Day 16 – Oban to Strontian

A slightly late start to the day, as our hotel had wifi that actually worked pretty well, something we struggled with for the next week or so.  So we took advantage of the speedy wifi to catch-up on the blog!

Then we spent much of the day driving along the side of several beautiful lochs, and we really started to appreciate the importance of the large network of Scottish ferries.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Dunstaffnage Castle, Pigeon
A pigeon keeping an eye on us from the rather green walls of Dunstaffnage Castle.

 

Dunstaffnage Castle

Coastal Road Trip, Dunstaffnage Castle
First stop of the day, just north of Oban at Dunstaffnage Castle, standing proud over Loch Etive.  Famous for the imprisonment of Flora MacDonald after she helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape Scotland.

 

Castle Stalker

Coastal Road Trip, Castle Stalker
Castle Stalker reflecting in Loch Laich.  Monty Python used this tower house as one of the settings in the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

 

Loch Eil and Ben Nevis

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Eil
Refelctions across the still Loch Eil.  We had first traveled west along the north side of Loch Eil from Fort William, but the road was surprisingly busy.  However, when we turned off along the south side, we ended up on a lovely quiet lane that then continued on along the west side of Loch Linnhe.
Coastal Road Trip, Loch Eil, Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest peak starting to emerge from the cloud.
Coastal Road Trip, Ben Nevis
And almost out of the cloud.

 

Corran Lighthouse

Coastal Road Trip, Corran Lighthouse
Corran Lighthouse at the Corran-Ardgour ferry crossing.

 

Gleann Geal

Coastal Road Trip, Gleann Geal, Deer
Mother and fawn, nervously keeping an eye on us as we drove by on the way to the Sound of Mull.
Coastal Road Trip, Gleann Geal, Sheep
This road isn’t big enough for the two of us!

 

Lochaline

Coastal Road Trip, Lochaline, Otter
Nice beaver, sorry, I mean otter.
Coastal Road Trip, Lochaline to Fishnish Ferry
Last ferry of the day from Lochaline to Fishnish (love that name) on the Isle of Mull.   We then double backed on ourselves to Strontian for the night.

 

Daily video

Day 15 – Carradale to Oban

172 miles on day fifteen, one of our longer drives, and we packed in some great sights along the way from Carradale to Oban.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Kintyre, Deer
Feorlan

 

Carradale

Coastal Road Trip, Carradale Harbour
After another huge Scottish breakfast, we checked out Carradale’s small harbour.  Just us, the seagulls and a solitary boat off on an early morning sail.

 

Saddell

Coastal Road Trip, Saddell Abbey
The remains of Saddell Abbey, built by Irish monks in the 1100s, it had operated as a local centre of worship for 350 years.

 

Davaar Island

Coastal Road Trip, Davaar Island Lighthouse
As we drove closer to Campbeltown, Davaar Island emerged in the distance, with views over to its Lighthouse.

 

Campbeltown

Coastal Road Trip, Campbeltown, Harbour, Logs
Logs stacked along the harbour at Campbeltown.

 

Feorlan

Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Kintyre, Feorlan, Deer
Along the long winding road to the Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse this young deer spotted us.
Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Kintyre, Feorlan, Deer, close up
Quickly sniffed the air … then did a runner into the woodland.

 

Mull of Kintyre

Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse
The Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse.  Following in the footsteps of Paul McCartney.  We had to walk the final stretch down a steep lane from the cliffs above… we only walked part way and ‘zoomed’ the rest 😉
Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Kintyre, Green Foliage
Lush green or deep purple foliage everywhere you look.

 

Carskey Bay

Coastal Road Trip, Carskey Bay
The views down to the secluded Carskey Bay from the lane back from the Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse.

 

Westport Beach

Coastal Road Trip, Westport Beach, Paddle Board, Surfer
A surfer braving the cold waters at Westport Beach.

 

Kilberry

Coastal Road Trip, Kilberry Sculptured Stone
One of the sculptured stones found in Kilberry, from around the 14th century.
Coastal Road Trip, Kilberry, Lane
The track past the stones.

