Arran Coastal Way Brodick - Lamlash

I joined the KOIR for a walk on Arran covering part of the Arran Coastal Way from Brodick to Lamlash, this was a new stretch for me so despite the forecast I headed out.
The Calmac boat was rocking and rolling as we headed to Arran, was that roll and sausage a good idea, and the rain was lashing down when we disembarked. There is minimal cover on this walk so just had to accept it was going to be a wet one. Once again the good camera stayed at home so these snaps are phone only.

Full wet gear on for everyone

Turn left up the hill and take the first left towards Strathwhillan farm, following the way markers signs passing some nice houses then across a few very muddy fields, it was to get a lot worse. Then through some woods and onto a track beside the radar station before heading down to the shore at Corriegills point. Not just the sheep thought we were mad.

View from beach old fort on top of hill

The walk along the tight muddy and rocky track was one of extreme concentration. Although relatively flat the underfoot conditions were very tricky and there were quite a few slips and falls amongst the group but thankfully only injured pride and not bodies.

Driftwood seat

There is a seat made from driftwood situated at the rocks which could provide a nice resting point with a view, but not today. I am not sure how much weight it will take but well done anyway.

Narrow track

The sea is close on the left and hills on your right so you are hemmed in, the autumn colours of the bracken and yellow flowers on some broom bring colour to the day. However no time to enjoy the views as concentration means head down not up.

Should we be going up there?

As we moved round Claughlands point the Holy Isle comes into view but the muddy track gets even worse. The coos have trampled this area and recently going by the freshness of the cow pats. Don’t fall in this quagmire.
We are now on a farm track as we head towards Lamlash but the young coos are spotted, they number 20 plus and of course are standing at the gate blocking our path.

The coos

We have no option other than to try and scare them out of the way, one gets edgy as it thinks it is trapped, then the bellowing starts, interesting, tension rises but about half get over the fence safely and one braveheart chased the coos out of the way and the rest used the gate. Sadly we didn’t seem to adopt ‘ladies first’!!
Thankfully the rain has eased and after lunch we head back to Brodick overland, initially heading up past Claughlands farm then across green fields heading for a gate at 1 o clock. There are some route signs but not all are obvious so look carefully. The grass looked good for walking from a distance but oh no, this was another boggy mess, the coos had been in the past and left plenty of water traps from their hooves. After crossing a stile one of the group managed a full back slide in the mud, aahh.

The fields look ok but no.

Some of us make the short diversion to the trig point and site of an old fort where despite the weather there are good views which on a clear day would be superb, hence the reason for the fort.

View from old fort looking back along the coast where we had walked

After that simply follow the good track back to the main road, turn right and down the hill to the ferry. An interesting warning sign to watch out for a ‘deaf cat’ not seen one of them before.
As usual the banter and humour from the group made the day and I got another, albeit short section, of the Arran Coastal Way completed. The waterproofs did their job. Even time for a pint in the Douglas before the ferry.
Time: 4hr 04m
Distance: 7.38m (11.88km)
Ascent: 1554ft (474m)

Holy Isle...Mullach Mor

Holy Isle profile

There is a local saying here that if you cannot see Arran from our beach it is because it is raining and if you can see Arran it is going to rain. Obviously not always true but when I look across the water and see Arran I can also see the Holy Isle which sits just in front of Arran on its western coast.
It has been on my bucket list to get onto the island and walk to its summit, Mullach Mor, and hopefully look across the water to my home. The summit is categorised as a Marilyn, a sub 2000 hill.

Holy Isle from Lamlash Pier

It is not as easy as it sounds to get to as the island is privately owned. It is a Tibetan Buddhist retreat and is officially designated as a UK Sacred Site. It is a Centre for World Peace and Health. The island has introduced Soay sheep, Saanen goats and Eriskay ponies.
The owners will allow walking visitors subject to certain conditions. No smoking, drinking, dogs, fires etc. Probably swatting midgies not allowed either.
The island of Arran has an annual mountain festival and this was its 10th anniversary. One of the group walks was this one to the Holy Isle so I took the opportunity and booked up as soon as it became available this year. Fingers crossed that the weather was good enough to see across the water, the last 2 years this would not be possible due to atrocious conditions.

