Looking Over Ru Stafnish to Ailsa Craig

(or ... On a Walk from New Orleans to The Bastard)

14.8C and bright and sunny. Some cloud. Light WSW or Westerly breeze.

After lunch Maeve the Deerhound and I went for a short walk.

Then I drove round to the Doirlinn (by Davaar island) and carried on round the road (single track) and up the hill by New Orleans until I found a good off road place to park . I left Maeve in the car to have a snooze and set off along the minor road which goes South along the coast and forms part of the Kintyre Way. Van Morrison on the iPod Mini (Avalon Sunset then Hymns to the Silence II).

The road is approximately 120 feet above the shore most of the time at this section then it drops to sea level at Corphin Bridge then it immediately returns to the former height. The gives fantastic views North up the Kilbrannan Sound with the East coast of Kintyre in view al the way to Carradale and beyond. On the other side of the sound the South shore of Arran from the lighthouse on the tiny island of Pladda was clearly visible and I could see all the way up the West coast of Arran. Today was clear enough to see Arran's mountains too.

Looking East and South Ailsa Craig was prominent against the backdrop of the Ayrshire coast. I was high enough on the road to be able to watch Gannets over the sea from above. I'm not sure how far I walked, but something like two or two and a half miles. I went far enough to get a view of The Bastard, a hill of some 188 metres (617 feet) then turned and came back the same way. Apparently The Bastard is classified as a Tump in hill walking terms. It was worth the hilly walk just to get the name of The Bastard in the title of a blip :-)

E-PL5 f/10 1/320 sec. ISO-200 29mm

Extra: The Bastard