Day 40 24/6/16 Touring Arran

Day 40: Touring around Arran

What a difference a day makes.  Today the rain is really coming down and has been all night. We decided on a driving free day and therefore opted to use the local bus service to tour the Island.  Just as well really as it continues to thunder down with rain.  We got soaked just waiting for the bus. Anyway, 5 pounds 60 pence gave us each an all day bus ticket.

Sun is NOT shining today - Maritta waiting at the bus shelter.

Dale's getting wild bushranger look about him....but enjoying the driving free day on the bus.

It was a hair raising ride...the local drivers seem to know the roads very well and just skip along at a good speed.  The roads are not great so the trip tends to be very bumpy and one where you need to hang on tight!!

We discovered that it is not raining on the other side of the island....due to the large central mountain range

Wonderful villages although the names are somewhat werid...this is "Sliddery".  No joke!!

We took the bus route that circumnavigates the island in two parts. South from Lamlash through Whiting Bay, across the bottom through Lagg then up the west coast to Blackwaterfoot. Here you change buses for the northern part of the Island, through Machrie and Pinmill, then through Lochranza where we landed yesterday and south again on the eastern side.

Our bus stop in the village called "Blackwaterfoot"

Seriously ...would your bus driver pick up this lot??

Coming down the eastern side, we got off in Brodick and visited Arran Aromatics - the Soap and Perfume Factory, the cheese shop and had lunch in the next door cafe, before taking a short walk through the woodland to catch the bus back to Lamlash.

Driver must have been lonely as he did pick us up....

Passing through Lochranza

Great coastal views - eastern side looking across the Firth of Clyde

A pair of nesting white swans

The small white dots are sheep, the bigger ones are walkers

Arran Ponies?

Great wild flowers everywhere - Foxgloves in this case.

A tourist stop at Arran Aromatics

Noeline admiring the foliage and the ducks on our woodland walk

Evening across the bay in Lamlash

Tonight we put in our order early for lamb rack given we had missed out every where else to date.  Seven had lamb and Dale had Breaded Haddock.  It was delicious.