Monday, 30 April 2012

25th April, Wednesday

Moving on from Cordon, I went first to Brodick Castle.

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image The entrance to the Castle

The current castle is a Victorian nostrum.   Part of it, at the back, dates back to the C15th – and Robert the Bruce was there.

Arran was given to the Hamiltons by an early James (III?) and in 1895 inherited by the Duchess of Montrose, a Hamilton daughter.  One of the Hamiltons was a collector – some fine china – even to my untotored eye, lovely claret jugs in the shapes of birds and animals and, for Harry Potter fans a Bezoar stone in a gold cup with a chain (used for checking for poison).  No photos allowed – and, a loss of opportunity, no post card of the item.  In fact the post card collection in National Trust of Scotland properties is a major failure. 

However I did manage to sneak a picture of the following:

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But the Bezoar stone got me thinking what the J K Rowling connection was….  I’ve found out subsequently that her great great grandfather, a minister of the kirk, is buried in Lamlash Kirkyard.

I could take pictures of the Bavarian summerhouse

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Inside walls and ceiling lined with pine cones

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There are red squirrels in the castle grounds but they did not come out for me.  However the dinosaur in the wood carver’s garden was on guard …

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image as was his dog.

image The wood carver’s gate.

Further down the coast at Kingscross, a Viking burial and fort, overlooking Holy Island and Robert the Bruce crossed to the mainland from here.

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image Looking back at Lamlash

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Walked up to Glenashdale Falls from Whiting Bay – I think this is an geological fault but there is no explanation.  (I’ve since found out the water falls over a Tertiary composite sill)

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Looking back at Whiting Bay and Holy Island

image  Giants’ Graves (Viking? burials)

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image Whiting Bay

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image Quite a steep path down

image A blowy day

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