The Arran Adventure

[NOTE: You can find pictures of the trip by clicking the "My Gallery" link on the right, and opening the album "The Isle of Arran, 1st Attempt."]

Yesterday, ten of us took a mini-vacation on the Isle of Arran. It is called Scotland in Miniature, because its geology is analogous to the Scottish mainland. We'd heard it was amazingly beautiful, there were plenty of old forts and castles, and it was great for cycling. Glaswegians like to holiday there.

Train to Androssen, ferry to Brodick. Rented cycles, said we'd have them back by 6:45 so we could make the last ferry at 7:20, and went off for our first leg, a cycle path around Brodick Castle. Which turned out, like everything on the island, to be up a hill. But we went up, most walking their cycles, and were nearing the top of the route, when we find two disturbing things. One was a campfire, still burning, that was not contained, and right next to more flammable wood. There were floor-mats and plastic bottles and plastic tarps in the fire too. So we put stones around it, threw dirt on it, generally tried to contain it. We also found the trail we thought we wanted was closed for forest work. So we had to turn right back around. The sides of the path (really a dirt road) were lined with ripe blackberries (as was every road on the island), so I munched on those. No one else was interested.

Stopped at the beach, ate lunch. I found a giant flat scallop shell. Bryan found a big piece of interesting pottery. Watched the seals. Although they never really moved.

The choices were north, where it was scenic but hilly, and south, where it was flatter and had interesting sites. There's also supposed to be a cave where good geocaching is to be found, and the ruins of a 13th century castle. We made those our goals.

Turns out the south is hilly too. And though places may be only a couple miles apart, it still took forever to cycle between them. On the first hill outside Brodick, we lost two of our group. the gave up and returned to Brodick. And had a good time. The rest of us pushed on to Lamlash, where we rested, had ice cream. I found a genuine Breton Shirt that I really wanted, but was wicked expensive. We lost two more there. I think they took the ferry to the Holy Island. Up and over another giant hill, to Whiting Bay. Lost two more soon after. So the four of us pushed on, thinking that we had struggled this far, we weren't going to turn back till we had seen the castle.

There were no signs for the castle. No signs for the town, Kildonan, the castle was in. Fortunately someone was there to point the way to town for me, but I sped right past the castle. But I asked someone else and so turned around. The four of us were utterly exhausted. It was nearly 5:00, and there was no way we could make it to Brodick in an hour and  forty-five minutes - it had taken us about two hours of riding to get to Kildonan, and by this time we were shattered. And we had no cell phone reception.

There was a sign for a B+B. So we went down the path, knocked, and were invited inside for tea and biscuits and crackers and cheese by the nicest old woman, the proprietor of No2 Coastguard House. We called the bike place from there, they could pick the bikes up, for a fee. The woman knew the bus schedule, so we could take the bus back in time for the ferry. She told us stories, offered us to stay for the night for whatever price we named. She was a portrait artist, and showed us her work.

It was wonderful. We got back to the ferry in time, ate a huge dinner. And some of us are going back soon, finding the cave, staying overnight at the B+B, and traveling by bus. No more cycles.