Fingal's Cave and Staffa

Staffa is a small uninhabited island of basalt that cooled slowly enough to crack into vertical hexagonal columns, the same formation as the Giant's Causeway across the water in Antrim. The sea has eaten a cave into the southern face about 20 metres high and 70 metres deep, floored by water and walled in columns, with an acoustic that amplifies every swell. Mendelssohn visited in 1829 and the overture that followed made the place known across Europe. A handrail and a rough basalt ledge allow you to walk in from the landing stage when conditions permit. Above the cave, the island's flat top holds a puffin colony that is unusually approachable from late April to early August, with birds nesting in burrows a couple of metres from the path.

The landscape

• Fingal's Cave - hexagonal columns rising from water inside the sea cave.
• The columnar cliffs - the basalt colonnade along the southern shore.
• The puffin colony - burrow-nesting birds on the flat island top.
• The approach by sea - the whole formation seen from the boat.

When to go

May to July for puffins and the calmest sea. Trips run roughly April to October and are decided each morning by swell - landing is often impossible even when the boat sails. Morning departures have the better odds. Book ahead in July and August, when operators fill days in advance.

Practical notes

Landing is not guaranteed and many trips only circle the island, which is a real risk on a single-day plan. The ledge into the cave is wet, uneven basalt with a rail and no margin for a slip. Crossings are exposed and often rough enough to make people ill. Time ashore is usually limited to about an hour.

Nearby

Iona with its abbey lies close by, and most trips run from the Isle of Mull.