 

Crinan Canal

Coastal Road Trip, Cairnbaan, Crinan Canal, Reflections
Perfect reflections in the still Crinan Canal at Cairnbaan.
Coastal Road Trip, Bellanoch, Crinan Canal, Boat Reflections
And more reflections further down the Crinan Canal at Bellanoch.
Coastal Road Trip, Old Crinan Harbour, Loch Crinan, Julian, Jarno
Suns out!
Coastal Road Trip, Old Crinan Harbour, Loch Crinan
Enjoying the views across Loch Crinan from Old Crinan Harbour.

 

Kilmichael Glassary

 

Coastal Road Trip, Kilmichael Glassary, Dunadd Fort
Views form the top of Dunadd Fort, one of the most important early medieval sites in Scotland.  Legend says that the hero Ossian left the footprint in this stone when he leapt 1km from Rhudle Hill.

 

Kilmartin

Coastal Road Trip, Kilmartin, Nether Largie Standing Stones
The Nether Largie Standing Stones, Temple Wood, placed here around 3,200 years ago.   They align with the rising and the setting of the moon and sun at significant times.

 

Loch Melfort

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Melfort
Buoys on Loch Melfort.

 

Loch Feochan

Coastal Road Trip, Kilninver, Loch Feochan
The warm evening light at Loch Feochan, near Kilninver.

 

Oban

Coastal Road Trip, Oban, Sunset
The sun starting to set over Oban Bay.
Coastal Road Trip, Oban, Sunset
Daylight almost gone as the sky turned to a dusty pink.

 

Daily video

Day 14 – Dunoon to Carradale

It rained much of our 149 mile journey today from Dunoon to Carradale, but we made the most of the breaks in the rain.  We had stunning views of the lochs, rain or shine.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Tarbet, Harbour, Lobster pots
Tarbet

 

Dunoon

Coastal Road Trip, Dunoon, wrapped bales, smiley face
Leaving Dunoon we passed a smiley face on some wrapped bales, a good start to the day!

 

Loch Riddon

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Riddon
Morning view down Loch Riddon.

 

Tighnabruaich

Coastal Road Trip, view above Tighnabruaich
The misty view from the hills above Tighnabruaich before we headed down into the village.
Coastal Road Trip, Kyles of Bute, Family fishing
A family fishing on the Kyles of Bute.

 

Portavadie

Coastal Road Trip, Portavadie Tarbet Ferry
The ferry leaving Portavadia for Tarbet.  As we watched, a bunch of cyclists that we had overtaken earlier just miss it.  Lots of cyclists in Scotland on this route, and some of those hills looked real tough, rather them than us.
Coastal Road Trip, Portavadie Tarbet Ferry Sign, Argyll's Secret Coast
It’s not really a secret then, is it?

 

Otter Ferry

Coastal Road Trip, Otter Ferry, Pontoon
A quiet pontoon at a very quiet Otter Ferry.

 

Castle Lachlan

Coastal Road Trip, Castle Lachlan
The remains of Castle Lachlan, halfway up Loch Fyne.

 

Inveraray

Coastal Road Trip, Inveraray Castle
We arrived at Inveraray just as a storm decided to descend on the town.  So just jumped out of the car to take some quick pictures of the Castle.
Coastal Road Trip, Inveraray Jail, Jarno
Jarno looking cheerful outside the jail.
Coastal Road Trip, Inveraray, Pipe Band, Sign
What could be more Scottish?
Coastal Road Trip, Inveraray, War Memorial
The highland soldier war memorial reflected in the puddled path.
Coastal Road Trip, Inveraray, Harbour
The glowing seaweed and a freshly painted fishing boat bringing some colour to Inveraray Harbour.

 

Ardrishaig

Coastal Road Trip, Ardrishaig, Anchor, Lighthouse
Not much going on, just a loo break, a rusty anchor and a lighthouse.

