A 2 mile coast-to-coast walk following the old tramway running between Port Bannatyne and Ettrick Bay through lovely farmland and woodlands with glimpses of the standing stones at St Colmac. A relatively easy walk on well made tracks With slight gradients Runs from behind the playpark at Port Bannatyne to Ettrick Bay tearoom. You can even catch the bus back again for most of the year!
All of the "kissing gates" have been replaced recently with more horse / wheelchair / pram friendly self-closing gates, making the walk all the more inclusive. Most wheelchair users would still find the gates difficult to open without assistance, but with an able-bodied companion to help out the walk is now much easier.
Unfortunately, since these gates were replaced, Colin hasn't been back to visit, so his cartoon (below) is a little out of date...
The Old Tramway is partially wheelchair accessible. Before visiting you may wish to contact them for clarification if this is a concern.
Colin pictures are © Stephen Doak and used under licence
You can buy prints and other Colin merchandise from Picture Bute
... or for less than the price of a coffee you can become a Colin Patron
The Old Tramway does not have a car park, however there is usually plenty of free on-street parking in the vicinity.
The Old Tramway is on the West Coast Motors 490/90 bus route - note this becomes 493 in winter.
Show in StreetViewA lovely quiet walk
A bit different from the usual beaches / woods / parks options and a perfect place to go for a relatively long walk with the dogs just to contemplate life, the universe and everything. Scenery is pleasant - mainly farmland - interjected with the occasional interesting building such as St Colmac's church ruin and Etterick Smiddy, plus you get close to some standing stones too as well as having distant views of the two beaches at Ettrick Bay and Kames Bay. There are LOTS of kissing gates along the route crossing farm paths and tracks that are very close to the road adjacent to the tramway, so dogs do need to be at close call or on leads, and of course the gates can form obstacles to wheelchairs - otherwise the track is ideal.
In case you're wondering how the kissing gates work, here's a tutorial by Colin!
Operation Starfish WWII decoy bunker
Lovely mile-long walk through ancient woodland with stunning bay views
Community forest with lots of woodland activities for visitors
Professional PT & Remedial Massage Therapy Services based on Bute
Yoga class meeting at Mill Cottage Hall on Monday evenings
Bute's own walking group, part of the Ramblers' Association
Walks and feeds with alpacas and Pygmy goats on Bute!
Municipal leisure centre with 25m swimming pool, gym, sauna and steam room
Unmanned lighthouse on the edge of stunning isolated Glancallum Bay
Ancient woodlands on a steep hill climb overlooking Rothesay Bay
Personal trainer, fitness instructor and gym
A long-distance waymarked path traversing most of Bute
Yoga for Wellbeing-Private/ Group and Workshops.
The information presented here is collected from the public domain or has been provided by previous customers, users of or visitors to The Old Tramway. It is presented in good faith but is not warranted to be complete or free from errors. E&OE.
