of Scotland, north of Jura and southwest of Oban. The main islands are Seil, Easdale, Luing, Shuna, Torsa and Belnahua. Scarba and Kerrera, which ...
in the Firth of Lorn in
Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute ( sco, Argyll an Buit; gd, Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd, ) is one of 32 unitary authority council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 2020) ...
,
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. The "Grey Dog" tidal race, which runs in the sea channel to the south, reaches in full flood. The name "Lunga" is derived from the
Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
for "isle of the
longship Longships were a type of specialised Scandinavian warships that have a long history in Scandinavia, with their existence being archaeologically proven and documented from at least the fourth century BC. Originally invented and used by the Nors ...
s', but almost all other place names are
Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...
in origin. The population was never substantial and today the main activity is an adventure centre on the northern headland of ''Rubha Fiola''. The surrounding seas are fished for prawns and
scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve mollusks in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related families ...
s and there is a
salmon Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...
farm off the south eastern shores. The Special Area of Conservation of which the island is part hosts a growing number of outdoor leisure pursuits.


Geography

Lunga is west of Luing and just north of Scarba. The nearest town is
Oban Oban ( ; ' in Scottish Gaelic meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William. During the tourist season, th ...
, some to the north. The channel to the south, ''Bealach a' Choin Ghlais'' (pass of the grey dog), is only wide and is scoured by the notorious "Grey Dog" tidal race which reaches when in full flood. According to an 1845 description:
... about 1 cable broad, and the stream of water during the greater part of ebb and flood rushes along the narrow pass with much violence. So great is the overfall on the current, that even during moderate tides it is impossible to force a boat through.
This
strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...
is sometimes called the 'Little Corryvreckan' after its greater cousin between Scarba and Jura just a few miles to the south. There are numerous islets in the surrounding waters. To the north is the isle of Belnahua and to the north west are '' Eilean Dubh Mor'' and the
Garvellachs The Garvellachs (Scottish Gaelic: Garbh Eileaich) or Isles of the Sea form a small archipelago in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Part of the Argyll and Bute council area, they lie west of Lunga and northwest of Scarba and have been uninhabited ...
. Due west there is only
Dubh Artach Dubh Artach (; ) is a remote skerry of basalt rock off the west coast of Scotland lying west of Colonsay and south-west of the Ross of Mull. A lighthouse designed by Thomas Stevenson with a tower height of was erected between 1867 and 1872 ...
lighthouse between Lunga and the open
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
. At high tide the northern tip of Lunga becomes several separate islets with ''Rubha Fiola'' (headland of the tidal island) to the north, then ''Fiola Meadhonach'' (middle tidal island), ''Eilean Ioasal'' (humble island) and ''Fiola an Droma'' (drum-shaped tidal island) closest to Lunga proper. All around are smaller skerries and islets, including ''Eilean a' Bhealaich'' (island of the pass), Guirasdeal to the south west and Fladda to the north. This complexity of land and sea coupled with the strong tides makes these the most treacherous channels on Scotland's west coast. The highest point is ''Bidean na h-Iolaire'' (peak of the eagle) and the main bay is ''Camas a Mhor-Fhir'' (bay of the giant) to the south which provides an escape route from the Grey Dog. The only other anchorage for passing yachts is at ''Poll nan Corran'' (the sickle shaped pool), on the east coast, which has a pebble beach.


