# A ride around Stewarton, Scotland



## toroddf (16 Apr 2012)

I run my own website where I post my twice a week bikerides and I am not going to make this into a spamfest. I have lifted yesterday's ride from my website over here for the benefit of the local bikeriders in CycleChat. Many more bikerides at my homepage.




​April 2012
85 km​​Another bikeride I had wanted to do for some time. Since I spotted this line some months ago, in fact. But the bad weather and other more tempting bikerides had distracted me from doingthis ride. The cold weather in the morning (minus two degrees) and the potential for black ice (= a serious accident) almost scuppered my idea though.


My alarmclock went off at 0645 in the morning and I made myself ready for the Chinese Formula 1 race. The roads was far too unsafe to venture out on them in minus degrees so I watched the race on TV instead. A pretty good race won by Nico Rosberg. I was pretty OK when it finished though and I could finally hit the road at 1030. A very good choice as it was still dead cold when I rode through Paisley on my way to Elderslie and the start of the cyclepath. It bypassed Johnstone and I met some other cyclists who asked me for directions to Lochwinnoch. I told them to follow in my wake as I was going past that place myself. The ride down past Loch Semple to Lochwinnoch went without any problems. There was some traffic on the cyclepath, but not more than usual. The ride up to Kilbirnie also went without any problems. I chose to still follow the cyclepath bypassing this village on my way to a crossroad on the other side of A737 at Highfield.​​


Looking down towards the lakes at Kilbirnie and Lochwinnoch from the road between B777 and Highfield at A737​​After passing this road, I was meant to do a right and then left turn. I did a right and then a right turn instead of following B707 to Stewarton. It took me some hundred meters to see my error. But the weather was nice and I was OK with missing this crossroad. I continued my way down and up and down some hills to Kilwinning. Not the most interesting road, but the weather was nice and I was OK with my error. I had forgotten my maps at home and was going on my flimsy memories alone. 
I reached the B778 road down in Kilwinning which I followed up a couple of steep hills and then over some moor like flat roads to up to Auchentiber at A736. I followed this road towards Irvine for some hundred meters before I reached the B778 up towards Stewarton. This road was very interesting with some good climbs inbetween some more flat terrain. The views was excellent too. I rate this road. 
I reached some new housing estates just before Stewarton and learned that this village was far bigger than I thought. It is more like a small city, in fact. I was a bit tired and some big hills was awaiting me. A sandwich was consumed and I started on the climb up B769 towards Kingsford. I caught up with two other cyclists and followed in their wake up the hills past Kingsford. I do not think they were too impressed with me, but I was not strong/fit enough to pass them and neither did I want to stop and let them go. They were simply pacing me up these hills. This is a very good hillclimb I would love to do again (and I will !). The two guys stopped just the steepest section a couple of hundred meters before I peeled off at Corsehouse Reservoir. I aimed for some trees. But these threes was gone and I suspected the 3. January storm for being the culprit. That storm has changed Scotland and not to the better. So Google Earth is not entirely to be trusted, I am afraid. But I found a road I thought was the right road and went up it. The road was very steep and I took a picture among some bah-bah sheep which made a heck of a lot noise.​​


Looking down the road towards Goatfell and the hills of Arran in the background​

A passing bikerider confirmed to me that I was indeed on the right road. I continued up to the top of the hill. The views was absolute brilliant from here and I could almost see Ireland in the far distance. I saw the Gallowhill mountains and the mountains up in the Highlands too. Many of them snowcovered. This viewpoint goes into my top 5 viewpoints list in this area.​​


Looking down the hill towards Corsehouse Reservoir, Stewarton & the coast in the far distance​​The descent down from this hill past a nameless lake and down to A77 was both vertical and very good. Another new favourite. I reached the road and followed that for some hundred meters before I crossed it and went down Mearns Road through Newton Mearns. The first part of the road through a rural setting. The last part through suburbs of Glasgow before I reached Clarkston where I joined the very busy A727. Not a good idea on a Sunday afternoon and I had some problems in the traffic past Rouken Glen Park and the traffic machine under M77. I was not pleased. But I reached the crossroad below the mental hospital and took the road over Barshaw and home again after a good bikeride.​​Want some more from this area ? Go to my homepage for more. Many more bikerides to be added to that page when completed.​


----------



## Paul J (16 Apr 2012)

toroddf said:


> I reached some new housing estates just before Stewarton and learned that this village was far bigger than I thought. It is more like a small city, in fact.


 
I think you may have got a little confused with the size of Stewarton as a small city it's not. Kilmarnock is the nearest large town and dwarfs Stewarton by miles.  I used to live there BTW


----------



## BrumJim (16 Apr 2012)

I've been to Kilmarnock.

I'm sorry!


----------



## toroddf (17 Apr 2012)

Stewarton is actually listed as a town several places (although it feels more like a village to me). I am still a bit confused about this city vs town linguistics. One of them require a royal charter and so forth. I will teach myself the difference.

...... Anyway, my message is that there is a lot of excellent roads around Stewarton. And the local area is very pretty too.


----------



## Paul J (17 Apr 2012)

Its like Kilmaurs, Dunlop and Fenwick how they call them towns I'd never know. As you say it's nice around there, I used to live on the Old Glasgow Road B769 and it was lovely way to get to Glasgow.

Like your website BTW quite a few of the places I have been to. Like you trip up the Outer Hebs and you captured the wind and rain in your pictures.


----------



## Brandane (17 Apr 2012)

toroddf said:


> ​Looking down towards the *lakes* at Kilbirnie and Lochwinnoch from the road between B777 and Highfield at A737


 
Lakes?? In Scotland??  

