Almost a year since the last trip, I went back to Millport – one of my favourite day trips by public transport from Glasgow. The sun and the day-trippers were out, and everything was looking good.
The Ritz Cafe was open and I got to enjoy a toastie in its magnificent Formica surroundings.
It is currently for sale – hope it finds a sympathetic owner.
The crazy golf course has had a makeover.
And the yarnbombing was spring-themed this time. It was another grand day out!
How to get there
The ferry (operated by Calmac) runs from Largs to Cumbrae regularly throughout the day. The crossing takes around 10 minutes. Millport is very bike-friendly so a lot of people cycle round the island – it’s easy to hire a bike there. If that’s not for you, a bus runs to Millport from the ferry slip. Trains between Glasgow and Largs run every hour or so. The journey takes around an hour.
Millport is the main (and only) town on Great Cumbrae, a small island off the west coast of Scotland. It’s one of the easiest Scottish islands to get to from Glasgow, and is great for a day trip. The ferry from Largs takes about 10 minutes and runs frequently, Millport is a short bus or bike ride from the slipway.
This trip was around the time of the Coronation and the decorations were out.
Crocodile Rock had been freshly painted.
It is also home to a fine crazy golf course. Everything was technicolour bright.
I was going over to visit the magnificent Ritz Cafe which was closed, but there were plenty of other sights to enjoy. The Cathedral of the Isles is the UK’s smallest working cathedral, and there’s lots of local history in Garrison House.
Ulva is another island off the coast of Mull. It’s community-owned with an interesting history. Much bigger than Iona, there is more to explore and if you fancy full day’s walk, Ulva is linked by bridge to Gometra, an island off an island, off an island, off an island.
Getting to Ulva is fun because you summon the ferry by sliding a cover across a wall facing the island, to display a red square. I’m pretty sure the ferryman can see who’s waiting anyway, but it’s fun to follow the procedure and feel all powerful when the little boat, that’s like something out of Thunderbirds, makes its way across the short stretch of water.
Sheila’s Cottage, close to the ferry tells the story of life on Ulva, in a traditional thatched cottage. It was closed for refurbishment when we visited but was suitably atmospheric from the outside.
There are no cars on Ulva. There are no paved roads to put them on. There are plenty of walks though. We did a shortish walk to see a church designed by Thomas Telford. I found it a bit of a trudge to be honest, possibly because it headed inland on rough tracks or perhaps I was just spoilt after a beautiful day on Iona.
Beside the ferry landing on Ulva, The Boathouse does cakes and meals and is a great place to watch the comings and goings on the water. For ferry times and some truly beautiful photos follow The Ulva Ferry on Facebook, or @theulvaferry on Instagram.
I had a little break in Mull, and went the long way round to get there. When you can explore new bits of Scotland and ride on new ferries, why not take a bit longer.
The trip from Glasgow, along the banks of Loch Lomond and through Glencoe was beautiful. Everything looked rugged and dramatic at this time of year, still with its winter coat on.
Instead of going to Oban and getting the ‘big’ ferry to Craignure, we got the smaller Corran Ferry that links the main part of the mainland to Morvern, Ardnamurchan and beyond. This is a tireless little car and passenger ferry run by Highland Council. Set up for speed and convenience it runs fairly constantly for most of the day, taking about 5 minutes to cross. Impressive.
The road to Ardnamurchan point was quiet and scenic, with some beautiful views over the water. Ardnamurchan Distillery is worth a look. Its dancing Scotsman mascot comes from an old Punch cartoon.
At the end of the road, Ardnamurchan Lighthouse sits on a headland, looking over the westernmost point of the British mainland. The Egyptian-style lighthouse is a real beauty, eclipsed from some angles by its fabulous bright red foghorn. There is a great book called The Foghorn’s Lament by Jennifer Lucy Allen that explains why foghorns are disappearing – it was a treat to see one in such magnificent condition.
Last leg of the journey was the ferry from Kilchoan on Ardnamurchan to the Isle of Mull. This takes 35 minutes and delivers you right into the centre of Tobermory, the main town. It’s a ‘turn up and go’ service that can’t be booked. We got lucky and turned up just in time to catch the last one.
Holy Isle is a small island in the Firth of Clyde, off the Isle of Arran – not to be confused with Holy Island in Northumberland. I have looked at it so many times from Lamlash and was determined to get there, even though it’s an epic journey by public transport of two trains, two ferries and a bus each way from Glasgow. In the end, it took almost a year for weather and tide times to align and I just caught the last sailing of the year.