Geology

Prior to the
Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
ice ages Lunga was part of a long
peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...
stretching south west parallel to Kintyre. The Firth of Lorn
glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...
sliced this peninsula into several islands, including
Islay Islay ( ; gd, Ìle, sco, Ila) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll just south west of Jura, Scotland, Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The isl ...
, Jura, Scarba, Lunga, Luing and
Seil Seil (; gd, Saoil, ) is one of the Slate Islands, located on the east side of the Firth of Lorn, southwest of Oban, in Scotland. Seil has been linked to the mainland by bridge since the late 18th century. The origins of the island's name are ...
. Later changes in sea level left
raised beach A raised beach, coastal terrace,Pinter, N (2010): 'Coastal Terraces, Sealevel, and Active Tectonics' (educational exercise), from 2/04/2011/ref> or perched coastline is a relatively flat, horizontal or gently inclined surface of marine origin,P ...
es over much of the west coast of Scotland and Lunga has several examples. The bedrock of Lunga comprises a mixture of
quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tect ...
,
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
and
shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...
called 'Scarba conglomerate' which predominates to the west and in the tidal islands to the north, with schist and mica-schist to the east. Unlike the other
Slate Islands The Slate Islands are an island group in the Inner Hebrides, lying immediately off the west coast of Scotland, north of Jura and southwest of Oban. The main islands are Seil, Easdale, Luing, Shuna, Torsa and Belnahua. Scarba and Kerrera, which ...
immediately to the north there is no commercially viable
slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
on Lunga, although the slate workers of Belnahua made use of the fresh water spring known as ''Tobar a Challuim-Chille'' (the well of St. Columba's church) north west of ''Bidean na h-Iolaire'' during times of drought. It is a trough, made up of flagstones, which reputedly never runs dry.


History

The legend associated with the ''Bealach a' Choin Ghlais'' is part of the same story that surrounds the naming of the nearby Gulf of Corryvreckan (English: the speckled cauldron). This is where the Norse Prince Breacan of
Lochlann In the modern Gaelic languages, () signifies Scandinavia or, more specifically, Norway. As such it is cognate with the Welsh name for Scandinavia, (). In both old Gaelic and old Welsh, such names literally mean 'land of lakes' or 'land of sw ...
is said to have drowned when his boat sank there, so giving his name to this great whirlpool. The prince's dog managed to swim to land and went in search of his master. Failing to find him on Jura or Scarba he tried to leap across the strait to Lunga, but missed his footing on ''Eilean a' Bhealaich'' which sits in the middle of the channel between the two islands. He slipped into the raging current and drowned as well, giving his own name in turn to the strait where he fell - the 'pass of the grey dog'. Lunga was mentioned by Donald Monro in his 1549 manuscript ''
Description of the Western Isles of Scotland Description is the pattern of narrative development that aims to make vivid a place, object, character, or group. Description is one of four rhetorical modes (also known as ''modes of discourse''), along with exposition, argumentation, and narr ...
''. He stated that "Lunge" was "three myle of lenthe, twa pairt myle of breadthe, with a paroch kirk, guid main land, inhabit and manurit, guid for store and corn. It possist be M’Gillayne of Doward, in feu fra the earl of Ergile. It is a havin sufficient for Highland galeyis in it, layand from the southwest to northeist in lenthe." In common with many of the remoter Scottish islands the human population experienced a decline during the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The highest recorded number was 29 in 1794, declining to 15 by 1891 and only 5 by 1931. The graves of some of the islanders are to be found in the churchyard at Kilchattan on nearby Luing. Lunga was not permanently inhabited during the 1960s and 70s.


Present day

The island is owned by the family of convicted sex offender Torquil Johnson-Ferguson who until 2013 ran the Rua Fiola adventure centre which catered for parties of school age children. The activities, which included rock climbing and canoeing, also made use of the nearby islets including '' Eilean Dubh Mor'' and ''Eilean Dubh Beag''.Rua Fiola Island Exploration Centre
Retrieved 26 Feb 2007.
The rest of Lunga itself, where there are only three houses, is primarily used for
grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...
animals. In 2001 the island had a population of 7 but in 2011 there were no "usual residents" living there as recorded by the census.


