By Land And By Sea
The Five Ferries Cycle Tour takes in the best of the west
The Five Ferries Cycle Tour takes in the best of the west
TAKING a ferry always signals the start of a great adventure – and with the promise of five sea crossings in a single day of cycling my spirits soared. The planned ride, the Five Ferries Cycle Tour, starts and finishes in Ardrossan on the west coast of the Scottish mainland and covers 119km (74 miles) via two islands and two peninsulas.
Looking at the elevation graph of the mapped route, I’m anticipating several big hills and a generally undulating landscape. Yet, I’m also sure the views of coast, lochs, beaches, moorlands and mountains will be just rewards.
The first Caledonian Macbrayne ferry leaves Ardrossan, heading across the Firth of Clyde for the Island of Arran. I sit outside watching the horizon as the small ferry port town of Brodick grows larger and closer.
Arran is nicknamed “Scotland in Miniature” as the Highland Boundary Fault cuts through the island’s middle. It divides a mountainous Highland landscape to the north from rolling lowland countryside in the south – reflecting Scotland itself.
Departing the ferry by bike is delightfully simple and avoids the need to wait in a queue of motorised vehicles at the Calmac terminal. At the main road, the A841 which circuits Arran, I turn right. The Five Ferries route hugs the isle’s eastern coastline giving wonderful views of the Firth of Clyde, plentiful beaches and seals reposing on a rocky foreshore. To the west are Arran’s highest mountains, including the tallest, Goatfell at 874 metres (2866 feet).
The highest point of the day’s ride is also on the island and after a gently undulating start, passing through the pretty coastal villages of Corrie and Sannox, the road turns inland to a long climb of almost 201m (660 ft) elevation. I take my time, slipping into an easy gear and focusing on what’s to come over the crest of the hill. The descent via a wide glen with a sweeping vista of the bay of Lochranza ahead is fantastic. Lochranza – meaning “Loch of the Seals” – is a beautiful setting with a ruined castle sitting on a grassy promontory to one side, the clear waters of Kilbrannan Sound and a backdrop of dramatic mountains. There is little time to relax here, however, because I have only 80 minutes between the Ardrossan ferry arriving on Arran and the second one departing
Lochranza for Claonaig on the Kintyre peninsula. Making this ferry is essential for completing the route in a day.
The Lochranza to Claonaig crossing is 30 minutes and offered me the chance to rest my legs and have a snack. A glance at the elevation profile ahead reveals an ascent from the port to a height of 131m (430ft).
The single-track B8001 on the other side is peaceful and picturesque, which is just as well because the ascent is slow and tiring. The views of forestry and wild moorlands take my mind off my aching leg muscles before, suddenly it seems, I’ve crested the top and I’m flying downhill again.
The B-road crosses the narrow leg of land and there are more fine views of another narrow sea inlet, West Loch Tarbert on the western side of Kintyre, as well as further afield to the whisky isles of Islay and Jura.
At the small settlement of Kennacraig, I join the A83 to ride north towards Tarbert. The road is busier but offers an easy and fairly flat ride.
The picturesque fishing town of Tarbert is located on an isthmus, a narrow spit of land, where West Loch Tarbert bites deeply into the peninsula and only just fails to meet East Loch Tarbert, an outlet of larger Loch Fyne.
I push my bike around the town’s old harbour, listening to the sounds of clanking boats and seagulls crying overhead, before boarding one of the regular 25-minute ferry crossings for Portavadie, situated on another narrow leg of land, the Cowal Peninsula.
A sign at Portavadie welcomes me to “Argyll’s Secret Coast”, which makes sense as I join the tranquil B800 and ride steeply uphill through remote moorland and forestry heading for Tighnabruiach.