Port Askaig ( gd, Port Asgaig) is a port village on the east coast of the island of

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 ...

, in

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 village lies on the

Sound of Islay The Sound of Islay ( gd, Caol Ìle) is a narrow strait between the islands of Islay and Jura off the west coast of Scotland. It is about in extent from north to south and lies between Rubh' a' Mhàil on Islay and Rubh' Aird na Sgitheich on Jura ...

(Caol Ìle) across from Jura.

Economy

Port Askaig has a hotel, a petrol station and shop next to the port but has very few households. In 2014, it was rated one of the most attractive postcode areas to live in Scotland.

Whisky

Port Askaig is also the name of a

Scotch whisky Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland. All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial distil ...

range, bottled for Speciality Drinks Ltd. The producing distillery is not officially identified but the whiskies are marketed as Islay single malts. The distilleries

Caol Ila Caol (Gaelic: ''An Caol'') is a village near Fort William, in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is about north of Fort William town centre, on the shore of Loch Linnhe, and within the parish of Kilmallie. The name "Caol" is from the G ...

, Ardnahoe and

Bunnahabhain Bunnahabhain ( ; from Scottish Gaelic (, ), meaning 'foot of the river')According to Edward Dwelly's ''Illustrated Gaelic to English Dictionary'', 9th ed., 1977, page 141, the word 'bun' also means 'mouth (of a river)' is a village on the northe ...

are all located to the north of the port.

Transport

Water

Port Askaig serves as the main port of Islay, sharing passenger services to the Scottish mainland with Port Ellen. It also has a regular service to

Feolin Feolin (also known as Feolin Ferry) is a slipway on the west coast of Jura. provides a vehicle and passenger ferry service from Port Askaig on Islay across the Sound of Islay The Sound of Islay ( gd, Caol Ìle) is a narrow strait between th ...

, Jura across the

, and in the summer there is also a weekly service via

Colonsay Colonsay (; gd, Colbhasa; sco, Colonsay) is an island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, located north of Islay and south of Mull. The ancestral home of Clan Macfie and the Colonsay branch of Clan MacNeil, it is in the council area of Argy ...

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 ...

. Port Askaig has been a port for landing passengers and goods to Islay for centuries. Ships which sailed out from

West Loch Tarbert West Loch Tarbert ( gd, Loch A Siar) is a sea loch that separates the northern and southern parts of Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. A small isthmus joins these two areas, on which is to be found the village of Tarbert. The loch contai ...

on the

Kintyre Peninsula Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north ...

have called in at Port Askaig since the 18th century and a steamer service from

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

was the running as early as 1825. Port Askaig is the base of the Islay RNLI lifeboat which is called out ten to twelve times a year.

Port development

Between 2003 and 2009 Port Askaig was the site of a £13.7 million civil engineering project. The work included a new

linkspan A linkspan or link-span is a type of drawbridge used mainly in the operation of moving vehicles on and off a roll-on/roll-off (RO-RO) vessel or ferry, particularly to allow for tidal changes in water level. Linkspans are usually found at ferry t ...

and other berthing facilities for mainland ferries, new facilities for the Jura ferry, and new car parks and waiting rooms. The redeveloped port was officially re-opened on 10 September 2009 by the

Princess Royal Princess Royal is a substantive title, style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a United Kingdom, British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of th ...

Road

Port Askaig is situated at the northern end of the Islay section of the A846, which continues south-west to

Bowmore Bowmore ( gd, Bogh Mòr, 'Big Bend') is a small town on the Scottish island of Islay. It serves as administrative capital of the island, and gives its name to the noted Bowmore distillery producing Bowmore single malt scotch whisky. History ...

, south-east to Port Ellen and finally east to Ardbeg.

Music

Port Askaig is memorialised in the classic 6/8 bagpipe pipe march ''Leaving Port Askaig''.

References

External links

Canmore - Islay, Port Askaig, General site recordCanmore - Port Askaig, Harbour, Islay site recordCanmore - Islay, Port Askaig, Dunlossit House site record
{{Islay Villages in Islay