At large in Largs

What with writing my last post three times, can I remember what came next?  Oh yes, there was that nice track round the corner to Wemyss Bay, where you can catch a ferry to Rothesay on the Isle of Bute (sob..).  Tim reminded me to look at the station at Wendy's Bay, so I did.  It's lovely - the building is rather grand with a tower here and there, and it's laid out so the curve of the platforms continues along a walkway direct to the pier.  Very much in keeping with Edwardian times when you got a train from Glasgow and a steamer to Bute for your holidays.

It's not a big place but Largs, further on, is much Larger (geddit?).  Perhaps that's how it got its name.   Getting to Largs wasn't much fun - there is the busy A78 or a very hilly parallel road, which I took.  I also chanced upon a highly secret bunker, recognisable because it had a sign.

Getting back to Largs, it's a resort in its own right.  Lovely open seafront with plenty of tourist attractions, including Nardini's, home of the world's best ice cream. So they say, and it looked good.  But I had ferry to catch - my last CalMac ferry to my last island in Scotland, Great Cumbrae.   It's a very quiet place, only one town and a road all the way round.

The ferry lands on the east of the island, and the town is to the south, so most traffic, such as it is, goes around that quarter of the road.  I went the other way.   The road follows a raised beach, which is like a beach that has been raised - by sinking sea levels or rising land, over geological ages.  Consequently it's flat and empty - ideal for cycling.  The town, Millport, is nice too with a good beach and houses spread out for miles around the bay, because behind the raised beach is a small cliff, hard to build on.

I stopped in Millport for emergency rations and headed back to the ferry, in a rush as I could see it approaching when I was a mile or two away. 

Back in Largs, I decided I had to try Nardini's - it's such an iconic art deco building.  I even walked past a Wetherspoons to get to it.  It was busy, and I worried that with easy trade, the service might be slow, but it was very efficient, especially when I was trying to dawdle and write my blog post for the third time.  I didn't have the world's best ice cream, but I did have very good leek and potato soup with a tuna sandwich, probably locally caught.  The interior of Nardini's is also stunning - highly recommended.
Pics to follow - still having problems...