A year ago their new lives were just beginning, having swapped the city to spend their first Christmas on the island of Rum.
When four houses were offered for rent in the remote Hebridean community, it prompted thousands of inquiries from around the world.
The homes were made available by the Isle of Rum Community Trust to attract new blood and help sustain the population which stood at 32.
Eventually four families were selected from more than 400 applications to live on the island about 20 miles from Mallaig.
Couple had never visited Rum before
They brought another eight adults and six children, all aged under eight, to Rum.
Twelve months on, how do the families view their first year on Rum? We spoke to two of them.
Alex Mumford, 32, and Buffy Cracknell,30, had never visited Rum before they moved from Bristol.
After a year on the island, their busy lives have slowed down, giving them more time to enjoy the outdoors or simply read a book.
Alex, who is now the island’s visitor services manager, said: “The first year has been challenging.
“One of the reasons we wanted to try this lifestyle was to experience different challenges to the modern day hum-drum.
“No worrying about traffic here, but common challenges include ferry cancellations and those that come with an off-grid life.
“We have managed to get involved in different community organisations and do our best to give back to the community that welcomed us.”
The couple now spend more time with each other than ever before.
“It’s not possible to waste time commuting or staying in the office late”, says Alex.
“I feel much more relaxed after a year here than I have anywhere else in my life.
“We have a beautiful island, so however your day is going you can always draw inspiration from the surrounds.
“My mind feels much less cluttered and I now manage to read so much, it’s great.”
The community can have a direct impact on helping others
Have things been much different to what they were expecting?
“At times, things have been tougher”, admits Alex.
“When you live in a small community, any small things that arise seem magnified because you are inside the petri dish of the village.
“For example, you cannot rely on emergency contractor callouts because there is no such thing on Rum.
“It just means that the community can have a direct impact on helping others or sorting out certain things that arise.
“Not a life for everyone and we are fully aware of that. But if you are flexible and ready to learn you cannot go wrong.”
He believes the move has changed him considerably: “It has slowed my mind down which was very much needed and made me realise what is important.”
Buffy, who is a website content specialist and works as an administrator for the island trust, agrees.
She added: “My life has changed considerably in the past year. It’s certainly a more relaxed lifestyle in some ways.
“But there are new stresses too, such as whether or not the ferry will run because of the weather and how to coordinate time away from Rum with ferry timetables.
“But I’m sure part of that is just a learning curve. I used to always be on the go, but I can take my time a bit more now.”
Highlights include a boat trip counting seabirds for Alex, while Buffy volunteered to check on the Manx Shearwater colonies and the goat count.
Being on Rum has ‘kept us sane’ during pandemic
“Seeing golden and sea eagles on an empty beach with the Skye Cuillin in the background would be up there, as well as trips in the kayak out of the loch”, Alex enthuses.
Being on Rum during the pandemic has kept them sane, they say.
“I’m not sure how my mental health would be now if I was still living in Bristol”, says Alex.
“You can easily forget, especially outside of tourist season, that the pandemic is ongoing.”
Matthew and Rebecca Barley uprooted from Ely in Cambridgeshire to live on Rum with their children Katie, six, and Poppy, two.
Matthew, 33, who runs a photography website, and Rebecca, 29, a quality management implementation consultant, describe their first year as “wild”.
“So much has happened over the past year it’s mad”, says Rebecca.
“There’s been ups and downs, but we’ve had such a good time exploring the island and adapting to our new way of life. It’s been fab.”
Surprisingly, they say their lives are busier now: “It seems a bit mad considering we’re now away from the chaos of town and things.
“Everything takes a lot more planning, which has never been a strong point of ours, so sometimes we’re a bit caught out. But we’re getting better with that.”
Biggest changes are in the children
They enjoy walking, cycling and playing outside, while Rebecca has started wild swimming. They also plan to grow more of their own food.
“For us, the biggest changes though are in the children. The freedom that living here has given them is the best part of it all”, says Rebecca who writes a blog on island life.
The couple admit to enduring some teething troubles.
“There are things that have been quite a large disappointment, such as trying to get some full-time education for the children and getting a nursery teacher in place.
“Life here moves at a slower pace which can be very frustrating when you’re trying to get things done.
“But the community here is great and especially the tight bond between all the children.
“Whenever anyone needs anything everyone else is there to help.
“The magic of the island is once it gets under your skin it’s there for good, you can’t help but fall in love with it.”
Steve Robertson, development officer with the Isle of Rum Community Trust, says the families have settled into Rum life very well.
“Without the new arrivals the school would have been down to one child and with one other baby,” he said.
“The new residents have also taken up various key paid and voluntary roles within the community, exactly what we wanted and needed to help move Rum forward.
“It has helped the school, filled jobs and helped to spark ideas and make initiatives happen.”