The ferry is a small boat operated by Lamlash Cruises. Check their site for sailing times, these vary according to tides and other factors. The journey from Lamlash takes around 15 minutes and the view of Arran from the boat is worth the trip alone. Grant, the skipper, is very knowledgeable and gives visitors a good introduction to the island on arrival.
The whole island is owned by the same Buddhist community as Samye Ling. The main building is a monastery which is open for retreats but closed to day visitors, apart from the garden. There are only really two paths to take – a walk to the other end of the island either easily along the shore, or more strenuously over the top. It’s about 2 miles end-to-end and there’s a lot to take in along the way.
Getting around is simple as there are no roads and barely any people. There are some Christian sites like the cave of St Molaise, sitting alongside brightly painted rocks featuring Buddhist deities, and populations of wild Eriskay ponies, Saanen goats and Soay sheep. It took me around 3 hours to amble to the lighthouse and back. It’s not far but there’s a lot to look at.
There are also two lighthouses on the island. The Inner lighthouse is on a private part of the island, and the Outer or Pillar Rock Lighthouse is at the end of the public path where you can sit and enjoy a good view of the Firth of Clyde.
How to get to Holy Isle on public transport
Train from Glasgow Central to Ardrossan (Scotrail)
At the start of 2022, I planned to go to as many different islands on as many different ferries as I reasonably could. By September I felt like I was underachieving somewhat, so I went for three ferries in one day (no islands though), from Gourock to Dunoon (two ways) with a side-trip to Kilcreggan.
The first leg, Calmac’s passenger only Gourock-Dunoon ferry gets you to the heart of Dunoon in 25 minutes. Gourock ferry terminal is close to the station so it’s an easy day trip from Glasgow on public transport.
Dunoon is a slightly forlorn former holiday resort. I used to go there on holiday in the 1980s and forever associate it with rainy bank holidays where everything is shut. This was a better day, and I enjoyed wandering about the pier and trailing around the charity shops.
Instead of going back the same way I walked along to Hunter’s Quay to catch the car ferry to McInroy’s Point in Gourock, passing Puffin Rock on the way. This used to be called Jim Crow (it was painted like a crow) and I remember it as the highlight of any visit to Dunoon. It has been reimagined and repainted as Puffin Rock now and is part of a small but impressive bunch of brightly painted erratic boulders around this part of Scotland.
After that I was back in Gourock early enough to nip over to Kilcreggan on the Rosneath Peninsula – the passenger-only ferry leaves from the same terminal as the Gourock-Dunoon passenger ferry. This is a short and sweet ride, only 13 minutes. There is a small row of shops at Kilcreggan and a cafe where you can sit and watch the water where there are cruise ships, nuclear submarines, seabirds and dolphins.
This the main road on Jura that runs from the west coast to Ardlussa on the east. There isn’t a lot to see, but the wilderness is part of its charm. George Orwell wrote 1984 here, calling it an ‘un-gettable’ place.
What you can’t miss is ‘the Paps’ of Jura. These three mountains are visible for miles around, and make the island’s skyline easy to identify from any direction. Even though they are omnipresent, they are also strangely out of reach.
Jura is also famous for having more deer than people (around 7,000 deer v 200 people), so there’s always that.
Colonsay is a small island (population 125) in the Southern Hebrides (part of the Inner Hebrides) off the west coast of Scotland. The ferry runs daily from Oban, or from Islay twice a week in summer.
There is a bookshop, a microbrewery, two gin distilleries and Colonsay house and gardens (closed when we visited). It is also covered with beautiful quiet beaches and has its own species of bee.
We hung about on Colonsay Golf Course, which has a fantastic setting, like the Bunabhainneadar tennis course on Harris. It operates via an honesty box, and local rules allow “a free drop for balls disappearing into rabbit-holes or taken by the ravens”.
It was covered in relics of something or other and led down to a deserted bay.
After a trip to Oronsay (of which, more later) the last stop was something to eat at the excellent Colonsay Pantry before the beautiful journey back to Islay.
Piel Island – a tiny island in Cumbria off the coast of Barrow-in-Furness – is looking for a new ruler. For reasons that have become slightly hazy, the licensee of the Ship Inn, Piel’s only pub, is crowned the King or Queen of Piel.
The ‘coronation’ ceremony involves sitting on a throne and having beer poured over their head.
Piel is a tidal island, and can be reached by ferry from Roa (at times).
At low tide, it’s possible to walk across the sands (careful now).
For a small island, it punches above its weight with one substantial ruined castle, one thriving pub and one row of very solid-looking houses.
When we visited, there was a great display in the Ship Inn, full of historical artefacts.
If you like to get away from it all, it might be worth a shot.
