Campbeltown, Mull of Kintyre, Southend, and Carradale.

Friday 11 May - a poor weather day

We had a brighter morning than expected. I did the short walk to Carradale harbour, along the shore and up the hill before breakfast. Not my usual routine!

The old water wheel - Carradale village hall has been converted from the water mill.

From an information board nearby - “Little is known about the early history of the mill building. it was used by the Paterson family for threshing oats until the Mitchisons who bought Carradale House and lands from the Forestry Commission in 1939 decided to convert the building into a village hall."

We drove into Campbeltown, enjoying the views this time, as the mist had lifted. 

We did the town trail more or less, following a leaflet found in the cottage, and ended up with a coffee in the Wee Picture House as the rain came down heavier. A little essential shopping completed the excursion.

Saturday 12 May - Mull of Kintyre 

This was one of those beautiful days that western Scotland enchants us with. . We set off at 10 to drive to the Mull of Kintyre lighthouse car park. The last seven miles or so are a single track road, and the road down to the lighthouse is private. You have to walk.

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The car park is at about 1000 ft and the lighthouse is almost at sea level - the distance is a mile and a bit. 

A first view of the lighthouse from the road

We went up to look at the Chinook crash memorial from 1994. 

Then down to the lighthouse, where we had coffee from our flask, and sketched a bit. There were great views across to the coast of Northern Ireland, about 12 miles away, and further north along the coast of Kintyre.

Some people had obviously got permission to come down the easy way, in a land rover.

It turned out that they were filming for the BBC, about "a very old man who walks"...

No lift up to the car park for us though. Quite a climb.

and Southend

Not the one in Essex, but the southernmost point of Kintyre, south of Campbeltown, We had some lunch on picnic table overlooking the beach.

Afterwards we parked at Keil cemetery, where we saw the film crew again.

Along the rocky shore seals were basking and oystercatchers whistling.

Beyond this are caves with evidence of occupation going back to 2500 BC, and also St Columba's Well and footprints.

 He is supposed to have landed here in 563 AD. 

Further on is another beautiful almost deserted beach. 

We stopped in Campbeltown for an excellent Indian meal at the Taj Mahal, before driving back to Carradale.

To round off this rather lovely day we walked round Carradale harbour and up the back way in the evening light.

8th May - Carradale Bay, and the Point

On Tuesday May 8th the weather was not looking inviting. The view from the cottage conservatory was limited by cloud and mist.

By early afternoon it was lifting and we thought a stroll down to the bay and round to Carradale Point was in order. 

We walked a little way along the road in the direction of the main road, and took the track leading down to Port-Righ and the Bay. We turned right away from the Port-Righ path and walked across the wide sandy beach.

The sky was showing more blue by now, as we walked as far as the creek at Waterfoot.

We retraced our steps back along the shoreline, and at the far end turned right along the path towards Carradale Point. There are the remains of a vitrified fort here, though we saw no evidence.

Photographer at work

Ailsa Craig on the horizon, just visible

This short stretch was a bit rough in places, but the views and surroundings were worth the effort. Loads of wild flowers again.

We rounded off the day with an ice cream from a local hotel.

May 7th - 10th Carradale, Kintyre

Part 1 - the journey across

We crossed to Kintyre peninsula by taking the ferry from Ardrossan to Brodick on the Isle of Arran.

Before long the east of the the island was basking in the sun, and we drove a short distance south to a car park with a terrific view of Arran's hills, including the highest, Goatfell.

Back into Brodick for the essential coffee, before crossing the island to Blackwaterfoot, and finding more cloud.

Finally we headed north to Lochranza,  The Sandwich Station provided an excellent lunch before the short ferry crossing to Claonaig, on the eastern side of Kintyre. 

 The drive along the single track road south to Carradale took about forty minutes.
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Part 2 - Deer Hill

Monday 7th May, afternoon.

https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/argyll/deer-hill.shtml

We followed the instructions given on the link above, with variations.
The first time I walked the route in reverse, and although the top (230 Meters high) was clear the views were not as good as promised. It had been a rainy morning and the clouds were low. 

Thursday 10th May
We walked up the hill again on a much clearer day. In fact we walked up it twice, combining this with a walk around the lower part of the country park. This made a very good walk of just over ten miles, with about 1400 feet of climbing.

And we had the views - of Carradale Bay, of Arran, of Ailsa Craig and beyond.

Looking back over Carradale Bay

Arran across the water

Ailsa Craig - the rock on the horizon

May 3rd and 4th - Alston, Cumbria

We stayed in a cottage just outside one of the two towns whose claim to fame is the title of "the highest market town in England." Both sit at about 1000 feet above sea level. Both towns are pleasant places, though very different.  The other one is Buxton, in Derbyshire.

Day 1 - Alston

On our first day we simply followed the Pennine Way south from our base at Harbut Law.  A short walk took us into the town, where we filled in the time drinking coffee, drawing and exploring a little, as well as listening to the odd local resident complaining about the massive road works caused by a water main replacement. The consequences for the tourist trade over two bank holidays could be quite considerable.

Day Two - Natrass Gill
We followed the instructions from a leaflet at Harbut Law. 

The route starts between the Swan's Head pub and the old Methodist chapel, and heads south along a "loaning" or walled walkway.

We head south past the old workhouse and Fairhill Farm, then pass Annat Walls. 

The track becomes a footpath and leads to Nattrass Gill, 

a stream with a waterfall, which flows down into the South Tyne.

We cross the footbridge and walk up and over a stile out of the trees. This area once belonged to an American who bult his dream house at High Nest, and even had a boating lake at one time.

We cross the fields, and have a coffee-pause.

We join the road by a stone stile, and turn left, then right at some sheep pens. Cross Fell can be seen from here. We follow the road all the way to Bleagate, where we turn north and  follow the Pennine Way into Alston, with the South Tyne on our left.
 A stop in lston for some lunch, and to pick up some food for tonight, then we continue along the Pennine Way to Harbut Law.
This second walk was getting on for 8 miles in all.

During our stay at Alston we heard and saw curlews and lapwings, nd also heard our fist cuckoo of the year.