#wemyss bay

[scots-gallivanter]

TWENTY

I’ll sing of a river I’m happy beside

The song that I sing is a song of the Clyde

Of all Scottish rivers, it’s dearest to me

It flows from Leadhills all the way to the sea

KENNETH MCKELLAR, The Song of the Clyde

SCOTLAND HAS SOME mesmerising scenery, most famously in the Highlands and Islands: panoramas that move something inside you. It’s a feather in the cap of the Firth of Clyde, therefore, that in 2022 Glasgow to Largs was the only Scottish route to feature in the UK’s top 10 most scenic bus journeys, as voted by SunLife customers. The ‘Clyde Flyer’ came third in Britain. It runs regularly through Greenock, Gourock and Wemyss Bay en route to Largs.

The views you enjoy to the north and the west, to Arran, the Cumbraes, the Cowal peninsula and the Kyles of Bute, are indeed phenomenal – alpine in grandeur. The Gazetteer of Scotland (1847) declared: ‘No parish in the west of Scotland, and few in the Highlands, can surpass Largs in the beauty and romance of the landscape which stretches along its own area, or is hung out within view of both its uplands and its plains.’

In his 2013 guidebook, Gourock to Largs Coast Through Time, Bill Clark writes: ‘…the distance from Gourock’s eastern boundary at Cardwell Bay to the ‘Pencil’ memorial just south of Largs, is a mere 16 miles. The road that tracks the land’s edge between these two points, however, allows the traveller to experience one of the finest scenic journeys in the land.’ (The Pencil monument was erected in 1912 to commemorate the Battle of Largs in 1263, in which Scotland repelled a Viking invasion.).

These sublime views, of course, are what discerning daytrippers have always seen as they sail ‘doon the watter’, that age-old practice of travelling to Rothesay, Dunoon, Millport, Largs, Girvan, Saltcoats and other coastal resorts during Glasgow Fair holidays. Following the coronavirus pandemic, marketeers have americanised such trips around the Clyde coast as ‘staycations’.

Largs once hosted a huge annual horse and cattle sale to celebrate St Colm; and it attracted thousands of farmers and crofters from all over Scotland. There was no pier, only a jetty for landing passengers. The beasts were thrown overboard to sink or swim ashore. Travel writer John Lettice observed that the fair continued for several days. The vast concourse of people, who flocked there on foot, on horseback, in carriages, and in boats, almost covered the plain next to the sea:

‘All was movement, animation, clamour and din; and to have regarded this motley, and tumultuous scene in undisturbed quiet, from some of the neighbouring heights, must have been highly gratifying to a curious, or contemplative mind.’

As campsites were few and far between in the Largs area we pitched tent next to a busy flyover, near the shore and next to a couple of campervans from which Bon Jovi competed with The Carpenters into the small hours. In the morning a woman out walking her two Snautzers apologised for waking us up but we were already up with the larks. We were unable to use the toilets at the yachting club 50 yards off as a special code was required to access them and their undoubtedly hot showers.

TWENTY-ONE

The coast at this place, as it is with a few exceptions along the whole course of the Frith, is bounded at a short distance back from the shore with a range of hills, sometimes rising in gentle slopes, and at other times in abrupt rocky precipices, from which is to be had a continued succession of beautiful and varied views.

JOHN LEIGHTON, Select Views on the River Clyde (1830)

THE CLYDE Flier bus takes us past sheer sandstone rocks, honed and honeycombed on their well-wooded heights, out of whose crevices gnarled trees thrive. On the other side are the fairytale landscapes of the firth. We alight from the bus for the boat to Bute in an architectural theme park. With its Georgian-style timber frontage, its Chinese pagodas, and turrets; its Queen-Anne-style Italianate clock tower, and its soothing curved design, Wemyss Bay railway station is a glorious A-listed building. It has a pleasing feel, thanks to a group of volunteers who rescued it from dereliction. Now a vibrant place with a colourful community garden, book shop, museum, and multiple hanging baskets, this miracle of glass and metal architecture and engineering won the World Cup of Stations cup in 2023. It is a masterpiece from the golden age of rail, with a rare curving walkway that takes you down along a winding wood and glass ‘tunnel’ to the old steamboat terminal.

