Introduction to Arran, Janice and Murray, and the 5 Ferries

Janice and I first met when we took part in a Bangkok to Singapore ride in January 2013.  We all got to know each other very well over the 14 days and 1250 miles, and hoped we would meet up again. Janice talked about her home island of Arran in Scotland, and  mentioned the 5 Ferries cycle, which I thought sounded really interesting and fun.  In  August 2013, I had the opportunity to visit Scotland, to meet up with Janice again, and to meet Janice's husband, Murray. We did the 5 Ferries, and also cycled round their lovely island. I had such a wonderful welcome and we shared our passion for cycling.  Another thing we also had in common is that we were used to cycling up hills regularly, me in Hong Kong and Janice of course on Arran.

I hope you enjoy reading about my visit to this lovely part of the world.

Janice and Murray at the top of the String, on Arran

The 5 Ferries route

The 5 Ferries is a cycle ride starting in Brodick on the Isle of Arran and using 5 ferries to do a clockwise circular tour of the Kyles of Bute, and the Firth of Clyde. It works well starting in Brodick because the ferry schedules enable you to complete the 74 miles (118 Kms) of cycling in one day. 

Total Distance travelled : 100 miles

All the ferries are operated by Caledonian MacBrayne, whose ships seem omnipresent in the Western Isles of Scotland.  Having also done  a lot of sailing in the Western Isles over the last few years, I have seen so many different types of CalMac ferry, with their smart blue and white hulls, and distinct red funnels.  There are 29 in the fleet, and I have enjoyed coming across new ones as I have sailed and cycled in the area.   

There is a schoolboy saying (I read):

"The Lord owns the earth
In all it contains
except the Western Isles
and that is MacBraynes"

The route and schedule we followed:
Cycle 1: Brodick to Lochranza (Isle of Arran) - 15 miles/24Kms
Ferry 1: 08:15 Lochranza to Claonig (across Kilbrannan Sound) "Loch Tarbert"
Cycle 2:  Claonig to Tarbert (on the Mull of Kintyre) - 11.5 miles/18 Kms
Ferry 2: 10:15 Tarbert to Portavadie (across Loch Fyne) "Isle of Cumbrae"
Cycle 3: Portavadie to Colintraive (on the Cowal Peninsula) 19.15 miles/31 Kms
Ferry 3: 13:00 Colintraive to Rhubodach (across the Kyles of Bute) "Loch Dunvegan"
Cycle 4: Rhubodach to Rothesay 8.5 miles/14 Kms (on the Isle of Bute)
Ferry 4: 14:00 Rothesay to Weymss Bay (across the Firth of Clyde) "MV Bute"
Cycle 5: Weymss Bay to Ardrossan 19 miles / 30 Kms along the Ayrshire coast; 
Ferry 5: 18:00 Ardrossan to Brodick (across the Firth of Clyde) "Caledonian Isles"

Leg 1: Brodick to Lochranza (on Isle of Arran)

For Leg 1 we set of at 6.45 from Janice's home in Brodick, headed through the village and on the road round the north side of Brodick bay. It was quite flat for the first 8 miles, then we climbed the Corrie Hill, before hitting the big climb called the Bogaille.   For over 2 miles the road climbed 500 feet through desolate open moorland, before giving us a nice 3 miles descent into Lochranza.    

LEG 1: Brodick to Lochranza: 15.5 miles (25 Kms); 1 hour 6 minutes moving time; 14.1 mph (22.6 Km/h); Total ascent 700ft/216m

06:45 Leaving Brodick for the 5 Ferries tour guided by Janice, passing the Old Post Office where Janice
was the Postmistress. Goatfell in the distance is the highest point on Arran (2866ft/ 873m)

Going up and over the Bogaille (pronounced Bogally) - 200m/650ft high

Arrive Lochranza 

0815 Ferry 1: Lochranza to Claonig

Ferry 1

Leg 2: 08:48 Claonig to Tarbert (on Mull of Kintyre)

Leg 2: A short ride of just 11 miles.  A 450 ft climb over the first 3 miles to greet us off the ferry, then down again to the half way point. There we joined the main road that runs all the way the length of the Mull of Kintyre from Campbeltown in the south to Lochgilphead in the north.  We arrived in Tarbert in good time, and had a coffee on the Quayside before boarding the ferry.

Leg 2: on the Mull of Kintyre from Claonig to Tarbert 11.4 miles (18.4 Kms); 56 minutes moving time; Average speed 12.2 miles per hour (20 km/h); Vertical Climb 656 feet (200m) nearly all in the first 3 miles

Ferry 1 arrived at Claonig; Arran across the water

Whoops - didn't photograph anything in between! too busy with that climb….so hey presto……here we are at the

End of Leg 2: Tarbert

Ferry 2 leaving Tarbert

Ferry 2 - plenty of space

Leg 3: Portavadie to Colintraive (on Cowal Peninsula)

Leg 3 was our longest leg at 19 miles.  It was probably the most varied countryside as we passed through lovely lush meadows and forested areas, then dropped down to the sea at Tighnabruaich, then a stiff 4 mile climb up to a great vantage point where the Kyles of Butes were spread out before us. We then had to divert north to go round the top of Loch Riddon before heading south again over a smaller hill to Colintraive.

