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i'm going to a wedding near to Kames in Scotland next month and I've booked a room for a week.
I'm planning to take a bike but I'm not sure which one. Should i take a mtb or a roadbike? Is there anything that the stw masses recommended i see/ do/ ride?
Ignore that as it's probably the other kames as no one would have a wedding in muirkirk 🙂
Kames, Ayrshire or Kames, Argyll?
Is this where the op finds out he's booked a room at the wrong Kames 🙂
😆
Lol!
If it's Kames in Argyll, Dunoon is about 45 mins drive, plenty good riding there, round of SES was there 2 weeks ago.
Good road loop from Tighnabruiach to Strachur via Glendaruel and back via Loch Fyne.
ahh, Argyll! The groom booked the accomodation 😀
Lucky escape 🙂
In saying that, Kames (Ayrshire) has Cairn Table, which is an interesting climb by MTB by the time you've negotiated the swampy bits at the bottom.
The downside is that its Ayrshire.
In saying that, Kames (Ayrshire) has Cairn Table, which is an interesting climb by MTB by the time you've negotiated the swampy bits at the bottom.
Is it bollocks, it's utter shite.
The downside is that its Ayrshire.
The upside is that the six fingered, one eyed, banjo stylings of someones' Uncle Dad are truly a sight for the tourist to behold. 😉
Road - this is a couple of miles along to the north 🙂
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and without the MAMIL clutter 🙂
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The upside is that the six fingered, one eyed, banjo stylings of someones' Uncle Dad are truly a sight for the tourist to behold.
Right ye are, away back to yer paedo-infested street! 😉
Tbf, there is probably much better road options in that area of Argyll, than MTB.
Is that the best ye've got?
Back in the fridge with ye, Nobber. 🙂
Argyll is so on my 'must tour one day' list...
Argyll?...... in July?
Full midge protection is advised.
Back in the fridge with ye, Nobber.
Well, you get a bit touchy when folk say your wee toons a shitehole.... 😆
It is a paedo infested shitehole......but it's MY shitehole. 🙂
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I agree with Nobeer re Cairn Table.
There's the old drovers road between Muirkirk/Sanquhar.
Oh wait...it's not the local Kames after all....I'm off to practice my banjo....here piggy piggy
Ah, iainc has arrived......I assume this is the point at which the North Lanarkshire and Ayrshire teams forget their mutual emnity and get tore right in about the savages from the strange land on the hill sandwiched between our two great nations?
aye 🙂
There's the old drovers road between Muirkirk/Sanquhar
Yeh I suggested that in my first post but deleted it. I realised it must be the other Kames as no one from Muirkirk gets married, what with them already being family.
nice part of the world, no much to do mind, Tignabruich has a pub or 2, there's a marina over at Portavadie, there's also an old abandoned ghost village just to the south over at Portavadie, called Polphail never been though, and tbh not sure if still there, i'd imagine so.
http://urbanglasgow.co.uk/archive/polphail-the-ghost-village-at-portavadie-argyll__o_t__t_1500.html
Getting the ferry over to tarbert is alright, nice wee town and you can take a wee walk up to the old castle too. Was some sort of gala day on when i was there, which was good fun, so probably much busier then usual.
That's about the extent of my knowledge of the part of the world though. Guessing you'll be able to cobbler some offroad stuff together the kintyre way and the the cowal way, plus there plenty of forest track to explore if you look on the OS map, never done them though, plenty of road riding about there.
My granny lived in nearby Tighnabruaich for years. I spent many a week in the summer palmed off up there for free babysitting.
When the weather's great, it's great.
Ostel Bay nearby is worth a visit. One of the most beautiful beaches you'll ever see:
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Check out [url= http://www.argyllsecretcoast.co.uk/ ]Argyll's Secret Coast[/url] for more up-to-date info than I would be able to provide.
On a road bike, a loop of the Cowal peninsula would be good.
Off road, there's a classic route at Auchendrain which is not a million miles away, which any GMBC-ers on the board might be able to help you flesh out the details of.