You get the notion that Wemyss Bay folk are rightly very proud of their station, but there are several other architectural wonders in the area that have not been so lucky. Beneath one of the picturesque precipices stood Ferncliff, a splendid villa built in 1851 that, along with the similar homes of very wealthy businessmen, earned Wemyss Bay the nickname New Glasgow. It was the home of the Danish consul in the 1870s and, in its heyday, was called Seaside Heights. It became the Rothmar Hotel in 1924; a convalescent home for miners in the 1940s; and a ‘Christian guest house and conference centre’, a Baptist church and then an evangelical centre from the 1970s until the 1990s. One of its rooms was known as ‘The Prime Minister’s Room’ after Clement Attlee stayed there. It was demolished in 2001 to make way for flats.

Kelly House was another country house not far from the station. Enriched by the slave trade in the West Indies, John Wallace, a distant relative of William Wallace, bought the ‘Kelly Estate’ in 1792, and built a gothic mansion with tall chimneys, ornate turrets and sprawling landscaped gardens. An earlier building, Kelly Castle, had burned to the ground in 1740.

Wallace’s son and heir, Robert, who became MP for Greenock, had ambitious plans for a marine village containing 200 luxury villas; a hotel, a school; three churches, terraced walks with a fountain and grass promenade; a harbour and quay for steamboats; a curling pond, a bowling green; heated baths, and a reading room and billiards room. However, he went bankrupt after slavery was abolished. In 1871 the estate came into the hands of James Young, the inventor of paraffin. Young was a friend of David Livingstone, the explorer, and he built a replica of his African mud hut in the grounds. It is long gone.

The house, revamped in the 1880s after Young’s death, was destroyed by arson in 1913 and the site was cleared during the war, when the Forces moved to the area to train for the invasion of Sicily. There is speculation the fire was the work of suffragettes unhappy with the house’s association with the slave trade, but no culprit was ever charged. It is now the site of a caravan park.

Castle Wemyss was the village’s pride and joy, a fascinating place with rare sea views, built by developer Charles Wilsone Broun in 1850. He also built 32 villas nearby, only one of which (Mansfield) remains.

The Cunard tycoon, Sir John Burns, later Baron Inverclyde, bought Castle Wemyss in 1860. It had a badminton court, a pier, greenhouses, Roman baths, and a monk’s cell. It was of great historical value as a fashionable destination for V.I.P.s, among them Henry Morton Stanley, U.S. General Sherman, Lord Shaftesbury, Anthony Trollope, Peter II of Yugoslavia, Emperor Haile Selassie, and various members of the royal family.

Trollope wrote some of his novel Barchester Towers during one of his stays, and it inspired him to write of Portray Castle in his book The Eustace Diamonds.

The fourth and last baron was renowned for his parties, some of which according to local gossip, included midnight ‘skinny dipping’. He was briefly married to a daughter of the millionaire owner of the Sainsbury chain. Alas, however, wealth would appear to be transitory. He died in 1957, childless; and his heirs couldn’t afford to maintain the estate. His title came to an end. The estate went to a developer, and Inverkip Power Station was built on part of the grounds. The castle itself crumbled, and the roof was ripped off to avoid housing rates. It was bulldozed in 1984, and a housing estate was built on the site. A flight of steps and a flagpole are all that remains of a priceless and elegant mansion, and gardens likened (in a biography of George Burns) to the Babylonian gardens of Nebuchadnezzar. The powers that were even removed an age-old monkey puzzle tree that stood at the entrance to the drive (‘for safety reasons’).

I had a look in Wemyss Bay station bookshop for anything by a writer who spent her last years in nearby Skelmorlie, and who set almost half of her many children’s books along the Clyde coast. Dorita Fairlie Bruce’s work was incredibly popular from the 1920s to the 1940s. In her Springdale series she renamed Ayrshire, Brigshire, and called Largs, Redchurch.

I pick up a copy of The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists instead, bringing my tally to four of them; I have a peculiar habit of giving them away.

