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A free weekend and we decided to get out into the Firth of Clyde for two days instead of heading for the hills. The Backpackers Hostel in Rothesay was booked a few days before, and happily the weather forecast maps steadily improved to herald a small spot of sunshine centred right over Bute for Saturday and Sunday.
Bute was new to us, but it's been a firm favourite of Glaswegians ever since the Victorian ages, when steamships zipped up and down the Clyde to the various islands. Keeping that tradition alive, we abandoned the car for the weekend and took the train to Wemyss Bay instead, where the ferry departs for Rothesay.
Wemyss Bay station is very attractive and convenient for the ferry - it's directly linked to the covered pier and you don't even have to go outside. The weather was so good it wouldn't have mattered anyway - this was the view from the ferry:
The ferry crossing takes 45 minutes or so and calls in right in the centre of Rothesay. Rothesay is an exceptionally attractive town, with the hustle and bustle of Oban, the intimacy of Lerwick but another dimension which tells you the council is evidently proud of the place. The towns on the Ayrshire mainland are hidden from view as the bay faces north, and instead all you can see across the water are graceful, lofty hills up in the wilds of Argyll. All-in-all, it's really quite unique.
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After poking around town, visiting St Mary's Chapel and having lunch, we caught a bus all the way down the east coast to Kilchattan Bay, which is about as far south as you can go on a tarmac road on Bute. Kilchattan Bay felt almost like a little corner of SW England (and also like Portmahomack in Easter Ross). The bus dropped us off at the end of its route at the very end of the road and village. Time for a walk exploring the southern tip of the island. The route is actually the first stage of the West Island Way, but is also completely circular.
A path continued from the road end, rocky and uneven in places but interesting and easy to follow. The path here is lined by blackberry bushes and we'd caught them at the perfect time of year - thousands and thousands of perfectly ripe fruits just begging to be devoured. Progress was understandably slow, giving plenty of times to admire the rocky outcrops by the path, and the views across to Ayrshire - wind turbines and all.
Further on, Rubh' an Eun lighthouse came into view, followed dramatically by Arran, Holy Island and Ailsa Craig. Bute doesn't have the jagged peaks of Arran, but the coastline here at the southern end seemed similar to the coastline around Lochranza. The northern end of Arran came into view as we turned the corner, but cloud covered the highest peaks intermittently - the island seeming to create its own weather system as usual.
The coastline turns west at Glencallum Bay, a secluded location popular with private boats.
On the other side of the bay, the land steepens considerably and the path forks a few times. Route-finding was a bit unclear here but most of the paths seemed to end up joining up eventually, perhaps with the exception of the far right-hand branch, which went off in the direction of Torr Mor. Basically, I think you can choose between traversing above or below the far left rock band in the photo below.
Climbing above the rock band, there was a great view back towards the bay and lighthouse - Little Cumbrae and Great Cumbrae islands beyond.
The path now took a higher route through the bracken. Boyd's Port below:
Over an insignificant-looking bealach and an exceptionally attractive scene opens out - Loch na Leighe with St Blane's Hill behind.
The path descends steeply to the foot of the loch, then heads along a small volcanic ridge just to the left, seen in the photo:
A little new friend down near the loch:
This was interesting walking - undulating terrain, straightforward but involved route-finding (the walkhighlands map with the route highlighted on it is useful here) and lots of intimate views. And loads of sheep! Up a small hill to the ruined St Blane's Chapel - formerly the capital of Bute, but you wouldn't guess it now. There's a rock bank reaching to about head height surrounding the chapel - there are steps up at the far-left end.
Fine-walking country continues. Attention should again be paid to the route map as one short sections through a large field is pathless with the exit hidden from view over a rise. Soon a superb view opens out to the north, with most of Bute visible.
Better still are the views from the top of Suidhe Chatain - you just have to get to it! The ascent is direct and steep, particularly near the end, although short in the grand scheme of things - it's only 157m high. The panorama is worth the effort though...
A quick check of the watch and we realised the hourly bus was due in 15 minutes, 1km away and 150m downhill in Kilchattan Bay. A speedy end to the walk then, slipping and sliding down the steep path, arriving in the village centre just in time to see the bus speeding past. Luckily it was speeding past in the other direction on its way to turn around at the end of the village, before coming back to pick us up
That was it for a great walk, but it wasn't the end of the weekend. Back in Rothesay, a lovely sunset:
The next day, we basically went on a whistlestop tour of the main tourist sites on the island. The excellent public bus service made this easy, even on a Sunday. First stop, Ascog Fernery, with the adjacent shoreline also worth exploring
Next, Mount Stuart - with one of the most amazing interiors I've ever seen anywhere, and beautiful, extensive grounds. A few hours didn't really do justice to the place and a single photo certainly doesn't:
Then Ardencraig Gardens, owned by council, free and simply stunning, complete with small aviary:
From here we walked over the hill back to Rothesay on another path with numerous blackberry bushes. Here they weren't quite ripe yet - the slope was north facing and gets little sun. Good views down to the town and to Rothesay Castle, next on the list. On the way down we encountered the Serpentine, a road with a spectacular series of tight hairpin bends. This was a view of it from Rothesay Castle's walls:
There was just time to pick up our bags from the hostel before catching the ferry back to Wemyss Bay. The Royal Scotsman awaited us in one of the platforms - unfortunately not our train home, but another nice surprise. It had only been two days, but getting away to Bute for the weekend had felt like a proper holiday. B-ute-iful...
