The rugged Scottish island that’s like Cornwall – without masses of tourists

“Mull reminds me of Cornwall, but I reckon it’s much better,” says Englishman Vaughan Faulkes-Arnold of Tobermory Bay Tours as he casts his arm across Tobermory’s vast natural amphitheatre. “It’s better than Skye too, a Scotland in miniature with all the best bits on one island.” I clearly agree. I’m a travel writer who has been to over 100 countries, but this is at least my 50th visit to Mull – and my third this year. I see it as the Hebridean all-rounder, crystallising visitors’ misty-eyed dreams of Scotland. Craggy peaks soar improbably high from the cobalt seas. At 966 metres, Ben More is the highest on any of Scotland’s 800 isles outside Skye. Ben More towers over the isle of Mull (Photo: George Robertson/Getty) This is the spirit-soaring Hebrides that inspired Mendelssohn to pen an eponymous overture. There are brooding castles too, including Duart, resurrected by Sir Fitzroy Maclean, the inspiration for James Bond. We’re talking beaches too, epic wildlife, a whisky distillery, boat-fresh seafood, cute villages and – arching above all – a life-affirming sense of community. The island does indeed echo Cornwall. There’s the wild and wildly beautiful coastline, with wondrous white-sand beaches like Calgary Bay, where you can camp for free. Tobermory is as postcard-worthy as Padstow, its pastel-hued houses starring again on TV recently with the resurrected Balamory. On Tobermory’s waterfront main street there are classy gift shops, a chocolatier, Isle of Mull Soap, Isle of Mull Ice Cream and Browns – an unmissable, award-winning Aladdin’s cave stocked with everything from hardware to spirits. The picturesque town of Tobermory is a worthy rival to Padstow (Photo: Richard Kellett/Getty) Mull doesn’t have an Eden Project – but it doesn’t need one. Not when venturing through the lingering swathe of ancient Argyll temperate rainforest feels like a real life Garden of Eden. The hiking is every bit as good as Cornwall, albeit often rougher. I once spent a tough week forging through the island’s wild and wildly beautiful heart along the Stevenson Way, bringing the pages of Robert Louis Stevenson’s adventure novel Kidnapped to life. This time, however, I return to a favourite: strolling along the cliffs from Tobermory to the old whitewashed lighthouse, spotting otters and porpoises en route. Mull’s wildlife easily trumps Cornwall’s, but then it also trumps that of most places I’ve been. My three days bring red deer, otters, seals and golden eagles, followed by dolphins, minke whales and soaring sea eagles on a boat trip with Sea Life Mull – pioneers in UK whale-watching tourism. Sea eagles, also known as white-tailed eagles, went extinct in the UK in 1918 before being reintroduced decades later (Photo: Connah/Getty) Later, I spot another sea eagle with Theo, an excellent guide with Nature Scotland. “It’s the world-class wildlife and the Lords of the Rings drama that draws people to Mull,” he says, as we watch that flying barn door of Scottish birdlife soar. “People love our sea eagles. The UK’s last one was killed here in 1918, so it’s amazing to have over 20 pairs nesting now. And the beauty is that when they were reintroduced from Norway in 1975 they liked Mull so much they stayed.” I could stay just for the food. Seafood is abundant – even the local chippie in Tobermory, Hook’d, hauls up king scallop suppers and langoustines. I dine at Café Fish, overlooking the cobalt waters. Croig oysters kick-off the feast, spiced with a local seaweed sauce, before similarly local lobster and a heaving bowl of plump mussels from Mull’s Loch Spelve. (Massive 5kg sacks of these can be picked up from the informal mussel farm for only £7.) Never mind Cornwall royalty Rick Stein’s restaurant empire, I’d rather tuck into oysters and lobster rolls at the wee Fisherman’s Pier Seafood shack, run by a lovely young local couple on Tobermory’s active fishing harbour. Or the superb smoked delights of the Tobermory Fish Company. There’s local beef and game too, and delicious Isle of Mull Cheddar, which I enjoy at The Glass Barn, the dairy’s farm cafe overlooking the fields. And what of the Cornwall crowds? Yes, Tobermory’s shortbread-tin-pretty main street gets busy in summer, but Mull is generally much quieter than Cornwall – or, indeed, its Hebridean cousin Skye, where overtourism can be an issue. Mull, after all, is a sweeping island over twice the size of the Isle of Wight, with less than 3 per cent of the population. Part of the reason for the low population is a dark one. Mull was savagely depopulated during the baleful Highland Clearances – the population nosedived from 10,600 in 1821 to 5,600 by 1881 – and in some ways Mull has never fully recovered. But what has remained intact is a sense of community that many city dwellers can only dream of. I take its pulse at An Tobar, an old church which serves as both social fulcrum and arts hub, where everyone is genuinely welcome. Shorts Mull may be an island but it’s not alone. I spend one day back on the satellite isle of Iona, a place of pilgrimage since St Columba brought Christianity to Scotland in the 6th century. It’s practically impossible to be unmoved by the ancient abbey, starched white beaches and end of the world vibe. Boat trips to Lunga and Staffa, meanwhile, bring puffins in summer – and at the latter, otherworldly basalt columns too, which match Ireland’s tourist-mobbed Giant’s Causeway. Best of all, after any day trip, you get to sail back for at least another night on Mull. How to get there CalMac ferries sail from Oban, Morvern, Iona, Kennacraig and Ardnamurchan. The Oban-Craignure service takes 50 minutes. Majestic Line offers a luxurious Mull and her Inlets and Islands six-night cruise from £2,645pp including meals and excursions, departing from Oban. Where to stay The Mishnish in Tobermory is the liveliest pub on Mull, with B&B doubles from £130 (shared bathroom) or £175 (private en suite).