 

Tarbet

Coastal Road Trip, Tarbet, Harbour, Lobster pots
Lobster pots piled on the quay at Tarbert Harbour.
Coastal Road Trip, Tarbet, Harbour, Border Force
Borderforce patrol boat at odds with the backdrop of quaint houses on the green Tarbert hillside.

 

Skipness

Coastal Road Trip, Skipness Castle
This was the biggest surprise of the day.  Several miles down a small coastal lane we found Skipness Castle.
Coastal Road Trip, Skipness Castle, Julian, Jarno
Free to wonder around, and no one else but us there to enjoy.

 

Daily video

Day 13 – Greenock to Dunoon

Another 120 miles ahead of us today as we set off from Greenock to loop around the mainland, and end up only a few miles away across the Firth of Clyde at Dunoon.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Long, Arrochar, Old Pier
Loch Long.

 

Port Glasgow

Coastal Road Trip, Port Glasgow, Newark Castle
Our first castle of the day, Newark Castle.  Quite a rabbits warren of rooms… it went on and on.
Coastal Road Trip, Port Glasgow, Newark Castle, Jarno Knight
Jarno picking a fight with the lovely lady working in the Historic Scotland castle shop.

 

Dumbarton

Coastal Road Trip, Dumbarton Castle, Cannon
And on to our next castle, Dumbarton Castle.  The heavens opened at this point, but still we scrabbled up the many steps to the top of the castle hill.  But took the best picture back down at the bottom of this cannon pointing out across the Firth of Clyde to where we’d just come from earlier in the morning.

 

Helensburgh

Coastal Road Trip, Helensburgh, Hill House, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Table, Chairs
One of the highlights of the day were the unmistakably Charles Rennie Mackintosh interiors of Hill House.  BTW, a correction, we call it Hill Top House by mistake in the daily video (should be just Hill House) – thanks Julian’s Mum & Dad for pointing that out 😉 Living room table and chairs.
Coastal Road Trip, Helensburgh, Hill House, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Bedroom
Bedroom furniture and window.  Perfect complimenting each other.
Coastal Road Trip, Helensburgh, Hill House, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Hall Light
The hall stair lighting with its rich deep purple glass.
Coastal Road Trip, Helensburgh, Hill House, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Entrance Hall
The entrance, every element Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

 

Gare Loch

Coastal Road Trip, Gare Loch, Yellow Boat
A solitary yellow boat on Gare Loch.

 

Loch Long

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Long, For Fox Sake Slow Down
We slowed down…
Coastal Road Trip, Loch Long, Grey Mountains
Views up Loch Long with the mountains fading into fifty shades of grey.
Coastal Road Trip, Loch Long, Arrochar
The sun reemerged as we reached the head of the Loch near Arrochar.
Coastal Road Trip, Loch Long, Arrochar, Old Pier
And the remainders of the old Pier at Arrochar.

 

Glen Croe

Coastal Road Trip, Glen Croe
The bright evening sunlight highlighting the uneveness of Glen Croe.

 

Lochgoilhead

Coastal Road Trip, Lochgoilhead
Lochgoilhead, not surprisingly at the head of Loch Goil.

 

Loch Fyne

Coastal Road Trip, Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne looking mysterious as the rain sets in again.

 

Dunoon

Coastal Road Trip, Dunoon, Hunter's Quay Ferry Terminal
The view from our B&B bedroom window, overlooking the small ferry terminal at Hunter’s Quay.

 

Daily video

 

Day 12 – Stranraer to Greenock

Day twelve already!  Getting deeper in to Scotland as we head for Greenock (just west of Glasgow).

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Ardrossan, Flowers
Ardrossan

 

Stranraer

Coastal Road Trip, Stranraer, Lighthouse
A small lighthouse peeping over the shorline between the ferry terminals on Loch Ryan.

 

Ballantree

Coastal Road Trip, Ballantree, Pirates
Scottish pirates?  Unlikely today in the quiet (almost empty) and the slightly smelly harbor of Ballantree.

 

Lendalfoot

Coastal Road Trip, Lendalfoot, A77
Impressive views north along the coastal A77 road just before Lendalfoot.

