Islay Whisky Festival Part 2

So I’m finally getting back to writing up the rest of this blog post, and it is Sunday so I have ANOTHER post to do after this one about the week, but I’ve had such a busy one doing not much that the next post won’t be so hard to write. This one, however, is going to be a doozy so strap yourself in and enjoy the ride.

 

Camping by the sea

I left you as I was falling asleep outside Bruichladdich and I’ll allow you back in as the sun rose on Monday morning and I dragged myself out of my bivvy to sort out the girls and get the day started. It had been quite a stormy night again with lots of rain and wind but the bivvy stood up well and I was snug and dry and happy inside it. There was a touch of sun even as I sat and fed the girls but I decided to just fold up the tent and leave the sleeping bag and bedroll extended until I got to a sheltered location.

 

Breakfast on the back shelf of Thomas

Monday was Caol Ila day but I had decided to go to Bunnahabhain to pick up their festival bottlings which were going on sale today and head to Caol Ila, just round the corner from there anyway, after that. I didn’t hang around long at the camping point before I was in the car and driving towards the distillery. When I got there I was the first to arrive (of course) and parked Thomas in the sheltered garage where I was able to cook myself a bacon and egg butty, make a cup of tea (much needed) and also spread out and fold the bedding as planned.

 

Panoramic of Bunnahabhain Bay

The girls at Bunnahabhain

I finished up my breakfast before Bart, Kevin and Wilfred arrived and I was just walking the girls a bit when they pulled up. Bunnahabhain is in a gorgeous location right by the sea in a private bay looking across to Jura and the Paps and it is a great place to stroll, particularly when there is no one else around. The last time I was here early, two years before with CJC, we had seen a sea otter in the bay fishing for his breakfast and then, having caught it, floating on his back to eat. It’s that kind of place.

 

A small crowd gathers waiting for the shop to open

The licensing laws are pretty strict on Islay, as in the rest of Scotland, and they cannot sell any alcohol before 10am. I had arrived just about 8am so this meant a two hour wait however it wasn’t a bad one what with breakfast, walks and the company. A small crowd gathered as it got closer to time to go in and then the shop girls turned up and let us in and I took my place at the head of the queue going up the steps and bought the next bottles for my collection.

 

Looking across at misty Paps

I didn’t hang around very much after that, just stashing them safely and then waving to Bart and the lads that I’d see them at Caol Ila. I did have time to stop on the drive up out of the distillery to get a photograph of the Paps emerging slowly from their covering of cloud. The picture obviously hasn’t captured the full mystery of the view but maybe you can see a glimpse of what caused me to stop the car in the middle of the road and run back down with the camera.

 

Kevin, Bart and myself at Caol Ila

Caol Ila were operating a park and ride system from a field on the main road as the access to their place is pretty difficult down a winding single track lane at the bottom of which is basically zero parking; when they built the distillery the thought of thousands of people descending on them for a day a year was not even considered. As I was not planning on staying long at all I left the girls in the car with water and the windows down, though it was cold and I wasn’t too worried about them for an hour or so, and went and got in a minibus to the distillery. I was straight into the queue for the bottle and after getting that bought myself a cup of tea and some cakes to nibble on. The weather was clearing while I was down there so as planned I didn’t stay long and pretty quickly I was back waiting for a minibus and then at Thomas, finding that the girls were fine which was a relief as it had warmed up a fair bit in the previous twenty minutes or so.

Puppies in a field of daisies

My plan had been to drive to Finlaggen, a location I really wanted to go back to after going there a few years before, but unfortunately I missed the sign and ended up in Bridgend before I knew it. I now know that it is really much closer to the far end of the road than I thought which is why I didn’t see it; I wasn’t looking for it that soon after getting in the car. Anyway, no matter, I decided to not turn round to look for it but to go on to the field where I have camped twice now with CJC. I parked up in the layby and took the girls on a really nice walk over the field and down towards an abandoned house. The way got too boggy before I was able to reach it however so we just turned and walked back. I did have a moment when I left their leads at the far end of the field (I walked them without leads as the field is empty) but fortunately the fluorescent yellow stood out and I was able to find them again quickly.

