A Church of Scotland minister has clocked up thousands of miles travelling around her rural parish in a “mobile manse”.

Rev Fiona Ogg, who looks after an area spanning 131 square miles of Lochaber in the Highlands, said her trusty white Fiat Ducatto campervan is an “excellent conversation starter”.

She regularly spends overnight at Kilchoan when visiting her flock at Ardnamurchan Parish Church because travel times between there and her home in Archaracle can be lengthy.

Rev Ogg, who often travels with her Border Terrier, Maisie, said the single track roads are often affected by rural “traffic jams” - sheep, cattle and slow moving tourists.

The minister, who leads the linked Parishes of Acharacle and Ardnamurchan, said the campervan is “great fun” to drive and invites people into the vehicle for tea or coffee and a chat.

She said: said: “I bought it second-hand in 2016 because I think it is important to be a visible presence in Kilchoan given that the church building closed in October 2018 for health and safety reasons and the congregation meets in a community centre.

“If there is an evening event followed by a morning event in Kilchoan, going back to the manse in Acharacle to sleep then returning is tiring, time consuming and pushes up travel costs.

“Having the van frees up the travel time for pastoral work and desk time.”

Rev Ogg travels between her churches most Sundays and once a week and has driven around 4000 miles to date.

She said the “mobile manse”, registered in 2008, has gone down well with parishioners.

The minister said: “Using it as a base is often an opening into conversation, but also means parishioners can stop me, or pop in, maybe just for a look around.

“They also stop for a chat when I’m walking the dog.

“One of the best days was going for a walk with someone, on a rare hot, summer day, on a beach and returning to the van to eat ice-creams that we’d bought earlier and left in the freezer.

“The van is snug and cosy in the winter.”