The Island of Staffa

Legend has it that Fionn MacCumhall a giant who lived in Antrim in Northern Ireland. quarrelled with another giant called Benandonner who lived across the sea in Scotland. As both were too big to travel by boat Fionn decided to build a causeway across the water from North Antrim right across to Staffa.

At some point Fionn caught sight of his enemy and noticed that he was twice his size. He quickly ran back home to his wife Oonagh who immediately wrapped him up in blankets as if he was a baby and put him to sleep in a cradle by the fire side.

Meanwhile Benandonner crossed the causeway, walked into her house and demanded to see Fionn. Oonagh told him that her husband would arrive shortly and that Benandonner could wait by the fireside. She asked him to be quiet so as not to disturb the sleeping infant.

When Bendandonner saw the huge size of what he thought was Fionn’s child, he convinced himself that the father must be even bigger than he was. Fearfully Benandonner ran back to Staffa, but not before tearing up the causeway to prevent Fionn from following him. The stones we see in these photographs are part of the causeway that ends in Staffa.

Rather less romantically, Staffa is a small island off the west coast of Mull in Scotland. It belongs to the National Trust and is considered a 'Site of Special Scientific Interest'. It is known for its unique geological features in particular the shape of its basalt columns similar to those found in the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. It was the slow cooling of the basalt which was responsible for the pattern of the mostly hexagonal columns which appear all over the island.