Arran – The Glasgow Gallivanter

Arran – the walks

August 14, 2017August 21, 2017Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter63 Comments

Machrie Moor

The trail to Machrie Moor Stone Circles is an out-and-back walk of 4km. Before we got to the main event, we passed Moss Farm (above), the burial cairn of a powerful person who lived about 4,000 years ago, and Fingal’s Cauldron Seat (below), named after the legendary warrior Fhionn / Fingal.

We stepped through a gate just beyond this onto open moorland and the sight of five separate stone circles – the tallest standing stone is over 5m high.

Stone circles

Kilpatrick Preaching Cave

A coastal walk took us to the well-hidden Kilpatrick Preaching Cave. After the Highland Clearances in the 19th century, when the Earl of Arran evicted many of his tenants to make room for more sheep, local people showed their disapproval in the only way they could by rejecting the Earl’s choice of minister. The Preaching Cave provided a suitable meeting place for the congregation. A sad story, but a beautiful setting.

Kilpatrick Preaching Cave

Kilpatrick Point and Drumadoon Bay

String Road Viewpoint

Returning to Brodick on our last afternoon in Arran, we crossed the island via the String Road (B880) from which a short trail led to a beautiful viewpoint. Ayrshire was just visible on the horizon.

String Road Viewpoint

Anabel, Kenn, Valerie

Kenn, Valerie, John

And behind us were beautiful mountain panoramas.

The next morning, we took the ferry back to the mainland while hoping to return to Arran soon.

Linked to Jo’s Monday Walks – today she’s taking us to Bolton Abbey, and her cyber-companions are walking all over the world.

Arran – the castles

August 7, 2017July 29, 2017Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter62 Comments

With a couple of friends we rented an apartment in Arran over the May Day Bank Holiday. It was a long time since we’d been and it was their first visit – it was definitely a success, but, as with our earlier weekend in Galloway, the weather was a bit iffy. Still, we got out and about and there was plenty to see.

It was a disappointment to find that Brodick Castle is closed this year, presumably for maintenance. However, the gardens were open and we spent a whole morning wandering about.

Anabel, Val and Kenn

Brodick Castle Gardens

Brodick Castle

Brodick Castle Gardens

Bavarian Summerhouse

Brodick Castle Gardens

Blethering on a bench

Later that day, we went to Lochranza Castle, a 13th century ruin which can be visited free of charge. What a beautiful setting!

Lochranza Castle

Lochranza

Lochranza Castle

Lochranza

Lochranza Castle

Lochranza

Lochranza Castle

The following day, we had lunch at the Kildonan Hotel and took a short walk afterwards to see Kildonan Castle. This is also 13th century, though there’s much less of it left and it’s not accessible – it’s actually in someone’s garden! The modern standing stones at the hotel were interesting too.

Kildonan Hotel

Kildonan Castle

Next time: the walks.

Glasgow Gallivanting: May 17

May 31, 2017June 2, 2017Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter29 Comments

In the UK, May is bookended by Bank Holiday Weekends and we took full advantage of both. May 1st saw us on a ferry returning from Arran after spending time there with friends, and at the end of the month we had a couple of nights in Oban.

Full posts to follow! So what else has been happening?

Cousins

My cousin Tracy and her husband have just bought a new boat. We were able to inspect it before a family lunch at Kip Marina. Doesn’t she look delighted?

Tracy’s boat

We also had dinner with another of my cousins, Ian, and his wife Lynn. No photos were taken at that event, but here we are as kids on the back green of our grandparents’ tenement flat. That’s their kitchen window behind us. I think this is 1971, so I would be 14 and Ian 4. His wee brother and my younger sister are also there, and a small girl at the end who, I think, must have lived in the same building. I have no recollection of her at all.

Voice from the past

While I’m on a nostalgia theme, how about this? As some of you know, I administer a blog, It was always sunny, for my Mum who is writing the story of her life. When she came to the section about me starting school I included the picture above and was surprised recently to receive a comment from one of the other children, the boy fourth from the left in the front row. He’d Googled the name of the school and up this popped! We’ve been exchanging memories and trying to complete a list of all the names. Can’t find me? I’m fourth from the right in the back row.

Talking of things popping up, and in the blowing-my-own-trumpet department, I was touched and delighted to find my name in Update, the professional journal for librarians in the UK (third paragraph). One of the most satisfying aspects of my career was mentoring and encouraging younger librarians so it’s great to know it was appreciated. Thank you so much to Jennifer for mentioning me.

The Elephant Park

Elephant Park, Maryhill

Glasgow has many fine parks, and I’ve written about the major ones, such as the Botanic Gardens, many times. All over the city, however, you can find pocket-sized parks amidst the urban sprawl. Last year, these two concrete elephants near my home were sending out an SOS signal because redevelopment of an adjacent building put them under threat. When I passed by the other day they had obviously just been made-over (one still has its Wet Paint sign) so I’m hoping this means they have been reprieved.

The last bit

Four theatre / concert hall visits, three guided walks, a visit from my sister – I’m running out of time to write about everything this month, so I’ll quickly finish by returning to my programme of expanding your vocabulary with Scottish words! The Women’s Library guided walks that I’ve co-led have not been blessed with good weather – an understatement to say the least. Both guides and partcipants were drookit. If you can’t guess what that means from the pictures, click on the link! I have more walks coming up in June, so I’m hoping for better luck.

Louisina and Anabel

Philo, Anabel, Beverly and Louisina

So that was my May – how was yours?

I is for Inner Hebrides

April 10, 2014March 22, 2014Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter16 Comments

The Hebrides Image credit: Kelisi via Wikimedia — The Hebrides
Image credit: Kelisi via Wikimedia

The Hebrides is an archipelago off the west coast of Scotland (sometimes known as the Western Isles) and is divided into Inner and Outer (see map). There are 36 inhabited islands in the Inner Hebrides, of which I’ve visited a handful, and many more uninhabited. There are pictures below of:

Skye – The Quirang

Mull – the colourful houses of Tobermory which starred in the children’s TV series as Balamory. From Mull you can take boat trips to smaller islands such as Staffa, home to Fingal’s Cave of Mendelssohn’s overture fame, and the Treshnish Isles which are great for birdwatchers – see the puffin on Lunga, for example.

Islay – most famous for its multitude of distilleries, two of which are shown here. The Kildalton Cross is the only surviving complete Celtic cross in Scotland and dates from about 800 AD. I love that I’ve also got the mobile library in shot in Bowmore.

Arran – a stone circle on Machrie Moor.