Oronsay was going to be a target but the tide clearly had other ideas, luckily we had other ideas as well. There is a small car park at the end of the road and to the west another intended target. Garvard standing stone, on top of Cnoc Eibriginn, invited us to take the flat walk along the track, past Garvard farm to the small hill.
The approach from the east is the easiest climb to the summit and it’s well worth it as Oronsay, Jura and Islay all come into view, what a marker for prehistoric and later boats to safely come ashore.
People have ups and downs, so do standing stones – after 1878 it had fallen and was re-erected in 1935, it fell again only to be put back up in 1960 by the farmer at Garvard. The 1.75m tall stone seems quite happy to remain in place for many years yet.
Luckily the storm the previous night, only a couple of miles north, had missed the south of Colonsay as the ground was bone dry.
Visited 13/08/2024.