Stevenston Shore 8th July

Alan McQ, Allan, Davie C, Davie Mc, Dougie, Graham, Gus, Hugh, Jimmy, Johnny, Malcolm, Paul, Rex

The Ardeer Peninsula between Irvine and Stevenston housed the ICI Nobel dynamite factory which employed 13000 at its peak and at the time was the biggest explosives factory in the world. Although now closed there is an offshoot explosives company, Chemring, still operating and employing 300.

This would be a new walk for the Ooters today, starting at the car park next to the ‘Doon the Beach’ café and heading along the shoreline of the peninsula towards Irvine. The forecast was for it to be cloudy in the morning and to clear up later, so we set off on to the beach with fleeces etc on, but with the overhead conditions improving rapidly and the temperature warming up, layers were soon dispensed with. We cut over Ardeer Point and got back on to the beach via a rocky outcrop and then headed along the long stretch of shore. Fortunately, the tide was out, meaning that there was plenty of firm sand to walk on and we were joined, aerially, by a couple of powered paragliders enjoying the fine conditions.

Before too long we came across a mural of Robert Burns on the concrete seawall and took time to admire/photograph it before moving on. It has to be said though that it needs some TLC to bring it back up to its original colourful standard. After about an hour and a quarter’s walking we arrived at the mouth of the River Irvine, just below where the Big Idea is positioned and we took coffee/lunch in the lovely conditions, albeit sitting on what looked like the remains of old sewer pipes. Some tried to go up to the Big Idea, closed after only operating for a couple of years, but found the going tricky and turned back.

Retracing our steps we made good progress, even the sight of a nudist in the distance (it is officially a nudist beach) did not slow us down, and in order to avoid the rocks mentioned earlier we left the beach a bit earlier and took to the paths across the park to reach our starting point with the front runners arriving back about half past twelve and the rest arriving in groups over the next ten minutes.

The walk had taken two hours and forty-five minutes and had been a distance of just over six miles, very similar in fact to the Irvine to Barassie walk which we’ve done on many occasions.

After some discussion, it was decided to go to the Lauriston in Ardrossan for FRT, and once we had managed to extricate ourselves from Stevenston, the sitooterie at the front of the hotel made for a very pleasant venue, at least for those who were in the shade, in what had become a beautifully hot day.

Arrangements for 15th July

Annbank Circular 

Meet in Annbank at 10am for a walk to the Wallace & Burns monument. The route will be anti-clockwise to allow those who wish a shorter walk to turn back from there.

Some images from the Stevenston Beach walk

 

Knockroon, Ochiltree, Dumfries House 1st July

Alan McQ, Allan, Davie C, Davie Mc, Dougie, Hugh, Jimmy, Johnny, Malcolm, Peter, Rex, Robert

It was an overcast morning as we waited at Knockroon for the bus to Ochiltree. It arrived on time and we piled in for the easy part of today’s outing. Derval Davie took the opportunity on the journey to use some of his chat-up lines on some elderly ladies who were only too eager to respond. Thankfully, we arrived in Ochiltree before numbers were exchanged!

We took the familiar Lugar Trail back towards Dumfries House and were pleased that, on the initial stages, the path had been recently strimmed but further on the work still had to be done, or not. Anyway, we reached the track up to the A frame and decided to avoid it this time and turn right towards the estate reaching the Woodland Shelter for coffee. Although overcast it was warm, and layers were removed before we moved on.

Davie (and Isla), Peter and Robert decided to head for Knockroon from there whilst the rest took the opportunity to visit the walled garden and its array of flowers, shrubs, fruit and vegetables. Most colour came from the display of delphiniums but the whole garden was looking good and the veg was well ahead of that of the gardeners amongst us. We didn’t delay for too long before taking to the path back towards the shelter, noting the copious amount of mulch that the workers were putting around the trees and shrubs in the arboretum, and continuing towards our exit point.

Next stop was a brief one under the road bridge where it was decided that we would go straight on today rather than go left and up the burn-side path towards Auchinleck. In doing so we caught up with Davie and Peter who were taking lunch at the bench but Robert, who needed to be home early, had pushed on ahead. We reached the point where we took the steps, or what is left of them, up the steep climb to the higher path which we found to be really overgrown with grass and nettles making the going difficult. Nonetheless, we emerged out of the worst of it to find the wet, grassy path up to the main road needing cut as well and leaving the bottoms of our trousers soaking.

By the time we got back to the cars we were well stretched out with the back markers arriving at about twenty to one having covered five and a half miles. A decent walk in dry, warm overhead conditions.

FRT was taken in the Black Bull in Mauchline where we were treated to sausage rolls and biscuits yet again. Many thanks, folks! A satisfying end to a good day out.

Some images from the Ochiltree to Cumnock walk