5 ferries cycle route, cowal way, swimming at portavadie ifinty pool and posh restaurant, walk to the beach overlooking Arran, Bute has mount Stuart, a castle, ice-cream, climb goatfell on Arran, eat cheese and whisky, standing stones, visit tarbert, kintyre, go on paddle steamer Waverley...
there's a marina over at Portavadie, there's also an old abandoned ghost village just to the south over at Portavadie
Marina is nice for lunch. By the abandoned village do you mean the concrete accommodation 'village' that was built for oil rig construction workers in the 1970's but never used?
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There's also a nice pub up the road from Portavadie, the Kilfinan Hotel, at Kilfinan funnily enough.
October - Cowal Chase - http://nofussevents.co.uk/events/the-cowal-way-chase-2017-october-21
Gary_M - Member
By the abandoned village do you mean the concrete accommodation 'village' that was built for oil workers in the 1970's but never used?
Aye that's the one, I've never been, nor do I even know if it'd be interesting for a walk around or not, just always thought it might waste half an hour sometime and be of interest. Tbh don't even know if you'd be allowed in.
I'm not doing well here am I? 😆
Aye that's the one, I've never been, nor do I even know if it'd be interesting for a walk around or not, just always thought it might waste half another sometime and be off interest. Tbh don't even know if you'd be allowed in
There's nothing to stop you going in. We had a wander round after going to the marina for lunch, it's alright if you're into 1970's concrete 🙂
Gary_M - Member
There's nothing to stop you going in. We had a wander round after going to the marina for lunch, it's alright if you're into 1970's concrete
Ah. cool, I'll take that is something to maybe visit if you're there, but not worth travelling to!
some good suggestions here. The abandoned village sounds like a good place to take the trials bike. So, i'll be taking three bikes...
Has anybody been sea kayaking round there?
there's loads of great paddling round there - if you pop in the sea at Kames and head north a mile you get to the Kyles of Bute - lots of great wee rocky bays, all very sheltered - a bit tidal but easy to get in back eddys when required.
(not a paddler, but have sailed in the area for 40 years 🙂 )
If you are going out for a paddle take a wee fishing rod for some mackerel. There should be plenty of them about as well as places to pull in for a cook up over a fire.
mackerel, brilliant!
Is there anywhere to hire a kayak and rods? I haven't kayaked in about 12 years
You could try the clubs linked below. The Argyll Sea Kayaking Trail passes Kames so you may get something to hire nearby.
http://www.paddleargyll.org.uk/clubs.html
Failling that Tiso in Glasgow will hire you one if you are passing on the way there.
Don't know anywhere who hire fishing rods but you can get something suitable for not a lot of money new or second hand.
Glasgow Angling Centre, couple mins away from Tiso.
https://www.fishingmegastore.com/index.html
For mackerel, but the cheapest spinning kit you can find, will be ample for the sea rats.
The first fish I ever caught was a mackerel, off Tighnabruaich Pier, where the Waverley comes in.
That was with a two-bob rod from the newsagents in the village, with lures made of coloured feathers.
My granny had the fish in her freezer for years and used to show it to folk like it was a hunting trophy.
I've done that, big push up(particuraly with tents!), soggy up top, though would be ridable on the dry, on the down was basically a decent on a grassy gap in the tree's till you hit the massive forest access road, lot of tree carnage, i couldn't find the rest of the path down due to the carnage. had to head along the fireroad to catch on to the main forest drive(which you can take a car on) then down over to loch awe to kilmartin.Auchendrain
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/401256198
Would be better doing the ardgarten loop i think if yer driving.
push up: (my m8 never really has got the concept of attaching stuff to yer bike) 😆 views were good though.
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Down was mostly like this: which was great while it lasted , broken up by felled trees though.
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soggy otb! 😆 my landing was good! and I still think my lidl bike bags were awesome! 😆
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That's a quite different route up over from Furnace that the Auchendrain loop takes Joe, although I believe it's not worth doing any more anyway due to the good bits being sanitised and the forestry work wrecking lots of it too.
Shame, used to be a Scottish classic.
Ahh, cool fair doo's, I did just cobble together the route from hearsay on the interweb mind you, so I can appreciate i could be out. Once up, I kinda just went where the path lead us tbh which was largely correct from what I planned till I hit the forest works and couldn't find the rest of the down. Never really got much of a down though, and when we hit the forest road, I'd no gps at the time, so really just had to use a bit of faith that it would actually take us somewhere!