Good Easter morn from Arran!
Today we attempted to climb Goatfell, the highest mountain on Arran at 874 meters. After a somewhat hectic bus ride to Corrie, we disembarked at one of the many trails up the mountain. We chose the shortest route up the Goatfell at about 2.5 miles (as signposted) over the longer gentler climbs.
The path is well constructed and maintained. It was similar to walking up stairs in places.
This is Goatfell.
Looking toward Lamlash - you can just see Holy Isle poking up over the land.
We climbed as hard as we could for 2.5 hours and were still at least an hour from the summit. We knew we needed time to get DOWN the mountain to catch our bus, so after a quick lunch we decided to head back. The summit can wait for another day.
Going down was much harder than going up the mountain! Old knees and hips made the boulder hopping a challenge.
Good thing we left Goatfell when we did as we just made the bus connection back to Lamlash.
A view from the bus stand.
Some of the sea mist has cleared and the day ended with sparkling blues and greens.
Over this bank holiday weekend - Friday to Monday - Arran has entertained at least double its usual population of 3,000 people. The buses have been standing room only, ferries full to bursting, and pubs and restaurants spilling out into streets. It is good for this island economy; we expect the next few days to be quieter and calmer.