Are you a Northern sailor, or a Southern one?

[Telo]

Despite its unfortunate name, Campbeltown is quite pleasant in small doses imho. It hosts the Aqualibrium, the world's first combined swimming pool and library. It also has the oldest extant purpose built cinema in Scotland, which is run in a suitably eccentric manner. Last time we were there, it seemed they were having a bit of a struggle to keep the Picture House going, but it's well worth a visit if you like that sort of stuff.



The harbour and the town are decent enough, provided you take care to avoid being run over by the nightly processions of kids cruising round the town in car convoys.



A walk across the Doirlinn (tidal) to Island Davaar is interesting; there's a (fairly modern) cave painting there, a crucifixion scene.

[Arghiro]

Absolutely, Shard, but the fishing industry is a shadow of its former self, the distillery is closed (or has it reopened recently) and the town itself is generally driech (sp?) - ie very grey & damp in appearance. The kids' car convoys driving round the town are a bad sign that there is little else for them to do. Caernarfon (& Holyhead?) have similar problems.

All good safe harbours, in beautiful areas, worth a visit but not necessarily where one might want to live.

[Arghiro]

Is that Goat Fell on Arran in your panarama? Long time since I was up there, but loved that area - just too far to travel from the Midlands.

[Rowana]

We spent our honeymoon in a holiday cottage just outside Campbeltown. We thought it was a lovely area for walking, and we did go over to Davaar and saw the cave painting.

I remember going for a drive one day, and came upon a set of traffic lights which seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. As they were at red, we stopped (naturally!). Suddenly this aircraft shot across in front of us. When the lights changed to green, we discovered that the road goes onto the runway at Macrihanish, follows it for a couple of hundred yards, then goes off the other side!

We also had a trip on the Waverley while we were there.

Would love to go back some time.

[sahona]

I assisted in bringing enlightenment to Campbeltown by installing "the computer" a long time ago. It was housed in the bus depot, and was to become Kintyre Data. The people were exceptionally nice and went out of the way to extend 'highland hospitality' (I was travelling south from glasgow to be there!) Now, sailing in, I have to agree to dreich being the most appropriate impression. You have to look behind the facade. and as for MacIcheres oatcakes....

[Telo]

Is that Goat Fell on Arran in your panarama?

Yes, Goat Fell, centre right.

I agree that the town is badly run-down. A lot of hopes were pinned on the Ballycastle - Campbeltown ferry run, but that that fell apart, despite a particularly shocking piece of asset transfer from the public to the private sector by one Michael Forsyth, my MP at the time, and Mrs T's Pro-Consul in Scotland.

If the Ballycastle car ferry started again, then it might spur on some other economic activity.

It would be the ideal place for small entrepreneurs - shop and office rents seem to be absurdly low, again, a reflection of the area's economic decline.

[little boy blue]

not for you, then

[oceanmaster]

Hi
I'm from Merseyside and after a couple of years sailing the Irish sea I decided to sale South. What happens if sail far enough south is that you end up back in the North. On this occasion North France. Where there is a North South divide. So when we first arrived in L’Aberac’h from Penzance (110 miles) we went into the sailing club for drink. The french enquired where we were from and we told them. They said northerners are like vikings that and are admired by the French. Those Southerners look for short crossings and sail round the coast. So the camaraderie emerged between one Northerner and another and wherever you go there is always a North.
Alan