Long before it was picked for an archaeological dig in the 2020s I passed the abandoned village of Olistadh on the Rhinns of Islay after climbing Beinn Tart a’Mhill (in the background on the right). These are some of the ruins in some beautiful June 2007 afternoon sunshine. Loch Indaal and the Oa also visible in the distance on the left.
In June 2024 the Department of Archaeology at Reading University with Professor Steven Mithen had returned for more field work on Islay, this time for another dig at Olistadh on the Rhinns of Islay. This (if I remember correctly) is a barley kiln they unearthed during this dig, a dig with a view over Loch Indaal with the Oa in the distance.
One of the clearest views I’ve experienced across the North Channel from Islay to Ireland. Depending on how you measure it this is somewhere around 25 miles / 40 kilometres. The view is from the Mull of Oa on Islay across the North Channel. In the foreground you can spot Rathlin, behind it Ireland.