On its west shore, round a little bay, island-locked, straggles the village of Tayvallich, a perfect anchorage, where on the wildest day you may ride secure while the seas make white tumult on the other side of the protecting rock-spit" wrote John McLintock, in 1938 (West Coast Cruising. John McLintock, Blackie and Son, London and Glasgow, 1938). A bit different these days. If you could now imagine Tayvallich without all the moorings, none of which seem to be available for visitors, and particularly without the characterless modern houses outnumbering the older much more charming (but no doubt less well insulated) cottages, then it would indeed be 'a perfect anchorage'. Later, in the 1930s, Capt. Harvey was writing: "the builders of the new houses have not been very happy in their choice of materials" (Sailing Orders. Captain J R Harvey, Alexander Maclehose, London, 1935). 'Pevsner' puts it even better: "A ring of indifferent holiday cottages now outnumbering the few surviving old rubble cottages. From the north caravans advance ominously" (The Buildings of Scotland, Argyll and Bute. Frank Arneil Walker, Penguin Books, London, 1992).The late 19th century church reflects well the takeover by the new at the expense of the old. I hope there was a good reason to replace half the wooden pews and their lovely polished brass umbrella stands with horrible modern chairs.
Sadly, there is almost no space to anchor and the pontoon can only be used for a one hour stay as long as you don't leave the boat, so dropping in for coffee and some shopping is problematic, as would having a meal at the inn. Anchoring just outside the enclosed bay is however an option, if a little distant from the city centre.
There is a small but useful shop which can come in handy for fresh milk, and an excellent coffee shop with a deck overlooking the bay but now only opening over weekends and Mondays (I think) (ph 01546 870364). You can buy bread baked by the local Knapdale Artisan Bread (delivered by electric e-cargo bike). Certainly there is a strong sense of community here with a sailing club, camera club and art classes.
One plus is the Tayvallich Inn although since it changed hands in late 2009 and then again in 2017 I have not been there (ph 01546 870282). However, it was — and maybe still is — one of only 16 pubs listed in the Michelin guide to eating out in pubs in Scotland, so it must be good. It is really hard to keep up with these small restaurants because they change hands so quickly, and I imagine it is very difficult to attract chefs and then get them to stay, or rather come back in the spring because so many of these places are closed for the winter for lack of custom.
Of course the anchorage is totally sheltered and easy to get into but somehow this is not enough, particularly when Loch Sween has other attractive options. However, if you do get stuck here on a bad day, there is the possibility of a bus ride into Lochgilphead and the swimming pool (aka MacPool).
By the way, if you want to impress, the pronunciation of Tayvallich has an additional syllable — tay-vee-allich — after the original Gaelic Tigh a'bhealaich, house of the pass (between Carsaig Bay on the Sound of Jura and Loch Sween, over which the drovers used to drive their cattle to market).
