Not many boats ever seem to anchor off the tiny and remote hamlet of Croggan at the entrance to Loch Spelve. Maybe because they are drawn further into the enclosed mysteries of the loch, sparing just a glance at the surprising but now defunct telephone box down on the stony beach (surely this will be removed sooner rather than later). But it is worth a stop. You are saved time if you are on passage, the views are rather better than in the loch, and in a way the shore is more interesting. There are a few houses, some new and not exactly attractive and one or two which used to look a bit tumbledown but are now restored; some nice gardens; a decaying pier; and a very pretty walk along a track by the shore towards the entrance to the loch under stunted oak trees. After about five minutes you come to a huge rock by the high water mark, one rock perched on top of another looking for all the world like a giant mushroom. Go on for another 20 minutes and you come to one of the few sandy (more or less) beaches in the Firth of Lorne, Port nan Crullach. A beautiful spot with rockpools and views. On the way, there are lovely trees and all the usual Hebridean flowers. A good place to explore if there is no wind for sailing. Up the hill from the beach there are scattered ruins of two abandoned and long forgotten villages — Barnashoag and Balgamrie — from where you can make a beeline back to Croggan over the moor.