Great trip report Toroddf, as are the others on your website. As a fellow resident of the west of Scotland, many of the rides and locations are familiar. Anyway, just being a bit pedantic re lakes in Scotland as I know English is not your first language. They are "lochs", but you knew that . Apart from one of course...... http://www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow_lakes.htm


----------



## toroddf (17 Apr 2012)

My problem is that I am writing for a wider audience than the Scottish audience and I am not sure if lochs (or loughs from my Northern Ireland tour reports.... same problem) will be understood outside Scotland. It is a very valid point which has and does give my brain a good workout. Is lochs understood as lakes outside Scotland ? Any help is appreciated.


----------



## Brandane (17 Apr 2012)

toroddf said:


> My problem is that I am writing for a wider audience than the Scottish audience and I am not sure if lochs (or loughs from my Northern Ireland tour reports.... same problem) will be understood outside Scotland. It is a very valid point which has and does give my brain a good workout. Is lochs understood as lakes outside Scotland ? Any help is appreciated.


 
OK, you're forgiven then . I think "lochs" is probably understood in the rest of the British Isles, even if the English can't pronounce it! Outside of Britain it might not be so widely recognised.


----------



## nhoj (17 Apr 2012)

Lakes in Scotland? Next you'll be telling us Ben Nevis is a mountain!


----------



## zizou (18 Apr 2012)

Some nice cycling routes in the area (an area which is also connected to cycling history with the development of the pneumatic tyre!)

Takes a bit of exploring but some of the singletrack roads that criss cross the map are in very good condition and have very little traffic on them. On the other hand some of them are in poor condition so a bit of trial and error is needed finding the good ones.


----------



## toroddf (18 Apr 2012)

zizou said:


> Some nice cycling routes in the area (an area which is also connected to cycling history with the development of the pneumatic tyre!)
> 
> Takes a bit of exploring but some of the singletrack roads that criss cross the map are in very good condition and have very little traffic on them. On the other hand some of them are in poor condition so a bit of trial and error is needed finding the good ones.


 
A excellent point, Zizou. This area is criss crossed by excellent single track roads. An excellent ride, probably the best of them all, on single track roads is this ride which combines two excellent mountain roads; Moor Road and Old Largs Road. Both with excellent views and everything a bikerider desires, and that includes ice cream in Largs inbetween the two mountain roads.

Another good area is the Eaglesham-Darvel-Strathaven triangle (read the maps beforehand or it will become your Bermuda Triangle) which also includes some excellent single track roads. 

Gryffe Valley too is excllent and the same is Glen Fruin further north. Not to mention Gleniffer Braes which is criss crossed by superb single track roads. 

....or to put it this way: It is wonderful to be a bikerider in this area.


----------



## zizou (18 Apr 2012)

toroddf said:


> A excellent point, Zizou. This area is criss crossed by excellent single track roads. An excellent ride, probably the best of them all, on single track roads is this ride which combines two excellent mountain roads; Moor Road and Old Largs Road. Both with excellent views and everything a bikerider desires, and that includes ice cream in Largs inbetween the two mountain roads.


 
Yeah thats one of my favourite routes. Some tough climbs (the Moor Road from the coast side was even used last year in the Scottish hillclimb championship) and on Old Largs Road you feel like you are in the wilderness despite being so close to Greenock. Then like you say the icecream in Largs - on a hot summers day i start fantasising about it from about 5 miles out


----------



## Brandane (18 Apr 2012)

toroddf said:


> A excellent point, Zizou. This area is criss crossed by excellent single track roads. An excellent ride, probably the best of them all, on single track roads is this ride which combines two excellent mountain roads; Moor Road and Old Largs Road. Both with excellent views and everything a bikerider desires, and that includes ice cream in Largs inbetween the two mountain roads.


 
Funnily enough, I am just home from doing almost the same route today! I live in Largs, so I headed down to Fairlie and then across the slog of a hill that is Fairlie Moor (worse than usual today with a headwind). I then deviated from your route as I went to Kilmaurs, where I jumped on the train and headed to Glasgow (the headwind was getting a bit tedious from the NE). From Glasgow I took the NCN route to Paisley, then Kilmacolm before heading across towards Garshangan and the short cut over a rough track to Loch Thom. From there it was down Brisbane Glen and home. 61 miles.


----------



## Brandane (18 Apr 2012)

zizou said:


> Yeah thats one of my favourite routes. Some tough climbs (the Moor Road from the coast side was even used last year in the Scottish hillclimb championship) and on Old Largs Road you feel like you are in the wilderness despite being so close to Greenock. Then like you say the icecream in Largs - on a hot summers day i start fantasising about it from about 5 miles out


 
You can be in the centre of Greenock and still feel like you are in the wilderness  (only kidding, Greenock folk!). Agreed re the network of back roads in Ayrshire. I like to head over to Dalry and from there it is easy to get lost on them. The problem with Largs is that to access those routes, you have to do a bit of climbing to get there. Or cheat and jump on a train, as I frequently do .


----------



## Cal44 (25 Apr 2012)

I too am from this neck of the woods and love a good wander around the local area, a good few choices above and I have a had a quick look at your site. Lots of good routes and new places to discover on the "Doorstep" in ayrshire. As said before though a few hills to climb which are no problem if you have the time. Looking to tour through Dumfriesshire and the south coast then back up towards Ayr towards September time. Would love to do it sooner but two kids under two limits my exploration abilities!


----------