I walk around the station waiting for the next boat and come across the bronze statue of a boy. There’s a far-fetched story that Wemyss Bay was named after an 18th-century boatman called Bobby Wemyss. It seems unlikely but it didn’t stop marketing folk calling the statue Bobby. It stands in the station for the world to see – without the mask that was placed on its face during COVID.

 

[bletheringskite]

Glasgow Memories  Gourock Wemyss Bay Dunoon Rothesay  Rouken glen

How's aboot gaun tae Gourock , takin the train tae Wemyss Bay or even headin doon the watter fur a wee jaunt in days of yor when big hats wir a must huv fashion item ,beachwer wis made fae jaggy Tweed an sensible shoes wir yased fur paddlin insteed eh flippers ?

[scotianostra]

Wemmys Bay Train Station.

The Category A listed railway station opened in 1865, but the station was completely rebuilt in 1903 to accommodate the large number of passengers.

A key feature of the design is use of curves to ease the flow of passengers. The same principle was applied at Glasgow Central station, which was rebuilt about the same time.

The pier was designed so that several queues for the steamers could be accommodated, with different queues for different destinations. Although the ferry now only goes to Rothesay, Wemyss Bay used to have regular sailings to Largs and Millport, as well as day trips further afield.

One of the seats on the concourse, with an appropriate plaque on it, is an original Caledonian Railway seat, as would have been used when the station was new. It was obtained by the Friends of Wemyss Station when it became surplus to requirements at the National Railway Museum. It was received as withdrawn from use by British Rail, covered in many layers of paint and had to be professionally restored. I will have to have a wee look for it on my next visit.

[kiteknots]

Big pals // Wemyss Bay

[notheroic]

I can only post 10 photos at a time so here’s my journey and arrival into Bute yesterday.

I’ve been watching Island Crossings on BBC and learned on that that I can get a ferry from Wemyss Bay to Rothesay. Wemyss Bay is on the Paisley line so it was super easy to get to! Definitely makes it something I’ll do more often.

The boat trip over was gorgeous, stunning weather and calm seas. Stupendous views too. Scotland is so beatiful.

Had a gorgeous lunch at a diner. Loads of food and it was lovely.

[bikepackinguk]

Day Fifty-six

Eight weeks in!

After a very rainy night and morning, my tossing and turning in the tent allowed aome water to ingress, so it was a damp start to the day. After waiting out the morning's rains, a few bits were strapped onto the bike to allow them to dry over the day, then we're off once more.

Out from the trees and back onto the road, it's a bumpy ride mostly downhill to see the sun shining over Holy Loch by Sandbank, followed by a nice easy cruise along the waterside to the ferry terminal at Dunoon.

Perfectly timed to buy a ticket and roll straight onto the ferry, it's the last one I'll be taking in a while, and I'm granted a lovely sunny sky to enjoy the short journey over to Gourock.

Onto the coast west of Glasgow, I get something I haven't had in weeks - long, long stretch of gloriously flat coastal riding. Now the day truly begins!

Here is also a salient lesson in not relying too heavily on GPS navigation when cycling. Google continually suggested I turn off the A78 and head up some steep hills to avoid the traffic, as it was unaware of the frequent off-traffic cycle paths alongside the road.

Onwards! The cycle paths continue until a little past Inverkip, where the road is rejoined for a while. Whilst the traffic is quite heavy, the flatter terrain means good speed is made, and the views over the water to my right make for a good backdrop.

Past Wemyss Bay there's a big traffic jam queueing for the ferry over to Bute, which I can sail past on the pavement and following this the road traffic lightens significantly.

It's some nice miles along the water's edge from here and I set an easy pace for myself. After weeks of punishing hills, this is a great payoff for me.

Rolling into Largs around lunchtime, I enjoy a good rest and coffee by the Pencil Monument, along another great stretch of trails off the roads and around the sea.

There's aome great trails here that even when close to to busy major road are nice and peaceful due to the treelines around, but eventually we head back up and are riding back alongside the traffic. The path surfacing is a bit sketchy in places, and I rejoin the road at times without any stress to enjoy the speed.

Further south, I swing west to roll around the coastline past Hunterston nuclear power plant, and take in a short stretch of offroad trail past the hills to see Portencross Castle and enjoy a nice sit by the water's edge.