 

Hunting for its dinner

On the way across the moors I had seen a very large bird floating in the distance and it continued to hunt the same area as I got close enough to get the zoom out on my other camera and snap a load of photographs. Now I’m no twitcher so I don’t know what this is but what I do know is I love watching birds of prey floating around watching intently for any movement below. This one I saw a few times while taking the high road sometimes near sometimes far off. Incredible creature.

 

Brewing up in heaven

The next day was Laphraoig day which is the favourite distillery of Shug so I had arranged to go meet him and take him down with me to camp up so he could be early in line for the bottle. It was still rather too early for me to go there however so I headed over past Port Ellen to a spot to park up for some lunch and to sit and relax in the sun. I found a perfect spot on a little rocky inlet and settled myself down for food and then to read with the puppies sunbathing on my lap.

 

Sunbathing seals

As I was sitting relaxing in the sun I became aware of some strange honking sounds from the bay and as I listened and looked I realised that those were not rocks on the little island just out to sea but it was a group of seals resting in the sunshine. I got the zoom lens out again and captured a load of pictures of them as they sunbathed while one of their number was shifting around and eventually slid silently into the water. This was a pretty magic experience and I’m very happy I paid enough attention to spot it rather than just being engrossed in my book.

I’d made a rough arrangement on time with Shug but when I got back to the flat there was only the Mother in Law there. I hadn’t met her previously but introduced myself and she made me welcome with a brew and I sat with the girls to wait for Shug to return. After a while he arrived and it was with a story to tell. He and his mate had gone down to Cail Ila for the day and had a few beers and then the queue to get a minibus back up the hill was terrible. They finally reached the carpark where his mate’s mrs was waiting for them but then they saw someone staggering down the road, clearing drunk and weaving into the traffic so, being kind people, they stopped and picked him up. It was only when they got back to the flat that they realised this man had actually wet himself, fortunately prior to being picked up but still. There followed about an hour or effort as we tried to find him a tax (none available at all) and eventually just pointed him in the direction of his destination and said “go for it”. I know he got back safely, eventually, as I saw him around other distilleries for the rest of the week. A lesson here is do not get paralytic drunk when you are 20 miles from your hotel and with no transport.

Super meal at the Port Ellen Hotel

After a little while it was obvious that Shug had decided to stay at the house that night and carry on drinking and while they invited me I decided that I wasn’t in the mood really and wanted some more peace so I headed off towards Laphroaig. I had decided earlier that dinner would occur at the Port Ellen hotel and so I parked up and walked towards it with the intention of getting a table booked. As I got to the front door a group of other guys I had seen at the previous distilleries arrived and invited me to eat with them and so I did and it was a good decision as they were interesting company. Food was excellent, as it always is here, and despite a delay in taking our order as they were very busy it arrived quickly once we had ordered.

 

Camping spot in the trees with the mosquitoes

They had a tasting to go to so we didn’t hang around and that worked well for me as I made my way to Laphroaig and pitched the bivvy under the trees where I had planned. It was only as I was doing this that I realised that it may not have been the best idea due to the mosquitoes which were hovering around but I managed pretty much to stay out of their way while I was there. With the bivvy pitched I took the girls for a walk towards the distillery, had a nice chat with a security guard, and then for some reason decided to start running back to the tent and the girls LOVED it; they ran alongside me happily all the way and when we got back I admit I was puffing and panting and they were totally cool. This is great as Rambo will not let you run with him; A will enjoy taking these two for her runs I think.

I was up early the next morning having slept really well, despite the street lights lining the driveway I was camped next to, and fried breakfast for myself before feeding the girls and then going for a walk. The German guy who had been next in line at Bruichladdich was there and greeted me and introduced his dog to the puppies which went pretty well and then I carried on down, round, and back to the truck to get my rucksack and book.

