MacKinnon's Cave

On the wild west coast of Mull near Gribun lies a cave so deep that, by tradition, no one has ever reached its end. According to the old story, twelve men of Clan Fingon (MacKinnon) once set out to explore its full length, led by a piper, while a second party walked the cliffs above, following the sound of his pipes to mark how far the cave ran.

Deep in the dark, the explorers came upon a fearsome being — in most versions a monstrous female ogre, in others a fairy woman of the cave — who attacked the party and killed them one by one. Only the piper was spared, on condition that he keep playing for her; his music was said to be so charming that she let him live as long as the tune continued. When his strength finally failed and the music stopped, she killed him too.

Above ground, the search party heard the piping falter through the rock and rushed to the cave mouth, arriving just as the last note died away. They found the piper's mangled body, with the remains of his companions beyond him in the dark. Locals say that on certain days, when the wind is right, the cave still seems to breathe out the ghost of a tune — the last performance of Mull's most famous piper.