Island 21 of our 100 Island Adventure
We set off for East Lothian after having the grandchildren
for the day. Then it was a four hour drive and a night stay in a premier inn.
We were looking forward to the usually tasty breakfast but supposedly freshly
cooked it was dried out bacon, hard poached eggs and everything was cold, so we
were disappointed. It was a huge TV screen though and there were good internet
connections.
18th
September we drove to Ardrossan, another 40 minutes on, down roads that were
less easy to navigate when tired and in the dark. There was ample space in the
ferry car park which we worked out at £9 to take us till Sunday when we return.
In fact the nice man in the kiosk only charged us £7 when we came to pay after
our trip, which we thought really good value.
The boat was in but the barrier up to cars but if we had
built the bike more quickly we could have been on it. As it was we waited till
11.05 the time we had a booking for, whiling away the minutes looking around a
nearby Asda and ferry terminal which had a little cafe and places to sit.
Our ferry left on time but half full of vehicles. The smell
of greasy chips from the on board cafe permeated through the ship. The overcast
day made for a dark sea but we were able to sit outside without getting cold,
watching the rain coming down from clouds in the distance. It was a calm 1hour
crossing.
We arrived at Brodick and set off up a steep hill toward
Lamlash- the recommended direction round the island- getting the hardest bit
over first. There were forestry walks either side of the road. After a tough 3
miles we stopped at the Drift Inn in Lamlash for lunch. It was really a
gastropub but Bob enjoyed his pint of Jarl which I thought too reminiscent of
grapefruit and we had an introduction to the produce of Arran in a fisherman
and hill walker platter each. We shared each and tried chicken terrine, oat-cakes,
cheese with chives, unusual salad leaves, hot salmon, smoked salmon, mackerel
pate, egg, homemade piccalilli and bread with herbs.
We had a view of Holy Island we would visit Saturday but
wished the cloud would clear and let the sun shine through soon. Blackberries
were abundant, big and juicy all along our route. Fuchsia bushes and montbretia
remind me of Irish lanes while the sea, or seaweed rather, smelled healthy and
of holidays.
The hills were hard work and we walked 2 extremely steep
ones. Despite some winding roads, unlike on Mull, the roads were wide enough
for 2 way traffic. We were overtaken by buses a lot and it was often the same one!
At Lagg we stopped at the hotel there for refreshments and
homemade fruit loaf. We had just passed people voting at the Primary School but
strangely we never heard anyone discussing the referendum in pubs or within our
earshot. Perhaps it was too sensitive an issue for general airing. We have seen
posters, banners , occasionally cars decorated in supporting colours and even a
yes and a no sign in the same field but we haven’t felt it lean heavily either
way.
Our B and B was in Blackwaterfoot in a bungalow in a
residential road away from the sea. There was a note on the doorstep telling us
to go to a neighbour as our host was at the golf course. A friendly dog stood
at the open door. We tucked the bike up
in the garage and just as we were being shown to our room by the neighbour ,
our B and B lady arrived. She made us a welcome pot of tea and gave us homemade
shortbread and coconut tarts. Ooh the calories!
We’d noticed a hotel with lovely views over to the mull of
Kintyre on the way in and so we went there after a wash and brush up. Bob had a
massive haddock and chips but I had lamb casserole with root veg which turned
out to be mainly potatoes. There never seem to be many vegetables on offer when
we come to Scotland which often disappoints me. Bob enjoyed his real ale and I
felt obliged to try a pudding- banana bread and butter pudding was recommended
by the waitress. They were dried bananas though, hard and disappointing yet
again.
By the beach we met a couple we’d travelled on the boat
with. They were on bikes and both wore curious, toed rubber sandals making
their feet quite Simian like. They said they were very comfortable but I am
dubious.
We had a restless night because the men in the other room
came back after midnight from the golf club and continued to use the toilet
noisily all through the night. Then they had breakfast at 6.45. It’s a good job
we didn’t see them!
At a more reasonable hour we were watching rabbits in the
garden eating windfall pears. They must have been wild- tame hybrids as they
were all shapes and sizes and different colours. The dog doesn’t bother them
and they are so audacious they even hop over the owner’s foot. She does all she
can to keep them out of the flowers- wire fencing was everywhere but they get
in somehow.
I enjoyed breakfast with haggis surprisingly from a tin.
The referendum resulted in a “no”, which greatly relieved
our host as she felt Scotland would be better as part of the UK. She had stayed
up till 2am to hear the outcome.
We left at 9.20 with a clearer sky then yesterday and a
sparkling sea. There were still plenty of blackberries ( why don’t the locals
pick them?) and cycling beside the sea was refreshing and happily flatter with
just a couple of steep hills. There was plenty of bird life and a single seal.
There was a great heron with very distinctive markings, plenty of wagtails,
different duck species, swans with cygnets, red breasted merganser and diving
gannets.
We passed a school with what looked to have just 6 pupils in
the playground. Then we stopped at the Lighthouse Restaurant, Pirnmill ( no
sign of a lighthouse though)for a tea break and had a friendly chat with some
other holidaymakers while a small brook bubbled beside us. Most of today had
been peaceful with laid back drivers except for a delivery van which overtook
us on a hill. If the other driver hadn’t stopped there would have been a crash.
At Lochranza we stopped to look at the castle for free. It’s
a beautiful ruin with nooks and crannies to explore, right by the sea and it
belongs to Historic Scotland.
There was a campsite not too far from the castle with deer
around in little pockets and the cafe attached provided us with a soup lunch.
A mist developed and the wind was cool so we were glad of
the next hill which rose steeply for about 2 1/2 miles. There were deer on top
of the mountain and young ones gambolling lower down. Hot after the climb the descent gave us
welcome cool.
At Sannox we saw seals playing in the water waving flippers
and also lounging on the rocks.
A few miles down the road from corrie we came to signs for
Brodick Castle and being National Trust members we decided to visit. Parts of
it were built in the 13th,17th and 19th
centuries respectively. It was home to the Duke of Hamilton who added to it
using money from horse racing and gambling. It is a friendly and inviting
castle not austere. Visitors are invited to play on the grand piano and
informative guides tell them about the interesting artifacts like the dodo
claret bottle. The dungeon, surprisingly upstairs, is the oldest section. We
weren’t sure about the 80 odd stags heads that filled several walls.
The gardens were lovely in pinks and purples. The Bavarian
summerhouse has an interior decorated with pinecones. Near the cafe is an
impressive fuchsia hedge where we sat out with our tea. People said the
homemade cakes were good.
As we left the highland cows were making a terrific din but
we couldn’t see what was bothering them. We rode the tandem the way out for the
cars in the hopes of seeing red squirrels but not a glimpse. The cycleway then
went by the golf course towards the town.
The guesthouse was up a lane but still the views from our
window of the sea and mountains was fantastic, a proper panorama. We walked
back into town later for our evening meal and decided on A Taste of Arran. This
proved to be a good choice as Bob enjoyed his fish and chips while I had
salmon, mash with leeks and a plate of other fresh vegetables including
celeriac. Delicious!
We had cycled 35 miles so we had a quiet night watching TV.
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