Back up to the road we go, and it's more glorious flat-ish riding down past Saltcoats, with Arran just visible in the distance as the skies get greyer and greyer and the winds begin to pick up once more.

The cycle paths continue around the south side of Kilwinning, with some lovely rides through parks and forested areas around the banks of the River Garnock.

It's hitting evening here and a nicely sheltered patch of forest is an opportune spot to rustle up some dinner. I'm back in more populated areas now with more plentiful opportunities to resupply, so I have less need to keep bigger stocks of food on me. Eating up the weight being carried is no bad thing.

The rains have been starting to spray a little by now, and a check of the forecast shows heavy rains imminently on their way and continuing well into the small hours, so it's probably a good idea to shelter up. And the patch of woodland by the river I've just had dinner at is absolutely ideal.

So, tent is up, a good lie down with a full belly is being had to the background of the rains coming down.

An earlier finish today than many, but this has been an excellent day for both the legs and morale. It's not only been a long time since I had a good break from the climbs, but also many weeks since I had some good riding without having to deal with traffic, which is always far more enjoyable.

Roll on tomorrow for more!

[seabreeze2022]

2023 Bahama Cruise, Part 17. April 8. Wemyss, Long Island. (Sharie and James Knowles).

This was our night out on the island. A famous restaurant on the beach is Chez Pierre. A one man Chef restaurant from Montreal. He is notorious for being upset, if you don’t have a reservation and drop in. Even worse is being late for your reservation. It turns out this Island Soup Nazi (Seinfeld episode) has a great reason. He can only cook so fast and staggers the customers out. Nancy called and took the earliest time slot available. We have been anchored in a beautiful sandy beach cove, just in front of a round yellow house for two days. Nancy paddle boarded around the first day. Then we both got in the dinghy and went around the entire shore line, passing the yellow round house multiple times.

We were trying to get to an old plantation which we could see the only remaining chimney above the tree line. We stopped to asked directions from a guy working in front of his house. Turns out he moved here from Ramrod key in the florida Keys. We were unable to get to the ruins, but enjoyed walking the beach.

We pulled anchor and motored around to Millers Bay, just south of us. Anchoring in the bay directly in front of the French restaurant. We got dressed up and dinghied in to the shore in plenty of time for our reservation. Don’t want to be kicked out, for being late.

We were 20 minutes early and only the Chef and the beach dog were there. Chef was mad for us being early. Actually it is all an act. He was wearing a classic white T shirt and shorts, very island casual. He explained the rules. We were to mix our own drinks behind the bar, (see photo above). Beers were in a refrigerator around the corner. Which is what I homed in on. Keep track of our drinks. “Mind your P’s and Q’s” was a saying in the day. Meaning know how many pints and quarts you drank at the tavern, so you pay for the proper amount.

The next shift of customers came in. Two older couples, Nancy got to talking to them and the conversations continued off and on. Turns out we had been anchored directly off of their round yellow house for two days. They said, nobody ever anchors there! We received an invite to come visit.

We were able to finish our dinner and dinghy back to the boat prior to sunset. Which is why I wanted the early reservation. The sun set as we motored around Whale Head point back to our previous anchorage.

This is Sharie and James Knowles, who invited us into their house and shared many a story with us. They returned back twenty years ago, to the island of his ancestors. The Knowles here owned 2,000 acres. First living in a tent high in the middle of the island. Tried raising sheep. Actually flew 3 sheep in on Bahamas Air to improve the blood line.

Above they are holding a large wooden pestal. The large tree trunk mortar was out side under a tree. These were used by his relatives only decades ago. She was grinning ear to ear, when she casually handed the pestal to me. As soon as I hefted it up, I knew what it was made of. Lignum Vitae! It must have weighed twenty pounds. So you can see why it sinks in water.

Their passion is traipsing around the island at old plantations and caves looking for artifacts. They have an extensive collection of old bottles and Lucayan artifacts.

Sharie showed us her collection of whale ambergris. She researched ambergris and became a middle man buying and selling ambergris for fun from the locals. One of her many stories was flying to meet a buyer from France in Nassau. They went to the hotel room where a large piece was examined and bought. It earned the local islander $10,000 US. She just got involved out of curiosity. Treating the locals fairly. The islanders dog is the one who actually found it. Kind of like a truffle dog.