 

Puppies waiting with me

It had rained in the night and the seats by the shop were wet so when I got there I sat on the rucksack while I read my book. After about fifteen minutes I was joined by a group of fellas who had walked from their campsite up the road at Lagavulin and now stood around in the cold (and it was pretty chilly) chatting away. I had the girls to keep me warm snuggled under my coat and so I spent a relatively comfortable hour or so until a few more turned up to join the queue.

 

A pretty good sized queue

I took the girls back to their bed after a while so they could have a rest and I could do my shopping without them getting trodden on and then returned to my place at the front. Kevin turned up after a while as well and we arranged which tastings I was going to book the group onto and he gave me cash as it was his turn. When the shop opened at 9.30 I was able to pick both the tastings I wanted however there was still half an hour until they could serve alcohol. I hung around and then joined Kevin further back in line and the timing was perfect as we reached the counter just after 10 and were all able to buy our bottles, including the little German man. It was while I was waiting that he kindly gave me tickets to a tour at Port Ellen Maltings the next morning though I was not sure if I could get there with the busy schedule I had for that day already.

 

Tasting the Cardeas from previous years

Unfortunately Shug had trouble with buses and wasn’t able to get to us in time to get to either of the tastings I had booked everyone onto but we all had a good time anyway and the girls, who I had with me, were really obedient and didn’t cause much trouble at all. After that it was time for a burger for us and them to eat every scrap of dropped food they could find by the BBQ.

I’d booked us onto a tasting tour at Kilchoman that afternoon and so I headed off a bit early to take the girls for a run on the beach as they had been so good all day. We went back to the place where I camped the first night which has a lovely stone beach and a large expanse of grass as well for them to play on. There is a long narrow spit of gravel which sticks out into the bay there and I decided to walk out along it which was lovely, though very windy. Later as I was walking them on the grass Steve and Anna drove past, tooted, and pulled in to say hi which was also lovely.

 

These barrels are empty, waiting for new spirit to fill them

A very interesting tasting session after the tour

With all the cobwebs blown away I made my way over the moors towards Kilchoman and got there to find that Bart and that had already arrived and were sat in the café. I joined them and ordered a cup of tea and then it was time to go and join our tour. This was being led by the son of the owner of Kilchoman and it was an absolutely excellent tasting; very interesting, well led and ending with some outstanding whiskies as he took us through “before” and “after” selections of some of their popular bottlings.

There have been a lot of changes here even over the last two years and the warehouse where we were shown Cask Number 1 two years ago now contains their bottling hall and a packing and distribution area. They also are getting more kit in over the next few years to increase production and this is only a good thing for the distillery. I’m a real fan of it and cannot wait to see what happens next in their story.

 

Just before I fell asleep outside Bowmore

Me and Konrad, the crazy german dude

With the tasting done I said goodbye to the guys and headed back to Bowmore, via another run on the beach for the girls. The next day was Bowmore day and I was planning on getting in the queue nice and early however I had been invited for food at Shug’s mates house first. This was an outstanding stew which really hit the spot. When I went down at 9pm to check the queue there was no one there so I went back up and joined them watching Plant of the Apes or Return to it or something which was OK and when I next headed down at midnight to get myself in line I found that I was 4^th and the man in front was the crazy German guy from two years ago which was great to remake his acquaintance. I had my sun bed and my sleeping bag and I settled myself in straight away and fell asleep pretty quickly, waking at about 4am to find that there was still no one else in the queue.

It did not take long for the queue to start to build so I contacted Bart to warn him as there is a very limited supply of bottles at Bowmore and shortly he arrived and joined the queue some way back but then the queue stopped building for ages. It was strange; I was expecting at least 100 people to be there by 7am and there was only maybe 35 or 40. Anyway, it did build up more and one of the staff members came out with a beach ball to play with (the first one of which got burst by being kicked and the second ended on the roof) but there was no free drams this year as some joyless individual had complained the previous year that it “breached their license”! What nonsense!

 

What we were all queuing for

Anyway a little while later they came round with the tokens to allow you to buy a limited release which had to be redeemed by 4pm or you’d lose your spot and your bottle would be released again onto the shop shelf. By this time it was about 8.30 and so I decided, with regret, to miss out on Port Ellen Maltings as I decided I may as well stick around and get straight in the shop to get my bottles.

