In this online portal for the May pilgrimage, you will find

• Updates

• Resource Package - links to the online course you can take for free

Updates

This is where you’ll find any updates

UK Travel ETA ( Electronic Travel Authorisation)

The notes below are just a starting point, it’s important that you also review the full procedure to ensure you have everything you need.

The UK Gov's travel ETA is now in place (as from 8th Jan 2025). This is an electronic document required for travellers who do not have a UK visa or legal residency in the UK or the Republic of Ireland. 

• Online application / takes 10 mins 

• Apply by app / downloaded from UK Gov 

• A digital document which is attached to your passport 

• Lasts for 2 years / max duration of stay is 6 months 

• ETA decision is made by email (keep an electronic or paper copy for records)

• Processing time - approx. 3 days (longer at holiday times) 

• Lasts for 2 years 

• If you get a new passport this will require a new ETA

• Cost is £16 / USD $21

• Please note there are other websites out there offering ETA services but they charge addition fees 

Here is a guide by the UK government as well as a video they produced on applying for an ETA. 

• UK Gov Website - GUide to ETA's 

• How to Apply For a UK Electronic Travel Authorisation UK Gov (ETA) / YouTube

• Video overview for applying for the UK ETA (non Government) 

Issues Encountered

• Some people have had issues taking the photo of themselves when using an Android phone.  When getting to the "take my picture" step, the virtual camera shutter is overwritten on the HOME key. Usually an app is using the entire screen and not allowing any Android default screen icons through.

• Try turning off the navigation bar to see if that helps: 

• Settings-> Display->Navigation Bar

• iPhones dont encounter this issue

Resources

As part of your pre-pilgrimage resource pack you have a free pass to take three of my online courses. Please note these are live courses with other participants. Click on the link below for each.

The Isle of Eigg stands as a remarkable testament to the power of community resilience and self-governance. Unlike many of Scotland’s islands historically subjected to absentee landlords who often neglected local well-being in favor of distant profit, Eigg’s trajectory has shifted profoundly. In 1997, following years of mismanagement and hardship under absentee ownership, the islanders took a historic step by purchasing Eigg through the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust, a collaboration involving the residents, the Highland Council, and the Scottish Wildlife Trust. This unique model empowered the inhabitants to take control of their own destiny, fostering sustainable development and environmental stewardship.

Today, Eigg is an inspiring example of how the preservation of land and culture flourishes best under the stewardship of those who live on the island. 

Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust: 

• The community buyout

• History and culture 

• Geology and archeology 

Article

This island is not for sale: how Eigg fought back - Guardian newspaper article 

Listen to the audio version 

The Land as a Body - A insight into land features described as parts of 'her' body + place names reflecting nature 

The Gaels’ Celtic ancestors looked at the land as the body of the goddess Earth. They interpreted its features as part of her body.  

• Sròn, – the nose – is a sharp promontory,

• Druim – back – is a ridge,

• Pap or mam – breast-  is a hill, 

• Cruachan – hip – is a circular stone outcrop,

• Maol – bald  head – refers to a bare, rounded headland,

• Gualain – shoulder – is a rounded hillside.

• Bràighe – throat- is the upper part of a hill.

Books 

Eigg. The Story of an Island by Camille Dressler 

Eigg, one of the islands of the Inner Hebrides off the West coast of Scotland, has an interesting history. Following the ownership battle for the island in 1997, this text tells the story of Eigg, from its earliest inhabitants to the present, detailing its recently-acquired independence and community ownership. The book draws extensively on oral history from the islanders themselves and from local archives, with stories of clans, pastimes, wartime, childhood and crofting.

Soil and Soul. People versus Corporate Power by Alastair McIntosh 

It is easy to feel helpless in the face of the torrent of information about environmental catastrophes taking place all over the world.

In this powerful and provocative book, Scottish writer and campaigner Alastair McIntosh shows how it is still possible for individuals and communities to take on the might of corporate power and emerge victorious.

As a founder of the Isle of Eigg Trust, McIntosh helped the beleaguered residents of Eigg to become the first Scottish community ever to clear their laird from his own estate. And plans to turn a majestic Hebridean mountain into a superquarry were overturned after McIntosh persuaded a Native American warrior chief to visit the Isle of Harris and testify at the government inquiry.

This extraordinary book weaves together theology, mythology, economics, ecology, history, poetics and politics as the author journeys towards a radical new philosophy of community, spirit and place. His daring and imaginative responses to the destruction of the natural world make Soil and Soul an uplifting, inspirational and often richly humorous read.

Spiritual Activism: Donald Trump and the second sight | Alastair McIntosh | TEDxFindhornSalon

Scottish academic Prof Alastair McIntosh grew up on the same island as Donald Trump's mother and in this interesting talk, he shows how the history of the Scottish Clearances may have had an effect on President Trump's upbringing and personality. Professor Alastair McIntosh works for progressive change from the standpoint of both the outer and the inner life. His work for environmental protection, social change and spiritual insight into our times has been described as “world-changing”, “life-changing” and “inspirational” by bishops, pop stars, and even politicians. The author of Soil and Soul, his most recent books are Spiritual Activism and Poacher’s Pilgrimage.”

Coffin Roads by Ian Bradly

• This book covers a chapter on Eiggs' coffin road which we will walk as part of our Grief Pilgrimage 

'Coffin roads' along which bodies were carried for burial are a marked feature of the landscape of the Scottish Highlands and islands – many are now popular walking and cycling routes. This book journeys along eight coffin roads to discover and explore the distinctive traditions, beliefs and practices around dying, death and mourning in the communities which created and used them.

The result is a fascinating snapshot into place and culture. After more than a century when death was very much a taboo subject, this book argues that aspects of the distinctive West Highland and Hebridean way of death and approach to dying and mourning may have something helpful and important to offer to us today.