1) Lochranza
Loch Ranza, with its village of Lochranza, is an attractive loch on the North coast of Arran, just to the West of the ‘Cock of Arran’ – the northernmost part of the island.
It is served by CalMac’s small vehicular ferry which connects this end of Arran to the Kintyre peninsula, at Claonaig; when earlier this year, both the large ferries that serve Brodick from Ardrossan were out of action, this route was the only option to travel to or from the island, though it would be a massive diversion!
The loch has 12 visitor moorings, with pick up buoys, which are to be paid for by an honesty system via either BACS or by cash in an envelope into the box at the dinghy dock; 2023’s rate was £15 per night on the moorings.
The loch is surrounded by high hills, and is at the end of a glen; whilst only open to the NNW, and you might expect that the loch would be sheltered from winds from the South, the wind can howl down the glen, actually accelerated by the ground features. We have seen 35 knots shortly after departing from Lochranza, though the wind settled to low teens once away from the island and sailing up Loch Fyne!
The loch has some space for anchoring, and it is possible to tie a yacht alongside the dock for a temporary stop, there being enough water at the end.
The ruined castle at the head of the navigable part of the loch is a feature, though it is not open to access inside; there are good walks around the bay, and towards the Cock of Arran past ‘Hutton’s Unconfirmity‘ site where the eighteenth century geologist James Hutton observed adjacent rocks of different types and ages lying at very different angles to each other, giving evidence of the age of the planet and the way in which it had evolved.
The community has taken over the Lochranza Country Inn and opened for trade in the spring of 2023; the Arran Whisky distillery is a short walk further up the glen, and is well worth a visit, either for a tour or simply to its gift shop and cafe.
2) Brodick
There are 15 visitor moorings, arranged as three trots of 5, in the South West corner of Brodick Bay, beyond the ferry terminal; these are provided by North Ayreshire Council and are free of charge to use for visitors, for up to three nights.
If there is North in the wind, the anchorage below Brodick Castle would be attractive; if there is any East in the wind, anywhere within Brodick Bay will be uncomfortable.
Brodick has a number of shops, including a Coop, as well as hotels with bars etc; the independant Arran Botanical Drinks bar on the beach under the castle is well worth a visit, though appeared to be for sale when we visited in August 2023. The Wineport pub is also in this north west corner of the bay, on the land side of the road (no sea view) but is an excellent pub with good food. The Arran Brewery is adjacent.
The walk to Brodick Castle and its grounds is very worthwhile; and if you are a mountain person, the walk from this area up Goat Fell is one not to miss; Goat Fell is only a little short of being a Munro, at 2867 ft high, and you feel all of it, having started from sea level!
3) Lamlash
Lamlash is apparently the largest village on Arran, but can be only slightly larger than Brodick; it also has visitor moorings, but these are privately operated, and cost £10 per night (cash only!) payable at the Holy Isle ferry hut. Information on line suggests there are ‘up to 20 or 30’ moorings – in practice, during 2023, there were probably 10 available. There is plenty of space to anchor, in sand, outside the moorings, especially to the North; but you are likely to be anchoring in at least 10m, as the sea bed shelves up to the shallows quite sharply.
Like Brodick, Lamlash is somewhat unsuitable if there is East in the wind; though it is possible to move across to Holy Isle for shelter from this direction.
Ashore, the dinghy can be landed on the slip next to the pier, but pulled up clear of the slip which the RNLI inshore boat may need at any time. Surprisingly, as yet there are no RNLI lifejacket lockers here, a location where they would be useful! There are two pubs, the Drift Inn on the waterfront to the north of the pier, and the Glenisle Hotel to the South of the pier, on the land side of the road. We have only been to the Drift Inn, where booking is often necessary, but the meal was fine. There is a Coop store and assorted other shops, including a teashop/bakers, adjacent to the pier.
There is a good walk along the front towards the North, and onwards on the coast path into Brodick (and there is an occasional bus service back if required!).
4) Holy Isle
Holy Isle is an island retreat for peaceful reflection, run by Buddists but with courses for all. Well behaved quiet visitors are welcomed – there is a passenger ferry that runs regularly from Lamlash – and in an east wind, or in settled conditions, the anchorage to the south of the floating jetty. Dinghies can be put alongside the jetty provided they do not block the ferry or the Retreat’s own launches; both sides are useable, and if the dinghy is kept at the inshore end, there should generally be no issue.
There are walks possible both along the shoreline to the North, for a relatively short distance, and along a track to the point and lighthouse at the South of the island; also, there is a track that climbs up the hill behind the buildings, and continues eventually to the peak of the island.
5) Blackwaterfoot
This village on the south west corner of Arran is exposed to the prevailing winds and can only really be visited in settled weather or when the wind is moderate and in the East (offshore); there are no visitors moorings here (as of June 2023), though there may once have been according to some information sources. It is necessary to anchor reasonably well offshore, with shallow water extending some distance; at high water, it is possible to access a small drying harbour, for dinghies and small fishing boats, at the mouth of the small river.
Ashore there is a large hotel that may cater for coach parties, the premises of the Arran Butcher, and a small general store.
6) Carradale / Torrisdale – Kintyre
This large south facing bay on the East coast of the Kintyre peninsula is sheltered from all every direction other than wind with south in it; on the west shore of the bay, Torrisdale is quite sheltered from the south, but open to the South East. If neither location is suitable, then the visitor moorings understood to be usually available on the north side of Carradale village should be sheltered.
We have not been ashore here other than at Torrisdale, where there is a good walk inland up to Torrisdale Castle and beyond; the coast walk towards Carradale was challenging, at high water – possibly this becomes easier if there is a low tide route around the rocks on the shore.
Anchored here, there are stunning views eastwards to Arran and Ailsa Craig.
7) Campbeltown, Kintyre
We have visited Campbeltown only once to date, when we enjoyed a night alongside their visitor’s pontoon, and had a warm welcome from the volunteer manager; there looked to be some potential anchorages within Campbeltown Loch also, which might be worth investigating on another occasion.
8) Troon, South Ayrshire
Troon Yacht Haven is operated by the same company as our home berth and visiting Troon is therefore free of charge for us, and there always seems to be some space available. The marina is set just beyond the commercial port and activities, which include a large amount of timber being shipped in to the timber processing factory at the dockside; these ships can be seen being loaded at Holy Loch and Ardrishaig, amongst others.
The marina facilities are good, though the shower cubicles suffer from being a bit too small to accommodate a seat or anywhere to put anything… there is a communal changing area outside the row of shower cubicles.
Scott’s Restaurant is located on the first floor of the marina building, and must have more of a view than is the case at the Largs branch (which has a car park view only!).
The town centre (and railway station) is perhaps a 10 min walk; though one of the main attractions for us is walking on the long South Beach, which extends almost to Prestwick. At high water, the beach can be narrow at places, but at low water the beach is very wide.
It is a convenient place to come to if at Lamlash or Brodick, when the wind is forecast to blow from the East!
Travels of Sailing Yacht Kitty B 