 

Much needed nourishment after the long queue

I popped up the road to a hotel to book us in for breakfast which, from the attitude of the waitress who almost complained at us coming in, they must not really like serving. We managed to get in before the kitchen shut and the four of us sat around and had full Scottish breakfasts each. I finished eating before them and went back to my place in the queue (kept by my chair which I’d left) and was standing in 3^rd position (I told you the German was crazy – he got the token and gave it away to some random person, having been there since 10.30pm the night before!) when they opened the shop and therefore I got the bottles, and a good number at that, straight away.

 

Beer and a Burger in a tent

Wednesday was also Islay Ales day and so after I shopped at Bowmore I was straight in the truck and over there. I’m very glad I did the next thing in the order I did as I went straight to the shop there and picked up three of each of the bottles that I wanted. The reason I’m glad is when I woke up from my long nap in the front seat of Thomas I went and found Bart, Shug, Wilfred and Kevin and was told that a fair few of the ales had sold out. The weather wasn’t brilliant so we sheltered in the beer tent with a burger and a pint and then, after a little check through some of the other craft shops, I gave Shug a lift to his mate’s before the next tasting I was booked on with Bart and the others.

 

Bowmore tasting

This was called “Come Fly with Me” and it showcased some of Bowmore's bottlings which are only available at airport shops. It was an interesting event where we had to blindfold ourselves and do smell tests on items they were handing out, but the whiskies were (apart from one) really nice and I was very tempted to buy one from the shop but now I come to think of it I never did go back to get it; oh well, I bought enough.

 

A lovely way to end the day

After this I parted from my friends and headed off towards Machir Bay and Kilchoman. This was my chance to camp at the location I attempted the first night but which had no signal at all; I had let A know she probably wouldn’t hear from me until late the next day so that was fine. The weather was really getting wild again as I pitched and walked the puppies down to the beach but then, after I had settled in for a REALLY early night, the sun came out so I was up and about again enjoying it. I did slide back into my bed after a while as it was still cold and then when a huge group of noisy people turned up in a couple of minibuses I was super pleased when the rain returned and they had to run for shelter.

 

Using the puppies as body warmers

I slept really well and woke fresh and early. After feeding the girls I packed up and headed straight down to the gate at Kilchoman as I knew they serve bacon butties and there was no need for me to fry up for myself. I got there first but only by about 10 minutes as a camper van with four Germans (there are SO many Germans at the festival) arrived. I set my chair by the gate and huddled for warmth with the girls while chatting to one of the German ladies who kindly got me a coffee to warm me up.

 

That there is some weather

The weather was really sunny and lovely one minute and the next howling a gale with driving rain and there was a particularly terrible storm which swept in so quickly that I had to take shelter in with the German guy from Bruichladdich (I really need to learn people’s names, huh) in his camper van which was very gratefully received. As we waited more people arrived, including Bart and the lads, and me and the German lady were left trying to prevent idiots from blocking the drive way as the farmer was up and down it with his tractor. I did have a word with the owner as he drove past and asked him to send someone to organise the parking but by 9am, when I opened the gates to let everyone in, it was still self regulating. To be fair, apart from one particular (you guessed it) German who kept trying to park his camper van in the middle of the road it was not too bad.

 

Right at the front of the queue

With the gate opened I started walking down and then the German foursome stopped and let me hop in so I didn’t have to walk. What lovely people they are here. I was dropped near the entrance and managed, with help from Wilfred who knew where the queue would start this year, I was able to take my position at the front of the line. Bacon butties appeared eventually and then some lovely super strong coffee and finally the shop was open and I got the bottle I was waiting for. The others got back in line to get a second bottle but this was only available with cash so I decided not to bother. It completely sold out on the day as I called the next morning to see if there were any bottles left over.