After a great weekend, mainly clear blue sky but chilly wind all weekend the day arrived for my trip with a forecast of cloud but reasonable temperatures and only a small chance of rain. My trip involved by driving to get a Calmac ferry at Ardrossan. A problem that I encountered when I arrived was that every other sailing was cancelled so my only return option was the last ferry of the day, hope I don't miss it. A 50 minute smooth crossing got me to Brodick on Arran where the group were bussed to Lamlash to get the ferry to Holy Isle. My surprise on meeting the group was that I was the only guy on the trip, didn't expect that. I usually walk solo or with maybe one other so a dozen or so people was going to be interesting, at least one of the trip guides was male so two's company.

Ailsa on horizon

I was delighted to discover that our ferry was to be a fast rib boat, a bit of fun expected. The normal ferry is a lot slower. As we had time on our side the rib, ran by Ocean Breeze, took us a full tour around the island, stopping to point out some highlights, animal and geological. Great fun especially when he increased the speed into the waves. 
After our island circuit we dropped into the jetty and we all made it ashore without falling in. A welcome noticeboard plus an array of Tibetan prayer flags adorn the field. There is a large building which is the guesthouse and a small building which operates a cafe but only open on certain afternoons in the summer season.

Lamlash bay & Goatfell

Look out for the common gulls on the rocks right beside the jetty sitting on eggs and hopefully no high spring tide to wash their nests away.
From this point the walk goes clockwise up through a field then through a short wooded section before coming onto open moorland. Then you start climbing up basically through the middle of the island. The eastern side is basically left natural for the wildlife and there are no paths on this side and walking here is not welcomed.

The path is narrow and gravelly, loose stones, so walking with care. A pair of meadow pipits fly upwards together, squabbling, having a territory fight, delightful. A cuckoo is heard calling.
We reach a high point just below Mulloch Beag 314 metres, with tremendous views of Lamlash Bay. Because it is a guided tour we are given an overview of the work of COAST (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) and the benefits to the sealife that this has had, fascinating and keep up the good work. Not so attractive is the salmon fish farm tanks. Looking down to the jetty and the rib far below you realise you have climbed a fair bit to this point.

At this ridge there are stunning views of the mountains of north Arran, dominated by Goatfell. Further afield the Arrochar Alps and Ben Lomond are prominent along with the Cumbraes and northern Ayrshire coast.

Mullach Mor summit

The route dips down a bit before climbing to the narrow summit of Mullach Mor, a trigpoint with some Tibetan flags for colour.

We stop for lunch and I sneakily eat my pork pie as eating meat here is one of the no goes. I now have full views all around including Ayrshire and the southern coast, Ailsa Craig and southern Arran. For a small hill it does not get much better than this. We spot the medivac helicopter landing on Arran, possibly not good news for someone. Prawn fishing boats dot the sea and the fishery protection boat is also present. A line of gannets fly low heading back to Ailsa Craig.

The descent

The descent from the summit going towards the lighthouse is a bit tricky, some minor steep scrambling is required and this could be tricky on a wet day. We pass the plateau where breeding gulls are sitting on their nests and the goats feeding a short distance away.

A raven flies over being mobbed by some gulls. We saw plenty of the Eriskay ponies from the rib when circling the island but few on the walk itself.
The second lighthouse, Pillar Rock, now comes into view. There cannot be many islands as small as this with two.

Pillar Rock lighthouse

Still descending you now get sight of some homes built into the hillside, these are to your right, as always the chiefs seem get the better accommodation. The nuns retreat beside the lighthouse is strictly off limits.

The remainder of the walk is about a mile along the shoreline with 6 or seven stones with elaborate paintings of real and mythical figures important to this religion. Apparently they are repainted circa every 10 years when they have faded. There are small natural tree plantations developing well.

A common seal rises close in and seems to follow us for about half a mile.
The last attraction is St Molaises cave where there are scratchings on the cave walls apparently Norse/Viking runes, plus a large Celtic cross. Amazing to think these pilgrims/warriors stood on this very spot.

A short walk brings us back to the jetty and the rib back to Lamlash. About half way across the rib goes into a fast sharp turn cutting back across its own wake for a bit of bouncy fun to finish the day.
I will be on time for the last ferry home, a long but enjoyable day. And even time for an unhealthy fish supper whilst I wait on it.
I'm really pleased to tick this one off and I suspect I might repeat it in a couple of years. According to my GPS the walk was only 4.2 miles and we climbed 1090 feet.