 

Girvan

Coastal Road Trip, Girvan
What a great backdrop to Girvan.  A few miles further on we tried to get close to Turnberry Lighthouse, unfortunately it’s now surrounded by a luxury Trump hotel and golf course, so we gave up…

 

Culzean Castle

Coastal Road Trip, Culzean Castle, Julian, Jarno
The super impressive Culzean Castle, both inside and out.  National Trust Scotland have clearly invested in the property and the facilities.
Coastal Road Trip, Culzean Castle, Arms
One way to show off the Kennedy family arms.

 

Denure

Coastal Road Trip, Denure Castle
The remains of the small castle just as you enter Denure.

 

Alloway

Coastal Road Trip, Alloway, Burns Cottage
Just before Ayr, we arrived at the birthplace of the Scottish poet Robert Burns (this cottage).
Coastal Road Trip, Alloway, Burns Cottage, Maggpie, Tam, Sculpture
A sculpture of Maggpie the horse and Tam, from the Burns poem Tam o’ Shanter.

 

Ardrossan

Coastal Road Trip, Ardrossan, Flowers
Lovely flower displays on the seafront brightening up a rather dull Ardrossan.

 

Portencross

Coastal Road Trip, Portencross, Trees
Hourglass figured trees on the road to Portencross Castle.
Coastal Road Trip, Portencross Castle, Julian, Jarno
Portencross Castle, and it started to absolutely pour down with rain, so surprised we managed to get any pictures at all of this 1300s castle.

 

Hunterston

Coastal Road Trip, Hunterston, Cranes
Looking back from Fairlie to the silhouette of the cranes at the coal handling port of Hunterston Terminal.

 

Largs

Coastal Road Trip, Largs, Rainbow
As the rains cleared and the evening sun burst through the clouds, a huge rainbow appeared over Largs, which seemed a surprisingly busy holiday town.

 

Cloch Point

Coastal Road Trip, Cloch Point Lighthouse
Just before arriving at Greenock for the night, we made a quick stop at Cloch Point Lighthouse overlooking the Firth of Clyde, and now someones home.

 

Daily video

Day 11 – Newton Stewart to Stranraer

Day eleven, wow the days are flying by, today we drove 135 miles from Newton Stewart to Stanraer… with quite a bit of rain to keep us company.  Hence, the grey-ness of several of today’s photos.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Drummore, Clown Scarecrow
Drummore Scarecrows

 

Wigtown

Coastal Road Trip, Wigtown
A sleepy little town curiously full of bookshops, and it turned out to be the book capital of Scotland.

 

Garlieston

Coastal Road Trip, Garlieston
For a small village it had 2 bowling greens, which may have been a good indicator of the towns demographics. Weirdly, according to the price list on the bowling green hut, men are charged more than women to play.

 

Isle of Whithorn

Coastal Road Trip, Isle of Whithorn, St Ninian's Chapel
St Ninian’s Chapel from about the 1300’s, but still in pretty good condition, and look at those thick walls.
Coastal Road Trip, Isle of Whithorn, Lighthouse
Not the most attractive of lighthouses, but we added it to our collection.
Coastal Road Trip, Isle of Whithorn, Swings
Swings with a view.

 

Whithorn

Coastal Road Trip, Whithorn Priory
Whithorn Priory, founded in the 400s in Whithorn, considered to be Scotland’s oldest Christian settlement.

 

Barsalloch Fort

Coastal Road Trip, Barsalloch Fort view
Not much left of the this fort on top of a hill, so here are the views south east to Point of Leg.

 

Chapel Finian

Coastal Road Trip, Chapel Finian
OK, you’ll have to use your imagination for what this chapel previously looked like.

 

Glenluce

At the remains of Glenluse Abbey it was so wet and stormy Jarno decided it would be better to stay in the car.  Julian ventured out and took a look around despite a closed sign – maybe due to the weather?