 

Bart, myself and the girls

After my purchase I walked back to Thomas, spoke to the chap who was now out there guiding the cars and who I recognised as the malt man who had spoke to me on Saturday morning, and got the girls to take back to the party at Kilchoman. The weather was still doing its sunshine and showers thing but while the sun was out it was a really lovely place to sit. I hung out there for a fair while actually, chatting to people and just enjoying the ambience. I had originally planned to maybe stay all day and camp again at Machir bay but after a while I realised I had had my fill of company and so we walked back to Thomas and I took the back road out of there towards my next destination.

 

Lovely gardens at the pub

I was feeling hungry so stopped at Bridgend to have lunch at the hotel there. I checked first if they were OK with the puppies and they were so in they came and all of a sudden everyone in the room knew me and was saying hello. Now I was feeling a bit grumpy so after a sip of my beer I asked where the garden was and took the girls out there to escape. This was a good idea as the gardens here are gorgeous and the girls had a great time running around and playing and I got some peace of quiet that I was yearning for. After a little while I went in and found that my dinner was about to be served so I got the girls to settle down and ate then legged it very quickly. It was as I was leaving that I saw the singer from Bruichiladdich day and was able to pass on my best wishes so that was also nice.

From there I popped up to Laphroaig to carry out a chore and then finally made it to my target; the original camping place for myself and CJC. When I got there and parked up on the field (the gate opens so you can drive on and the farmer knows me so it is OK) the heavens opened and despite the gorgeous blue sky I was sheltering in the car for a while before I could get out and pitch the tent.

 

A bit of a sun set, finally

It was about 3pm when I arrived and I had a lovely relaxing afternoon sat in the sun, sheltered from the breeze by Thomas, watching the girls playing and fighting while I read and drank tea and then made myself some pasta for dinner. After the cloudburst upon arrival the rain stayed away all afternoon and evening and so I really did get to relax fully. I got into bed when the temperature dropped a little more but then I heard the girls whining so got up, let them out for their toilet, had a run around the field with them and slid into my sleeping bag just as the heavens opened; if I had been even 10 seconds later my sleeping bag would have gotten soaked so the timing of this little jaunt was amazing.

 

Letting the bivvy blow in the wind

Friday was Bunnahabhain day and I was in no rush at all to get there as I had the bottles already. I pottered around the campsite making myself a large breakfast (I had to do it in two stages as my small frying pan couldn’t fit it all in) and then taking the time to air and dry all my gear as it had rained a bit in the night. The girls thought all their christmases had come at once as I let them have some black pudding and flat sausage for their breakfast. They really are spoiled.

 

The man does love mussels

Even with my determinedly wasting time, including going over to Bowmore where I found that Shug had missed his bus and so I was able to give him a lift also, I reached Bunnahabhain park and ride (the same one as used for Caol Ila) about 10.30 but this time, as I was pulling up to park, the attendant told me to just drive down as I had the dogs. This was great as it meant I could easily put them away when they were getting tired and also I could stay longer without worrying about leaving them in the car in the heat. We found a cracking parking spot just by the front gate and went to join the festivities which included Steve and his customary two plates of six mussels.

 

Shug getting his boots wet

Bunnahabhain day was a really lovely day, with the best weather of the week, and I spent a fair bit of it sat in the sun on the grass watching the girls play. They got loads of attention as always and were photographed and filmed by lots of people. When it came time to leave I collected Shug and we went first for a walk on the same beach with the spit of gravel going into the bay though this time the water was higher and it was far shorter than when I walked on it.

 

Three courses

Happy table

Now I know a tradition can’t really be called such if it has only happened twice but I am going to claim that it was now time for the traditional “end of Feis” meal at the Port Charlotte Hotel. This tradition started two years ago when I was here with CJC and so I made sure a table was booked early (and it was a good thing as the restaurant had already sold out when we booked into the bar) for all of us. It was a lovely evening with excellent food and brilliant company and when it was over and I was driving back with Shug to drop him off it was clear he had enjoyed it too. These people are true friends and I look forward to the next time I join them at Feis and having another meal at that time.