Leg 3: on the Cowal Peninsula from Portavadie to Colintraive 19.2 miles (31 Kms); 1 hour 34 minutes moving time;  Average speed 12.2 miles per hour (19.5 km/h); Vertical Climb 1604 feet (493m)

Arrived at Portavadie after crossing Loch Fyne….and the sun has come out; look at the blue sky!

Between Portavadie and Tighnabruaich

Lovely quiet roads bordered by fields, forest and gorse bushes

Resting at Tighnabruaich in the sunshine

Lovely sunny Tighnabruaich, by the Kyles of Bute

View of the Kyles of Bute from the top of the 4 mile climb; with Isle of Bute on the right, and the middle part of the Cowal Peninsula on the left; our next ferry crossing is in the narrow channel in between

The hardy Scot - sleeveless!

The Asian expat - keep those sleeves on! But how the weather changes - it was blue sky an hour ago

Ferry 3: 13:00 Colintraive (Cowal Pensinsula) to Rhubodach (on Isle of Bute); quite a big ferry for a 3 minute journey, or was it 5?

Leg 4: Rhubodach to Rothesay (on the Isle of Bute)

Leg 4: the shortest and flattest leg of the ride. Flat really. Following the sea all the way along the east side of the Isle of Bute. I seem to remember though that there was a bit of a headwind so this slowed us down.  

Leg 4: on the Isle of Bute from Rhubodach to Rothesay 8.4 miles (13.4 Kms); 37 minutes moving time Average speed 13.7 miles per hour (22 Km/h); Vertical Climb 171 feet (52m)

Janice blasts it down the Kyles of Bute

The only 'hill' on this very flat section - deserted roads -
where is everybody?

Our ship awaits us as we approach the town of Rothesay

The Motor Vessel (MV) Bute - a bit of a brute 

Ferry 4: 14:00 Rothesay (Isle of Bute) to Weymss Bay (in Ayrshire on Scottish mainland)

Leg 5: Weymss Bay to Ardrossan (Ayrshire Coast)

Leg 5 took us down the Ayrshire Coast through Largs.  Flat except for a couple of small hills.  It is a main road so not so relaxing although it wasn't too busy.

Leg 5: on the Ayrshire Coast from Weymss Bay to Ardrossan 19 miles (30 Kms); 1 hour 17 minutes moving time; Average speed 14.8 miles per hour (24km/h); Vertical Climb 394 feet (121m)

Nardini's Ice Cream Parlour in Largs, Art Deco style, first opened in 1935

View of Arran from Ardrossan - nearly home

Ferry 5: 18:00 Ardrossan back to Brodick - Job done

Arriving in Arran - Goatsfell visible

2 Cycle rides on Arran

9th August 2013

I also did a couple of great cycles on Arran as well as the 5 ferries.  The Ross and south loop on my own, and the west coast and the "String" with Janice and Murray.

31 miles ; 2 hours 13 minutes ; 14 miles per hour

Holy Isle, looking across from Lamlash

The climb over the Ross - climbs to 800 feet (250m) above sea level

Heading west over the middle of the Island on the Ross

Looking along the south coast towards the Ayrshire Coast - the little island of Pladda can be seen

Kildonan - on the South side of Arran - the Island of Pladda, and in the far distance Ailsa Craig, can be seen

Holy Isle as seen from Whiting Bay, on the South East corner of Arran

The second ride was across the String to Blackwaterfoot, along the west coast to Machrie, and back to Brodick; around 30 miles in total - my iPhone battery ran dry at 19 miles!

Janice and Murray at the top of the String after the climb from Blackwaterfoot on the west coast

Isle of Eigg, Scotland

11 August 2013

As part of my sailing holiday in Scotland, I did a day trip by boat from Arisaig to the Isle of Eigg, and the bonus was I could hire a slightly ropey mountain bike to explore the island.  The weather was pretty gloomy. I suppose by August in Scotland you don't expect a hot summer, and it started raining very heavily half way through the ride, so I had to don waterproofs which I fortunately had. But you forget about these things afterwards, especially when there is such a good cafe here, and the scenery is wild and desolate.

13 Miles along a track south of the Sgurr Mountain to start, then I followed the only road to the North of the Island; there were no doubt more tracks to explore if I had had the time

Very steep track leaving Galmisdale, quite rough in places, and quite a few ups and downs along the way

Galmisdale Bay at Southern end; you can see the Sgurr from a long way away

Still smiling despite the pouring rain;
on the ro-ro ferry jetty

View of Galmisdale with cafe and bike hire hut - had to wait for the  bike man to come down from his house; there is also a shop where I saw some Germans buying beer and Drambuie before their bike ride

The Sgurr - you can climb it from the other side

Having left Galmisdale, I climbed a very steep track and then found this track along the south side of the Sgurr

Not ridden a mountain bike for ages - getting used to riding across rough ground; glad I was fit

Nice tracks for a mile or two but it became impassable eventually as I headed west

Isle of Muck, from Eigg

The track once I turned northwards along the spine of the Island to join the 'main' road

Heading up to Cleadale, a little hamlet where the road stops - but for the rain and lack of time, I would have continued on the track further north

Some Italians came to the Island, and never left (?)

Bay of Laig beach on the west coast, steep rough path from the 'main' road to get here

Bay of Laig Beach with Isle of Rhum behind in the cloud

Heading back south again - is that the mainland in the distance?

Back in the cafe in Galmisdale - much appreciated after the rain and cold

Hungry work is cycling - very tasty fish cakes and salad