 

Drummore

Coastal Road Trip, Drummore, Welcome Scarecrow
On the way to the Mull of Galloway we passed through Drummore, eerily full of scarecrows in costumes, a local competition.  Here are the winners according to CoastalRoadTrip.com
Coastal Road Trip, Drummore, Clown Scarecrow
Third place
Coastal Road Trip, Drummore, Chimney Sweep Scarecrow
Second place
Coastal Road Trip, Drummore, Sheep on bike Scarecrow
First place, what a winning combination a sheep on a bike with a cuddle me jumper.

 

Mull of Galloway

Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Galloway Lighthouse, Sign
The most southerly point of Scotland at the Mull of Galloway lighthouse.  And it was super windy!  Some directions for you…
Coastal Road Trip, Mull of Galloway Lighthouse, Certificate, Julian, Jarno
Certificates for climbing, amazing views from the top.  Unfortunately the photographer missed to include the full lighthouse in the photo… doh! 😉

Finally got our Coastal Road Trip blog online! First 4 days in Wales (Cardiff to Dolgellau), though we're now in Scotland… so more to follow. Check it out: www.coastalroadtrip.com

Posted by Julian Sheard on Freitag, 18. August 2017

(not sure why the Facebook text is shown in German here.. I will hopefully work out how to correct)

 

Port Logan

Coastal Road Trip, Port Logan, Old Stone Lighthouse, Bell tower
Old stone lighthouse with a bell tower on Port Logan Pier.

 

Portpatrick

Coastal Road Trip, Portpatrick, Stormy sea
Stormy seas crashing over the rocks at Portpatrick, a larger town than we had expected in this fairly remote area.
Coastal Road Trip, Portpatrick, MV Princess Victoria Memorial
A bit of a curious choice of memorial for the MV Princess Victoria sinking.
Coastal Road Trip, Portpatrick, Lighthouse
The Portpatrick Lighthouse at the entrance to the harbour.

 

Black Head

Coastal Road Trip, Black Head, Lighthouse, Cows
The locals keeping an eye on us as we approached Black House Lighthouse.
Coastal Road Trip, Black Head Lighthouse
As close as we could get, as it turned out to be someone’s house.

 

Corsewall Point

Coastal Road Trip, Corsewall Point Lighthouse
Yes, it does look similar to the other lighthouses painted yellow and white, but it is a different one, honest.  Corsewall Point Lighthouse seemed to be a hotel, but mysteriously no one was around… so we left, and headed to Stranraer for the night.

 

Daily video

 

Day 10 – Carlise to Newton Stewart

Today we entered Scotland!  Driving from Carlise to Newton Stewart, and had much better weather.  As soon as we entered Scotland we got sunshine 🙂

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, New Abbey, Sweetheart Abbey, Lawnmower
Sweetheart Abbey at New Abbey

 

Carlise

Coastal Road Trip, Carlise Castle
Carlise was our last stopping point before crossing the Eden and Esk Rivers into Scotland.  The impressive Norman castle and Jarno in the rain.
Coastal Road Trip, Carlise, Be Just And Fear Not
Good point!
Coastal Road Trip, Carlise Cathedral
Carlise Cathedral dating from 1133, just down the road from the castle.

 

Caerlaverock

Coastal Road Trip, Caerlaverock Castle
Our first stop in Scotland at the medieval Caerlaverock Castle.  We also became members of Historic Scotland, as it looked like the route ahead would probably include many castles and historic sites!
Coastal Road Trip, Caerlaverock Castle Interior
A small but surprisingly elaborate Renaissance castle.
Coastal Road Trip, Caerlaverock Castle, Pit-Prison
Looking up to the sky from the pit-prison.

 

New Abbey

Coastal Road Trip, New Abbey, Sweetheart Abbey
Sweetheart Abbey in New Abbey, named after Lady Dervorgilla, its founder who was buried with the heart of her husband.
Coastal Road Trip, New Abbey, Sweetheart Abbey, Lawnmower
Freshly cut grass at the abbey.
Coastal Road Trip, New Abbey, The New Abbey Corn Mill
A quick tour of the The New Abbey Corn Mill.

 

Carse Bay

Coastal Road Trip, Carse Bay
Views across Carse Bay and the Solway Firth.