 

Gorgeous evening at Ardbeg

The forecast for that night had been pretty terrible so as I was driving towards my next location, Ardbeg, I was watching the sky closely. Once again there is no signal there so I stopped in Port Ellen to chat to A before heading down the road. When I got to the carpark I found that there were a few campervans there but no one else camping yet so I pitched the bivvy just behind the wall near the car and took the girls for a walk to the sea front. This is such a beautiful spot and the picture above has now been ordered, split into 4 sections, printed on aluminium for the wall near my whisky collection in the school.

 

Outside gallery

I slept well again and woke up to a lovely morning, though it was still cold. As soon as the bivvy was packed away I headed to a bench in the sun to wait for a queue to begin to form. There were a few people around who said hello and then the staff started arriving so I pulled my deck chair down and sat by the doorway to wait.

 

The final queue of the week

After a while of it only being me the queue built quickly behind me but then we found that I had actually sat in the wrong place and so we moved round the corner near the side door. It turned out that last year they had decided to not have people queuing in through the same door that others were leaving and this really was a good idea. It was at the front of this queue that I was actually interviewed by someone, talking to camera and then when we were let in and I had my bottle I was photographed as the first person to buy it. Funny.

 

Ardbeg fry up by the car

I returned to the car to let the girls out and then fried myself some breakfast which was much needed by this point. It was now that I was greeted, in Bulgarian, but a group of chaps who had just parked up and seen the number plate on my car. It turns out one of them is a whisky importer into Bulgaria and he gave me his card. It is interesting the people you meet at these type of things.

 

The girls loving their Ardbeg Smokies

The rest of the day went in a blur of smokies (first for me, then for the girls), turbo charged tractors (what a sound!) and sheep tossing contests which I only observed and didn’t make a fool of myself attempting. Once again the weather held relatively well and I was even able to lay out on the grass at one point while the girls had a fight to entertain a crowd. I was having a nap in the truck (the week was really starting to catch up on me) when a knock on the window woke me and it was Steve and Anna, on the early ferry, come to say goodbye. A hug, and a promise to stay in touch, and they were off and I dozed a little more before rejoining the party.

 

Final meal together; sat on the ferry leaving Askaig

This was sadly the last day for us as well and so, via a tea stop at Bridgend for the first brew of the day for me which alleviated my caffeine headache admirably, myself and Shug made our way to the ferry terminal at Port Askaig where we met up with the usual crowd, sheltered from the usual rain, and eventually made our way on board with Shug and Wilfred getting on as foot passengers and sorting out food for Bart and I who had to drive on. Kevin was lucky to be staying an extra day on the island so wasn’t with us sadly.

After eating I went straight way up to the lounge for a snooze and after a bit of fidgeting I lay down and was woken after what felt like two minutes but was actually three hours as we pulled into harbour back on the mainland. There are pictures of me sleeping circulating but I’m not going to share them here. I was a bit dozy at first but then as we were going down the stairs I realised that stood right next to me was Joe, from the Whisky Lounge, who I had been trying to catch up with all week to sign my copy of his book. He very kindly came straight away with me and put his mark for me which was lovely. What timing.

Puppies asleep next to me

There followed a few hours of driving through dark and rain (my short cut near the ferry terminal jumped us way up the long line of traffic which always ensues from a ferry there) and eventually we arrived tired but happy at Shug's flat. I was able to settle on the sofa almost immediately and while I tried to settle the girls in their bed on the floor they were having none of it so eventually ended up cuddled up to me on the sofa which again was surprisingly comfortable.

 

Super Scottish Breakfast

I woke to the sound of Shug in the kitchen and after my shower I was treated to this amazing feast which set me up for the rest of the day through the whole of the long drive. I left pretty soon after eating and made really good time though I did have to pull over near the border for a 45 minute snooze as I was starting to daydream while driving which is never a good idea.

Dan with Winston

I had to drop in to Blackpool to pick some stuff up from the studio and also I wanted to see Dan so this broke the journey nicely as well. After a lovely cup of tea at his house, and a hug goodbye, I got back in Thomas and managed to get safely all the way back to this house by about 5pm.

What a week, what a holiday, and what an adventure. I cannot wait to get back to Feis Ile as soon as possible! Normal service on my blogs will resume with an update which I think I’m going to start typing up later today…