36 ~ Sunday, July 28, 1991 - North Shore News TRAVEL Arran offers majestic scenery, castles, golf I JUST went on a fly/cruise to one of the most beautiful islands in the world. And it was an easy, go. First of all I flew Skybridge Holidays to Prestwick, Scotland. The flight was in a Nationair Boe- ing 747, and took jess than eight hours. Going non-stop to Prestwick was a huge bonus. Most tourists to Scotland go via London, which takes another hour, then time on the ground, plus another hour to fly to Glasgow, where they emerge into an urban jungle. Prestwick was a breeze. There was no wait at immigration or customs, the man from Hertz seemed genuinely glad to see me and personally brought the car to the front door, and after that it was an open road 20 minutes up the coast to Ardrossan. The Caledonian MacBrayne car ferry was well named — the Isle of Arran — for that was its desti- nation, fess than an hour over the Firth of Clyde. 1 had tea on board with a scratch golfer from Texas who was on his way to play Macrihanish, near the tip of the Kintyre peninsula and maybe a good three wood from Ireland. He had spent a month in Scotland playing all the big courses, and said he had heard Macrihanish was a fine secret. He would get off the ferry at Brodick, drive across Arran; pick up another Cal-Mac ferry at Lochranza and drive down to Macrihanish. It would ail be done in an afternoon, for Scotland is a small country. In a matter of days he could have hop-scotched with Cal-Mac all the way to Skye, Ullapool, back down by Mull and Islay, and a grand trip that would be. Our goal was more modest, to sail into Brodick Bay and explore the joys of Arran, which has 10 heather-covered peaks over 2,000 ft., 56 miles of coastline, a hand- ful of villages with sociable pubs, and castles, mysterious stone cir- cles and legends galore. It was on Arran, so the story goes, that Robert the Bruce hid from his enemies while trying to regain the crown of Scotland. He View the "29 Packard From page 31 of Skeena. And there’s also a 1930 Waco — the oldest flying machine in Western Canada. Has a wooden prop, and cruised at 85 miles per hour. You'll find the only fire truck that was ever made by Hays-Anderson. Another beautiful old fire truck is surprisingly painted white, a La France on which someone has done a first-class job of replating. It’s easy to find the place, and I guarantee it will fill your mind for days with memories of youth in one form or another. Keeps you supple, thinking that way, you know. You take Highway One to the Cloverdale turn-off and simply follow that road for about 10 minutes till you see a sign that says Number 10 Highway. Turn left onto Number 10 and go through the first set of lights. You'll see the museum at the se- cond set. Easy. Take your camera. budget way to David Wishart TRAVEL TIPS watched a spider in a cave trying to spin its web, and that gave him the will to carry on. Arran has struggled under feudal Icrds, the clearances (a boat sailed from Lamlash to Canada in the last century) but in more recent times has developed into a tranquil resort for those who cherished the majestic sce- nery, the deer in heather-covered glens, good fishing and seven golf courses, Add to that a sprinkling of in- expensive guest houses and bed and breakfast places, sandy beaches, tennis courts and pony- trekking, and it is a perfect place for a family holiday. For those concerned about the vagaries of weather, there are now three hotels on the island with in- door pools. The Kinlock Hotel at Blackwaterfoot has that and a congenial staff smartly turned out in the Crawford tartan of the owners. Over in Brodick the Auchrannie Country House Hotel has just opened a new wing of 16 hand- some rooms and a leisure centre as good as anything in California. The magnificent house, built by a man who made his fortune run- ning blockades during the Ameri- can Civil War, sits in a wooded estate near the golf club and THE PEAK of Goattell with Brodick Bay in beach. It was later the home of the widow of the 12th Duke of Hamilion (the family seat, Brodick Castle, is just up the road) and latterly Iain Johnston, who merged old and new brilliant- ly. Bed and full breakfast here in high season is about $200 double. Down by the seafront, Tony Green, a former country rugby player, has just reopened the Ar- ran Hotel with 16 all ensuite rooms and an indoor pool. Bed and delicious breakfast is just $100 a night, and good meals can be had in the bar or dining room for less than $7. He had the Arran Pipe Band around for the first night, and after the braw lads had churned around the lawn and