 

Southerness

Coastal Road Trip, Southerness Lighthouse
An unusual square backed lighthouse sitting among rock pools at Southerness Point.

 

Rockcliffe

Coastal Road Trip, Rockcliffe, Ice cream, Julian, Jarno
Our first ice cream in Scotland, and believe it or not, the first ice cream on our coastal road trip.
Coastal Road Trip, Rockcliffe Beach
And plenty of people squeezed on to the beach enjoying the sunshine.

 

Orchardton Tower

Coastal Road Trip, Orchardton Tower, Jarno
The Orchardton Tower down a small lane.  The only roundhouse in Scotland.  And we were its only visitors.

 

Hazelfield

Coastal Road Trip, Hazelfield, Solway Firth view
Eco views across the Solway Firth from Hazelfield.
Coastal Road Trip, Hazelfield, Straw giant
And a straw giant in a field by the road…. no we have no idea either.

 

Dundrennan

Coastal Road Trip, Dundrennan Abbey
Dundrennan Abbey was closed by the time we arrived but fortunately it towered above the walls, so we could easily take a quick look around from the outside.

 

Kirkcudbright

Coastal Road Trip. Kirkcudbright
Kirkcudbright town viewed from across the bay, with MacLellan’s Castle under a bit of renovation.  We had pie and chips for dinner as a little arrival treat in Scotland 🙂
Coastal Road Trip. Kirkcudbright, boat wreck
An old boat on the banks of Kirkcudbright Bay.

 

Little Ross

Coastal Road Trip, Little Ross Lighthouse
Little Ross Lighthouse in the distance.

 

Fixer-upper

Costal Road Trip, Fixer-upper
We came across this fixer-upper on the coastline between Ross and Anwoth, maybe we need a bit of a smaller project.

 

Cardoness Castle

Coastal Road Trip, Cardoness Castle
Built by the McCulloch family in the 1400s.  It had already closed for the day, so just viewed from a distance.

 

Cairnholly Chambered Cairns

Coastal Road Trip, Cairnholly Chambered Cairns
And finally, glowing in the evening sun, an ancient burial ground and meeting place from 4-6,000 years ago!  Jarno couldn’t open the gate (the gate was newer).

 

Daily video

Day 09 – Barrow-In-Furness to Carlisle

A rather dull day nine as we drove north along the coast from Barrow-In-Furness to Carlise.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, St Bees Lighthouse
St Bees Lighthouse

 

South Walney

Coastal Road Trip, South Walney, Nature Reserve, Piel Castle
First stop of the day was the South Walney Nature Reserve, with its views back north to Piel Castle, which we had seen the evening before from the other side by Rampside.
Coastal Road Trip, South Walney, Nature Reserve, Ranger's Hut
The ranger’s hut at the nature reserve, an Aladdin’s cave of nature related info.
Coastal Road Trip, South Walney, Nature Reserve, Seagull, Jarno
We encountered a very curious (and hungry) friend.

 

Eskmeals

Coastal Road Trip, Eskmeals Beach, MOD Eskmeals
Next to the pebble beach, we found this sign, we moved on quickly…
Coastal Road Trip, Eskmeals, Lake District Views
But behind the beach there were idyllic views over meadows to the Lake District.

 

Ravenglass

Coastal Road Trip, Ravenglass
Cute seaside cottages (very close to the sea on the other side) in the small village of Ravenglass.

 

Sellafield

Coastal Road Trip, Sellafield
The word’s first commercial nuclear power station.  Julian had remembered adverts for the visitor centre as a kid, and was weirdly curious to visit.  However, it seems the visitor centre no longer exists, so instead we made do with these views across the fields.

 

St Bees

Coastal Road Trip, St Bees Lighthouse
More views across fields.  We were trying to get a closer look at St Bees Lighthouse, but down a very narrow quiet country lane we came across private property signs.  So we decided to view from a distance over this golden brown wheat field.