Wildlife

The surrounding seas are fished for prawns and
scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve mollusks in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related families ...
s and there is a lease for a
salmon Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...
farm off the south eastern shores of Lunga just north of the ''Bealach a' Choin Ghlais'' by the islet ''Sgeir Mhic an Altair''. This part of the seabed is also a haven for the rare seafan anemone ''Amphianthus dohrnii''. The kelp ''Laminaria hyperborea'' dominates much of the surrounding
infralittoral The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal are ...
in areas not swept by the strongest tides. In some sheltered locations with deeper water there are
feather stars Crinoids are marine animals that make up the class Crinoidea. Crinoids that are attached to the sea bottom by a stalk in their adult form are commonly called sea lilies, while the unstalked forms are called feather stars or comatulids, which are ...
including ''Leptometra celtica'' and the hydroid ''Lytocarpia myriophyllum''. On land the island is home to
European otter The Eurasian otter (''Lutra lutra''), also known as the European otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter, and Old World otter, is a semiaquatic mammal native to Eurasia. The most widely distributed member of the otter subfamily (Lutrinae) of th ...
and
red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...
. Atlantic grey seals, minke whale,
bottlenose dolphin Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the common ...
, and harbour porpoise are regular marine visitors.
Golden Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...
and
white-tailed sea eagle The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla'') is a very large species of sea eagle widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which includes other diurnal raptors ...
s are also commonly sighted. The area is of growing importance for various leisure activities including
scuba diving Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...
and canoeing. The island is part of the
Scarba, Lunga and the Garvellachs National Scenic Area Scarba, Lunga and the Garvellachs is the name of one of the 40 national scenic areas of Scotland. The designated area covers the islands of Scarba, Lunga, and the Garvellachs, all of which lie in the Firth of Lorn, along with much of the surroundi ...
, one of 40 such areas in Scotlands, which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection by restricting certain forms of development. It also forms part of the Firth of Lorn marine Special Area of Conservation.


Lunga group

This mini-archipelago has no formal status although Lunga is clearly the largest island in the heterogeneous group that lies 'between the
Isles of the Sea The Garvellachs (Scottish Gaelic: Garbh Eileaich) or Isles of the Sea form a small archipelago in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Part of the Argyll and Bute council area, they lie west of Lunga and northwest of Scarba and have been uninhabited s ...
and the Sound of Luing'.Murray, W.H. (1966) ''The Hebrides''. London. Heinemann. In addition to Lunga and its immediate attendants which can be reached at lower stages of the tide the larger islands and islets in the group are: *
Eilean Dubh Mòr Eilean Dubh Mòr ( gd, big black island) is an uninhabited island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. It lies at the mouth of the Firth of Lorn, between the islands of Lunga and Garbh Eileach Garbh Eileach is an uninhabited island in the Inn ...
*Eilean Dubh Beag *Ormsa * Belnahua * Fladda *Eilean nan Ceann *Sgeir Poll nan Corran *Sgeir Mhic an Altair *Eilean a' Bhealaich *Guirasdeal *An Tudan *Liath Sgeir These are often included in the
Slate Islands The Slate Islands are an island group in the Inner Hebrides, lying immediately off the west coast of Scotland, north of Jura and southwest of Oban. The main islands are Seil, Easdale, Luing, Shuna, Torsa and Belnahua. Scarba and Kerrera, which ...


Gallery

File:Lunga and the Grey Dog.jpg, Lunga from Scarba with the Grey Dog in the foreground, looking north to Mull File:Lunga cliffs.JPG, Lunga's raised beaches File:Kiwi Crag on Rubha Fiola.JPG, On the 'Kiwi' climb at Rubha Fiola File:Lunga boat ride.JPG, A bumpy ride around Lunga


See also

* List of islands of Scotland


Notes


Footnotes


References

* Monro, Sir Donald (1549
''A Description Of The Western Isles of Scotland''
Appin Regiment/Appin Historical Society. Retrieved 3 March 2007. First published in by William Auld, Edinburgh 1774. * Munro, R. W. (1961) ''Monro's Western Isles of Scotland and Genealogies of the Clans''. Edinburgh and London. Oliver and Boyd.


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lunga, Firth Of Lorn (Slate Islands) Uninhabited islands of Argyll and Bute Slate Islands National scenic areas of Scotland