They told us of finding Right Whale skeletons. They have two whale vertebrae over their doors. She told the story of being in a bar when two Bahamians came in talking about the whale skeleton they found. She offered the use of her vehicle to transport the bones for the guy. She showed us a photo of bones stacked in her car floor to ceiling, with the pelvis strapped to the roof. The man sold the bones from in front of his house, eventually earning enough money to buy a car.

Walking through their house was like being in a Museum of Natural History. Above is the skull of a flamingo they found, plus whale baleen to the left.

There was an old cotton mill on their property, which is gone now. They took us on a tour where there is a Lucayan midden. We are sworn to secrecy on the exact location. It has been researched by the University of Florida. The photo on the right, is inside their garage. They lived in the garage for two years while they built the round house. Reminds me of my folks who lived in one small room, cooking over a camp stove while they built their first house in the Keys. I love the wood mallet on the wall which was used to beat sponges during the curing process.

Sharie also did her research on Conch pearls and became a middle man selling those. Locals would bring her conch pearls and she would pull out a light and jewelers loupe. After examining and rating it, she would pay them a descent price saying they could get more in Nassau. Most took the quick cash and headed to the bar. She mostly did it for fun and good story or two.

The tamarinds at their house are huge. All sorts of things in their yard that they found beach combing. Above are the old metal bouys for nets. Inside the house, were the more rare glass bouys. The photo on the left, is another grey racer snake we saw during the tour. That brings to a half dozen snakes we have seen in the few hours we have spent on shore. Sharie stopped the ATV when she saw a Mangrove Cuckoo in the bush. On a sadder note. They also found parts of the flotsam while beach combing. From the ship El Faro, lost during Cat 4 Hurricane Joaquin Oct. 1, 2015. Thirty three people lost their lives when the ship went down in 15,000 ft. just east of Long Island. Their house had 17 inch of water in the ground level garage from the hurricane.

What a great couple and a fantastic day spent with them.

S/V Sea Breeze, Wemyss bay, Long Island, Bahamas

[cllrfrasermacpherson]

Cappuccino Concert at Friends of Wighton!

From Sheena Wellington of Friends of Wighton : Tomorrow – Saturday 26th October – at 11am, Friends of Wighton is having a Cappuccino Concert – Chloe Matharu, song and harp. Chloe Matharu is an award-winning Scottish Indian singer songwriter and harpist from Wemyss Bay on the West Coast of Scotland.     Many of her songs draw on her time as a Navigational Officer in the Merchant Navy, inspired…

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 9.1 (before 1870)

1145 – The main altar of Lund Cathedral, at the time the seat of the archiepiscopal see of all the Nordic countries, is consecrated. 1173 – The widow Stamira sacrifices herself in order to raise the siege of Ancona by the forces of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. 1355 – King Tvrtko I of Bosnia writes In castro nostro Vizoka vocatum from the Old town of Visoki. 1449 – Tumu Crisis: The Mongols capture the Emperor of China. 1529 – The Spanish fort of Sancti Spiritu, the first one built in modern Argentina, is destroyed by indigenous people. 1532 – Lady Anne Boleyn is made Marquess of Pembroke by her fiancé, King Henry VIII of England. 1604 – Adi Granth, now known as Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhs, is first installed at Harmandir Sahib. 1610 – Claudio Monteverdi's musical work Vespro della Beata Vergine (Vespers for the Blessed Virgin) is first published, printed in Venice and dedicated to Pope Paul V. 1644 – Battle of Tippermuir: James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose defeats the Earl of Wemyss's Covenanters, reviving the Royalist cause. 1645 – English Civil War. Scottish Covenanter forces abandon their month-long Siege of Hereford, a Cavalier stronghold, on news of Royalist victories in Scotland. 1715 – At the age of five, Louis XV becomes king of France in succession to his great-grandfather, King Louis XIV. 1763 – Catherine II of Russia endorses Ivan Betskoy's plans for a Foundling Home in Moscow. 1772 – The Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa is founded in San Luis Obispo, California. 1774 – Massachusetts Bay colonists rise up in the bloodless Powder Alarm. 1804 – 3 Juno, one of the largest asteroids in the Main Belt, is discovered by the German astronomer Karl Ludwig Harding. 1831 – The Order of St. Gregory the Great is established by Pope Gregory XVI of the Vatican State to recognize high support for the Vatican or for the Pope, by a man or a woman, and not necessarily a Roman Catholic. 1836 – Narcissa Whitman, one of the first English-speaking white women to settle west of the Rocky Mountains, arrives at Walla Walla, Washington. 1838 – Saint Andrew's Scots School, the oldest school of British origin in South America, is established. 1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Chantilly: Confederate Army troops defeat a group of retreating Union Army troops in Chantilly, Virginia. 1864 – American Civil War: The Confederate Army General John Bell Hood orders the evacuation of Atlanta, ending a four-month siege by General William Tecumseh Sherman.