 

Whitehaven

Coastal Road Trip, Whitehaven, Lighthouse
A bit of a tired looking lighthouse at Whitehaven.
Coastal Road Trip, Whitehaven, Harbor, Industrial past
Remains of Whitehaven’s industrial past.

 

Maryport

Coastal Road Trip, Maryport, Lighthouse, Paintings
Next to Maryport Lighthouse there was a display of lighthouse paintings by local school children, so here is one of them to add a bit of colour to day nine of our Coastal Road Trip.
Coastal Road Trip, Maryport Breakwater
A bleak and cold evening at the Maryport breakwater.

 

Siloth

Coastal Road Trip, Siloth
Before heading east along the coast to Carlise we stopped by Siloth, with its surprisingly wide cobbled streets, and long stepped promenade stretching into the distance.

 

Daily video

Day 08 – Preston to Barrow-In-Furness

Today’s drive on the north west coastline was pretty varied as we covered everything from quiet coastal villages to busy holiday resorts like Blackpool.

 

Photo of the Day

Coastal Road Trip, Blackpool, Blackpool Lights, McDonalds
Blackpool Lights

 

Preston

Coastal Road Trip, Preston, Marina, Lighthouse, Morrisons, Lighthouse
As you follow the north west coastline, Preston is the first crossing point over the River Ribble.  As luck would have it there was a disused lighthouse by the local Morrisons supermarket at the town marina.  I guess not many lighthouses have a trolley park at their base.

 

Lytham St Anne’s

Coastal Road Trip, Lytham St Anne's, Lytham Windmill
Lytham Windmill, our first windmill (keeping Jarno happy), right on the edge of the grassy Ribble estuary.
Coastal Road Trip, Lytham St Anne's, RSPB
The view across the estuary from the local RSPB sanctuary.
Coastal Road Trip, Lytham St Anne's Pier
Lytham St Anne’s Pier and the broad sandy beach.
Coastal Road Trip, Lytham St Anne's, Beach, Donkey
Donkeys being prepared for the day ahead on the beach.

 

Blackpool

Coastal Road Trip, Blackpool, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Mr Chippy
A few typical sights along the long Blackpool seafront.  First at the southern end, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, behind a chippy.
Coastal Road Trip, Blackpool, Blackpool Lights, McDonalds
The Blackpool lights (by day), no prizes for guessing who were sponsoring this section of the lights.
Coastal Road Trip, Blackpool, Blackpool Tower
And at the northern end of the promenade, the magnificent Blackpool Tower.

 

Cleveleys

Coastal Road Trip, Cleveleys, Mary's Shell
The promenade looked pretty smart here, it clearly had a recent face lift.  A huge shell work of art (Mary’s Shell) on the empty beach.

 

Fleetwood

Coastal Road Trip, Fleetwood, Pharos Lighthouse
More disused lighthouses, first the larger Pharos Lighthouse at Fleetwood.

 

Knott End-on-Sea

Coastal Road Trip, Knott End-on-Sea view, Fleetwood, Lower Lighthouse
Then whilst having a picnic at Knott End-on-Sea, we had a great view back west over the River Wyre to the Lower Lighthouse at Fleetwood.

 

Lancaster

Coastal Road Trip, Lancaster, Lancaster Castle, Julian, Jarno
Crossing the River Lune at Lancaster, we stopped to look at Lancaster Castle.  Interestingly it was still a working prison until 2011.

 

Morecambe

Coastal Road Trip, Morecambe, Lake District Sculpture, Art, Silhouette
Silhouette of the Lake District mountains, outlined and labelled on this clever art piece on Morcambe Promenade.
Coastal Road Trip, Morcambe, Eric Morecambe Statue
This statue needs no introduction for the Brits, but for the rest it’s a statue of Eric Morecambe.  A famous British comedian.  Julian did a selfie with him but his sunglasses were lopsided, ironic.

 

Arnside

Coastal Road Trip, Arnside, Pier
Small quiet pier on to the River Kent at the quaint village of Arnside.

 

Grange-over-Sands

Coastal Road Trip, Grange-over-Sands, Railway, View
The railway line separating the view back over the River Kent to Arnside.

