Tarbert, Loch Fyne

 

The pretty fishing village of Tarbert on Loch Fyne is situated on the top of the Mull of Kintyre in Argyll. The name derives from the Gaelic term for a narrow strip of land joining two larger pieces of land (an isthmus). Tarbert has two harbours – a main harbour on the east coast and a pier at West Loch Tarbert. The village is a popular local tourist destination, with interesting historic sites and easy access to the nearby islands of Islay, Jura and Gigha to the west, or the stunning Isle of Arran to the east. Local leisure facilities include walking the Kintyre Way, golf, fishing, cycling and wildlife spotting (birds of prey, deer, dolphins and basking sharks). Tarbert hosts the annual Scottish Series each May, Scotland's biggest sail racing event, and has its own Tarbert Seafood Festival in July.

Tarbert's history stretches back to its prominence as part of the ancient Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata (c. 6th-7th century), and in 1098 the King of Norway, Magnus Barefoot, sailed his longship to Tarbert, claiming the village to signify his possession of the Western Isles. Tarbert's Castle was constructed in the 13th century and extended with additional towers and an outer bailey in the 1320s by Robert the Bruce (to protect it from the Viking/Gaelic Lords of the Isles, who ruled the west coast of Scotland in the Middle Ages until 1493). The castle was later seized towards the end of the 17th century as a stronghold for the Clan Campbell.

Iain's family have lived in Tarbert since the mid-19th century. The current family home (Breezy Cliff) was built in 1907 by Iain's great-grandmother's maiden aunts, who held regular Suffragette meetings at the house. The house sits above the Tarbert harbour, enjoying fine views of the loch, the 13th-century Tarbert Castle and the parish church. 

For more information, see the Tarbert village website.

 

Image by Kirsten Loza under a CC BY license.