[thescottishpearl]

Wemyss Bay Railway Station

Wemyss Bay Railway Station is an architectural delight

[screampotato]

If you want to see a bit of lots of different areas, Glasgow is actually a very good base. You can get trains from there down to the Clyde Coast for islands and beaches, up to Loch Lomond, Loch Long and the Gareloch, and through to Edinburgh. And the countryside around Glasgow is beautiful (I'm biased, I live just north of the city).

My recommendations are:

- For a quick and very fun island day, get the train to Largs and the 10 minute ferry to Great Cumbrae. It's only 5 miles long and there's a long standing tradition of cycling round it. You can rent bikes in Millport, which is the only town (you get there by catching a bus from the ferry slip). It's a very quaint pre-Victorian and Victorian town with beaches, ice cream shops, cafes, watersports if you want them, and the scenery is gorgeous.

- Two bigger islands that are still easy to reach are Arran (ferry from Ardrossan) and Bute (ferry from Wemyss Bay), and also Cowal, which is not an island but might as well be (ferry from Gourock).

- To see Loch Lomond, get the train to Balloch or to Arrochar & Tarbet. The latter is a station in between Tarbet on Loch Lomond and Arrochar on Loch Long. All great for a day trip, there are eating places there, and you can catch cruise boats from Tarbet or Balloch. Loch Lomond is absolutely stunning. So is Loch Long. Loch Long is a sea loch (fjord), Loch Lomond is fresh water. The vikings used to bring their boats ashore at Arrochar, portage them to Tarbet and then sail all over Loch Lomond, pillaging as they went. Arrochar and Tarbet are North of the Highland Boundary Fault, so if you want a selfie in the Highlands, there's your chance!

- Edinburgh obviously needs no introduction, there are regular trains between there and Glasgow. July is a very good time to explore it, August is a bit of a nightmare because of the Festival. Take a coat, Edinburgh is cold! If you want to see the Forth Bridges, head to Queensferry. If you're going to the Castle, look up how much it would cost to get a Historic Scotland pass, as Edinburgh Castle is ruinously expensive, and the pass will get you into various other places for free, like Stirling Castle.

- Stirling is one of the old capitals of Scotland and has a marvellous castle and is a lovely wee city to explore, you can reach that by train from Glasgow or Edinburgh.

- Glasgow itself is a beautiful city with lovely Georgian architecture in the centre and Victorian elsewhere. It tends to be wet rather than cold. In particular, the West End, Kelvingrove Park and the Botanic Gardens are excellent to visit. It also has incredible museums which are all free to get into (same in Edinburgh) - Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a classic. Best way to get to the west end is by Subway, which you'll enjoy as a train fan. It's one of the oldest in the world, and the trains are tiny and very cute. I personally love the Burrell Collection museum, not as convenient, but can be reached by train from Central Station and a walk through Pollok Country Park.