 

Ulverston

Coastal Road Trip, Ulverston, Barrow Monument, Head Monument
The Hoad (Barrow) Monument on the peak of Hoad Hill to the east of Ulverston.  Only took a picture as it resembles a lighthouse.

 

Rampside

Coastal Road Trip, Rampside, Rampside Lighthouse
Before heading to Barrow-In-Furness for the night we stopped by the rather unusual and slim Rampside Lighthouse.

 

Daily video

Day 07 – Colwyn Bay to Preston

We started day seven of our trip by going back west a few miles to Llandudno before continuing east out of Wales into England.  Some typical and some not so typical British seaside sights today.

 

Photo of the day

Coastal Road Trip, Crosby Beach, Antony Gormley's Another Place
Crosby Beach

 

Llandudno

Coastal Road Trip, Llandudno Pier
Early Sunday morning at Llandudno Pier, eerily empty.  Everyone was clearly still in bed, as they knew the heavens were about to open.
Coastal Road Trip, Llandudno
Colourful hotels at the end of the Llandudno promenade.  The start of the Great Orme hill and headland behind.  We then drove around the Great Orme Heritage Coast loop, would have been great views if it it hadn’t been pouring down with rain.

 

Colwyn Bay

Coastal Road Trip, Colwyn Bay
We looped back to Colwyn Bay where we stayed the night before.  The promenade and road along the sea front was closed off due to an ongoing waterfront improvement project.  In the distance we could see the pier, which looked in a sorry state… hopefully that is part of their improvement project too.

 

Prestatyn

Coastal Road Trip, Prestatyn, Lifeguard Board
The lifeguards were having a peaceful day at a very quiet Prestatyn Beach.  Wind turbines off shore in the background, which became a surprisingly common sight on our coastal journey.

 

Talacre Lighthouse

Coastal Road Trip, Talacre Lighthouse, Point of Ayr
The Talacre Lighthouse at Point of Ayr.  Abandoned, but looked great, even on a stormy morning.

 

Flint

Coastal Road Trip, Flint Castle, Julian, Jarno
Flint Castle with impressive views over the River Dee.  We bumped into a lovely Canadian family that had also been staying at the same B&B as us near Cardigan, we had also bumped into them at Cilgerran Castle three days earlier… small world.

 

Flintshire Bridge

Coastal Road Trip, Flintshire Bridge
Crossing the River Dee over a rather striking Flintshire Bridge, flanked by electricity pylons.  Blue sky starting to peep through the clouds…

 

Leasowe Lighthouse

Coastal Road Trip, Leasowe Lighthouse
The now disused Leasowe Lighthouse, not the most attractive lighthouse, but still striking with the blue sky behind.

 

New Brighton

Coastal Road Trip, New Brighton
The view from New Brighton out to the lighthouse and beyond to the cranes on the other side of the River Mersey.

 

Crosby

Coastal Road Trip, Crosby Beach, Antony Gormley's Another Place
One of the one hundred Antony Gormley’s ‘Another Place’ statues, submerged in Crosby Beach.  A bit spooky but very striking.  Very cool to see in person.
Coastal Road Trip, Crosby Beach, Antony Gormley's Another Place, www.coastalroadtrip.com
A bit of beach marketing.

 

Formby

Coastal Road Trip, Formby Point
A lovely clean beach backed by sand dunes and pinewoods at the National Trust’s Formby Point.  They’ve clearly struggled with beach erosion though, this looked like an old road or building that had collapsed in the beach and sea.

 

Southport

Coastal Road Trip, Southport, Ice cream van
A Mr Whippy ice cream van finishing work for the day at Southport Beach.
Coastal Road Trip, Southport Beach, Weather Vane Fish
A striking looking weather vane style fish sculpture on the Southport Promenade.

 

Marshside

Coastal Road Trip, Marshside, View to Blackpool Tower
On our way to Preston for the night, we passed Marshside, with views across to Lytham St Ann’s, and Blackpool Tower ghost-like in the distance.  A sneak preview of our trip tomorrow.

 

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