Gasworks and kailyards on Ailsa Craig.

From Ailsa Craig pier we made our way up the old railway to the tacksman's house.

In the19th century the tacksman and assistants who lived here harvested the seabirds for flesh, eggs and feathers and caught rabbits that thrived because they had no natural predators. They also fished the seas that were teeming with fish.

Behind the cottage a large  area is walled off. Inside is the gasworks with pits for gasometers. The gas produced was used to power an engine that compressed air for the island's two foghorns. However, the wall predated the gasworks. It was built to surround cottages, which were part of a planned fishing station. At the time goats roamed the island and the wall was to keep them out of the cottages kailyard (cabbage patch). Unfortunately the Glasgow man behind the fishing station scheme died before it was completed and the cottages were demolished to make way for the gasworks.

At the top of the slope from the beach we came to the winding station for the railway.

Inside a two cylinder diesel engine still looks remarkably intact. The original engine would have been powered by steam.

The gasometers have long gone and their pits have been filled with rubbish.

Coltsfoot was flowering in the gaps in the wall.

After the winding station the railway splits in two. The left branch goes to the lighthouse and the right goes into the gasworks. The points lever was still in place but the points have seized up.

The gasworks was one of the biggest buildings on the island. You can see the kailyard wall surrounding the works at some distance. On the hill behind, you can just see the castle on the horizon. I wonder what the monks from Crossraguel Abbey (who lived in the castle in the 14th century) would have made of the gasworks!

Run out of line but in line with the code, on Ailsa Craig!

We had landed on the north side of Foreland Point on Ailsa Craig, near the old pier.

This old wooden boat had had a rougher landing than we had. Only its transom was showing above the granite boulders. She had clearly seen better days.

We had landed near one of the old quarry workshops. It was here that they cut cylinders of granite from the quarried rock. These were exported to be made into curling stones.

A light cable powered railway took paraffin and coal to the lighthouse and gas works and brought the granite blocks to the shore. This old bogey has run out of line and ended on the beach.

Its rusting wheels would turn no more...

 ...but Jim did manage to get a fee degrees out of an old hand winch.

The RSPB now have the lease of Ailsa Craig. Their sign says "RSPB Scotland welcomes responsible access in line with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code". Excellent, you can't say fairer than that, so we set off to explore responsibly!

Return to Ailsa Craig

Just 12 days after our last visit, the call of the Craig proved too much...

...and we set off once more on the 14km crossing.

Jim had borrowed a Rockpool Taran and wanted to see if it would cope with his usual 5,000kg or so of camping gear.

It proved suitably commodious and handled a treat. We arrived at Ailsa Craig after a fast crossing...

...from the Ayrshire coast, which seemed a long way away.

Jim was already plotting the purchase of a Taran. I would love to try one with a Flat Earth sail!

Ailsa calling!

On the way back from Ailsa Craig, Phil uncharacteristically fell behind,

He had some trouble with broaching as he had put all his gear in the front hatch and a Quest does not like being nose heavy! John very kindly stayed with him and gave words of encouragement. John Willacy is a true gentleman and it was our great pleasure to spend the day with him.

The 14km crossing passed all too soon and our keels kissed the sand at Lendalfoot again.

We stood on the beach gazing back at the great rock of Ailsa with memories of its teeming birdlife. The island was already calling us back. We knew we would be return soon...

John Willacy surfed my wake!

It was now time to leave Ailsa Craig and right on cue a nice F3-4 breeze got up from the NW to help us home. I used the sail to get in front of the others...

...and get some photos of the Arran mountains with Phil in the foreground.

Tony flashed by in his very sparkly  Cetus.

 Gradually the NW wind cleared the sky behind us.

John's Rockpool Taran surfed the waves very easily...

...as we slid down the waves back to Ayrshire.

At one point John and I went ahead of the others, John was surfing on my wake, his bow nudging my stern....

...but I had my sail up!

Circumnavigation of Ailsa Craig.

The regular staff of seakayakphoto.com are not the World's greatest circumnavigators...

...but our new honorary member, John Willacy, does have a reputation as a rather fast circumnavigator (Anglesey, Isle of Man etc.) so we felt we could not let the side down. Honour was at stake, so we set off on a circumnavigation of the Craig...

...all 3.84km of it! We soon passed Stranny Point and came to the Water Cave but as it was low tide, we could not paddle inside.

About 35-40,000 pairs of gannets breed on the rock...

...and the air was thick with them.

To the north, the sun broke through on Arran...

...but under the dark overhanging rocks of the Eagle's seat...

...we were still in the shade. The guillemots, razorbills and kittiwakes that nest here had not yet arrived. We had completed our circumnavigation in good time.

Some long views from Ailsa Craig.

On previous visits to Ailsa Craig we have gone in a high pressure system and the visibility has been poor due to haze. On this occasion, the atmosphere was crystal clear. To the ESE Girvan was very clear but in the middle of the photo, the summit of the Merrick was hidden in the clouds. The dip to the right of the photo is Glen Trool.

The view to the S showed Stranraer at the head of Loch Ryan with the Rhins of Galloway and its wind farm on the right.

A telephoto view to the W showed Sanda Island with the Mull of Kintyre behind. In the distance, flat topped Rathlin Island is 68km away off the north coast of Ireland, on the far side of the North Channel.

To the north, this view shows little Pladda Island (with its lighthouse) off the south coast of Arran and the pointed peak of Holy Island to the east of Arran. Right of Holy Island the view is all the way up the Firth of Clyde to the white villas of Dunoon. Beyond that, the snow streaked peaks are Ben Ime, The Cobbler and Ben Narnain in the Arrochar Alps. Ben Ime is 112km away. To the right of Dunoon, the dark island is the Little Cumbrae. To its right you can just make out the chimney of the Inverkip power station. The snowy mountain at the right edge of the photo is Ben Lomond.

Alan (see comments) asked "could I ask if you have a higher resolution photo of the Arrochar Alps, or was this photo already cropped?" This is the highest resolution I have with a 1:1 pixel ratio. It was a remarkably clear day. To the left of Ben Ime, which is the highest point on the horizon, you can see the dark slopes of Beinn Dubh Craig then to its left, the snow flecked ridge of Ben Oss. Lastly, to the left of Ben Oss, you can just see the fine peak of Ben Lui rising above a nearer flat topped ridge. Ben Lui is 1130m high and is 130km from Ailsa Craig, a long view indeed!

Although they don't show up well  on these low resolution photographs, we were surprised by the number of wind farms that had sprouted on the hills all round us. This regularly updated kmz file from weatherman22 will open in Google Earth and show the number of opened and proposed wind farms in the Scottish hills and mountains.

It was now time to make our way back down the steep path to the kayaks.