Now, you want a real train adventure, and you want to devote a few days to it, you can take the famous West Highland Line to Mallaig. It's an old line and has not been well maintained, so the trains are slow and it takes about 5 hours, but you will never have more incredible views from a train unless you go through the Rockies or something. The history of the line is also fascinating. It was thought to be impossible to build a railway through this terrain, and it very nearly was - the stretch through Rannoch Moor is floated on brushwood, because the bog is so deep that it swallowed all the ballast they could pour into it, nearly bankrupting the builders. You can book somewhere to stay in Mallaig, which is a reasonable sized town with places to eat and stay, boat trips, and even a short ferry to Armadale on the Isle of Skye. When we stayed there, we went to Armadale one day and explored the castle and gardens, and it was a lovely trip. An alternative to Mallaig is to take the branch line to Oban, which is a pretty, bustling town which acts as the ferry terminal for the Outer Hebrides, and is famous for its seafood.

I will come back to you if I think of any other ideas of things you could do, but these are my best recommendations for the moment. I hope they give you some things to think about!

Hello! You seem to be he right kind of person to ask this.

I’m planning a trip up to Scotland to celebrate finishing secondary school in July for about a week. I was wondering if you have any advice or recommendations for must-see places?

Hello! I would love to do recommendations! And in particular, I can recommend you places that have NOT gone virally popular and are just as good as the ones that have! Viral tourism is a big problem in Scotland, and generally there is something brilliant just down the road from the crowded hotspot that nobody goes to.

Do you have any thoughts already of something you would really like to see? When we went to Japan, we had a list of a few things we really wanted to see and then we built the rest of the trip around that. Don't try and see the whole country in a week, it's bigger than people think.

Also, what sort of transport will you have? Are you planning to hire a car or use public transport?

[iain-takes-photos]

Sunset from Wemyss Bay Beach

[themovingpavement]

Wemyss Bay, 2018

[scotianostra]

Happy Birthday Scottish actor Martin Compston.

Born in Greenock on May 8th 1984 the second of two boys he attended St Columba's High School in nearby Gourock. As a child he dreamed of becoming a footballer and at 17 left school to pursue that dream, he was soon signed by Morton Football Team.

Before leaving school his acting career began when Ken Loach discovered him at an audition at his old high school and gave him the lead role in Sweet Sixteen, which also starred a very good friend of mine, Gary McCormack as Martin's step dad, Stan.

The movie was filmed in Martin's home area, including Greenock, Gourock, Inverkip, Kilmalcolm, and Wemyss Bay and was a huge success, which shot Martin into full view of the public and even gave some fame to Inverclyde. However, many counsellors thought that this was bad publicity because the film has to do with drugs and underage drinking. However, Ken Loach then made a statement that the movie was not based on Greenock and Inverclyde - but was only filmed there, as that was where Martin was located.

Martin's subsequent film career was comparatively low-key, as he wanted to "serve his apprenticeship" with a regular role in the popular series Monarch of the Glen as Ewan Brodie. Since then we have seen Martin in some of the most popular shows on TV including, Silent Witness,, Victoria and In Plain Sight. His film roles have included playing the gangster Paul Ferris in the movie, The Wee Man, and as Lord Bothwell in the latest Mary Queen of Scots film on which he commented “Riding about on a horse, with a sword. It’s fantastic “

Sometimes the sign of a good actor is how well you can adapt your accent for the roles, and Martin does this with ease in perhaps his most famous role as anti corruption officer Sergeant Steve Arnott in the police drama Line of Duty, he has been in the series since it's start in 2012 and has confirmed he will be returning to play Steve in a new series, the read throughs' started just before lock down started and we shall not see the new shows now until well into 2021. Many people did not realise that Martin is Scottish and does speak with a guid Scots accent.

As for his football career Martin says " I don't regret giving up football for acting. I love football and am very proud I played for Morton. But the truth is, I wasn't going to get much higher in football." He made two first team starts for the team in the 2001/2002 season.

In the past year or so Martin has starred in The Rig, which was well received, although I wasn't impressed with it. He also starred in a brilliant two parter. Mayflies, which I thoroughly enjoyed, in the BBC drama he teamed up with his friend Tony Curran.

Next up for him he sets off an epic northern adventure with his best friend Phil MacHugh in the second series of  Martin Compston’s Scottish Fling

Martin like myself, is a fan of Glasgow Celtic FC.

[andrewbradleyphotography]

Coming in x

[notheroic]

Left my house today and ended up on the Isle of Bute! It’s been an amazing day!

I took tons of photos, will post more when I’m home. Currently on the ferry back to Wemyss Bay.