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Arran, castle, ferry, garden, Ghost, Gigha, humor, international travel, islands, Scotland, travel
One of the first things you learn about Scotland is to drop everything and take advantage of great weather. One of the second things is not to wait for great weather. Yesterday, we did both. It was a holiday weekend thanks to the Queen’s Jubilee in honor of her 70-year reign.
We went out to lunch. It took the whole day. I woke a shocked Hub before breakfast and told him the azaleas were in bloom at Achamore Gardens on the tiny island of Gigha. I gave him 30 minutes before we had to leave to make the ferry at Lochranza, on the north end of Arran. It wasn’t pretty, but to my amazement, we made it into the second-to-last slot for the small ferry to Claonaig on the mainland.

We drove across the Kintyre peninsula to the even smaller Gigha ferry, arriving with plenty of time to see the fantastic displays at Achamore Gardens.

Arran, the Kintyre Peninsula, and Gigha. [The Isle of Arran was described to us as the balls to Kintyre’s penis. This is, I’m sorry to say, something that’s difficult to unsee…]
Gigha has seen a millennia of fighting over its tiny self. For centuries, two clans—Macdonald and MacNeills—fought bloody wars for possession. Eventually, the island was sold several times before finally being acquired by Sir James Horlick (of the powdered malted milk drink mix) in 1944. He began construction of the incredible specimen gardens of Achamore. Sadly, the island passed through several owners hands, with population dropping from a peak of 624 in 1792 to only 98 by the turn of the 21st century. In the largest community buyout in UK history, the residents managed to pull together the mix of loans and grants needed to purchase their little island. They paid off the loans by selling the manor house, and opened the stunning gardens to the public.

After a morning spent gawking at azaleas, admiring the specimen plants in the enormous walled garden, and enjoying the scenery of Gigha on a sunny day, we were ready for lunch at the Michelin-recognized Boathouse restaurant.

Gigha has been fought over for the past 1000 years. Its Norse conquerors called it Gudey, the Good Isle, which time softened to Gigha (Pronounced Geea).

And… that’s where my phone batteries gave up. (Please excuse this photo collage from an earlier visit to The Boathouse.)
We made it back across in time for a side trip to 12th-century Skipness Castle, where sadly, we again failed to meet the resident ghost, the Green Lady of Skipness Castle.
So what was the worst thing?
Nothing went wrong. Not. One. Thing. What am I supposed to blog about?
Sod’s law regarding the batteries! The place looks amazing, though, even if you do appear to have shrunk to Borrower size. (We have relatives near Southend on the Mull of Kintyre – they’ve held in the bit about the resemblance to male genitalia…)
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Aren’t those gunnera the most amazing, prehistoric plants? I love them.
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Spectacular!
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Oh Barb, the vistas, the colours, the history are all so beautiful through your photos that I am almost in tears. Thank you, Chris
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Next time I’m DEFINITELY going to remember to charge my phone first!
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well worth the visit and what a great day!
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It was an utterly fantastic day. (Dolphins!)
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Reblogged this on Judith Barrow.
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Thanks, Judith, for the very flattering reblog!
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Nothing to say about this,Barb … oh, yes…envious!!
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Scotland’s waiting for you!
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Booked the ‘getting there’,Barb. Not sure about getting home, yet. LOL
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It looks absolutely gorgeous, Barb. I am sorry you shared that description of Arran though 😣😂
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Yeah…that one does tend to stick with you…
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You can blog that the ferries ran, and on time! Gorgeous, gorgeous.
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That they did. Kind of a miracle, actually.
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So much beauty! Thank you for sharing.
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When Scotland puts on a show, she’s hard to beat.
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I often wonder why my ancestors left there to come to America! It’s just breathtakingly beautiful. Thank you for sharing your journey with us. ☺
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Do you ever make it back to Scotland, to revisit the land of your ancestors? It really truly is gorgeous here.
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No, I wish! The closest we get is the highlander games and the local Celtic festivals which we do love to visit. There are several this summer we hope to attend.
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What a great day out, thanks for sharing it with us.
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Thanks, Rosie!
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Looks amazing. I love the sheep. I think I see that green lady ghost in your pictures though. Or is it just me and my overactive imagination?
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We didn’t see her, but maybe you should take a look next time you’re here?
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Beautiful! Working in the north (above 60° N latitude), I understand about taking advantage of good weather!
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Haha! When it hits anywhere above 60F/16C here, it’s ‘taps aff’ and disturbing expanses of pale skin are exposed. We take what sun we can get!
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How beautiful are those pictures that you managed to take! The colours! Unbelievable!
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One thing that amazed me about Scotland is the colors. I expected a gray stone place, but it’s really a riot of color.
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Brilliant. Glad you got lovely weather and a great meal!
So did the Ulva Community Buyout help Gigha to get going and get funded? It must have been just after Ulva by my calculations.
And – your map caption. Yes. I’ve been trying to unsee it for many years, now. Sigh.
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This was the first community buyout I’d heard of, but it’s really a fascinating topic, right? So many personal stories and an (apparently) happy ending.
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That looks like the perfect day! I used to travel to Ireland a lot and considered living there but everyone told me that for some reason I brought beautiful weather. I don’t think I witnessed more than one rainy day on all of my visits. The moisture across the pond adds something so special to the lighting though!
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We’re absolutely besotted with the ‘white nights’–long, warm summer evenings where you can read outside until close to midnight. Magic. (Of course you pay for it in winter where you can barely grab a few hours of daylight—which goes a long way to explaining why I like to spend January in India!)
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You hit the jackpot on weather, ferry, and a perfect trip. I can’t believe how gigantic the plants beside you are. Creepy castle, too. Thanks for a lovely virtual trip, Barb.
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The gigantic plants are called gunnera, or sometimes Dinosaur Salad. They are specimen plants that do very well in Scotland, and these aren’t even the largest I’ve seen.
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Wow!
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Thanks. I needed that.
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I needed it too!
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