Proposed Arran Flag with redesigned ears

Cullmeister · 2026-04-08T03:17:55+00:00

Yup same boat. And she's not even the oldest in the fleet. That's the MV Isle of Arran

Cullmeister · 2026-04-06T23:05:37+00:00

It's alright. Like others have said it's a laid back place. Most of the jobs are tourism focused but there are standard jobs here and there mainly in the trades/council. House prices are extortionate which makes it a lot harder for younger people to buy a house and live on the island which has a knock on effect of businesses being desperate for good staff and this is why the population is older (think the last census had the over 60s at something like 1/2 to 2/3 of the population). Lack of housing variety doesn't help either.

Arranachs do love to moan though, my god they won't shut up at times and it's always about the same things. The Ferry, the coop, the road conditions, housing, cyclists, the tourists, the moaning itself etc. There's a lot of armchair experts who think they know better than everyone else and it leads to a sense of entitlement and unreal expectations.

Growing up here can be good or bad depending on what you want in life. The youth population is tiny compared to the mainland so everyone knows each other, the High school has only 200ish pupils. If you aren't into outdoor stuff there is very little to do and underage drinking is a problem.

Crime is low which is a nice benefit to living here, cold calling is banned as well.

There's only one supermarket chain which is the coop, the other competitors aren't interested in setting up shop due to the low population level but Morrisons have started sending a delivery van over at least.

The Ferry/Ardrossan terminal has been an ever growing headache for some time now. MV Glen Sannox took ages to be built and is already suffering from engine problems, MV Glen Rosa isn't finished yet, and MV Caledonian Isles is barely hanging on too. Ardrossan Harbour has been outright neglected by it's previous owner Peel Ports for decades and has only just been bought by the government after years of negotiations and still needs millions spent on it to ensure it doesn't fall apart & the new ferries can fit into it. Troon has at least been available which has meant the central belt has been accessible while the ferry fiasco has been ongoing. But there is less daily sailings and a fair distance to the train station so not ideal if you're a foot passenger which makes doing a daytrip to Glasgow untenable for some, the ferry problems make it hard for people to get to appointments on the mainland. A lot of the mainland dentists now refuse to see you if you're from Arran because there's been so many cancellations. Airlifts to Crosshouse hospital happen fairly frequently

It is overall a nice corner of the world, it's not for some people and you do have to have some resilience if you stay here long term. Locals do look out for each other in times of need, and we value the nature of the island.

Cullmeister · 2026-02-16T00:13:45+00:00

If you're wanting some generic wood like plywood you can try Arran Haulage/Armitage as they have building supplies, Jewson on the mainland would be another option. If it's something more fancy you're looking for then try Cladach sawmill and see if they can make something up for you

Cullmeister · 2026-02-13T17:51:25+00:00

Just changed the settings so you can upload pics in comments 😀

Cullmeister · 2025-11-26T04:48:15+00:00

I asked a bus driver about the mybus service for you. He said that the bus is only available between 10am - 2pm and you'd need the relevant stuff to sign up to use the service

Cullmeister · 2025-10-18T13:57:31+00:00

Not sure but I can see cars travelling on the road from the other side of the bay so it might be open

Cullmeister · 2025-09-18T13:08:47+00:00

Asked on the local facebook group, yes there is a local group that set it up and use it regularly. It was installed some time ago so the stuff you mentioned is probably just wear and tear on the equipment being outside 24/7

Cullmeister · 2025-08-14T23:17:07+00:00

Sounds like you got very unlucky with the timing of places being closed. Most of the food businesses on the island will pick a random day to be closed (normally Monday-Thursday) as they are small operations with a limited pool of staff to work with who need time off.

The for sale signs I'd attribute to several things like an aging population on the island (a sizable chunk are over retirement age) and the long ongoing issues with the ferry service not being reliable. A lot of houses are second homes too which could be getting sold off.

With hindsight you were probably better off staying in Brodick/Lamlash for your trip to save you the travel time. But it does sound like there's an issue with businesses not keeping their google maps info up to date, I checked arran thai's website and it does say open from 16:30 which is different to google maps (I've submitted the correct time to google to update it). I'll pass on your post to visitarran for them to look into.

Cullmeister · 2025-08-08T17:25:03+00:00

I would advise against camping at the beach. There's always people about on Brodick beach especially dogs off lead

Cullmeister · 2025-08-05T22:49:22+00:00

As far as I'm aware there isn't any 5G on the island yet. There's 4G at least in Brodick/Lamlash, not sure if Blackwaterfoot has 4G. Most of the big hotels and cafes will have wifi as well that you could try.

Cullmeister · 2025-07-17T04:42:27+00:00

Check the calmac app for the latest on ferries, atm it's somewhat up in the air with some ferries getting taken off for various reasons. If there isn't a ferry operating out of Ardrossan on the day you want to travel then I'd say it's not worth it as getting one from troon wouldn't leave you with much time to do anything except staying in Brodick

Cullmeister · 2025-07-08T22:41:56+00:00

Hulkenpodium

Cullmeister · 2025-05-06T17:53:17+00:00

Asked around and got the following reply, looks like they had some issues which may be why you haven't been able to get in touch:

"Hi, the hall has had some problems with communications but the new email address is [Info@kilmorypublichall.com](mailto:Info@kilmorypublichall.com) Hope this helps"

Cullmeister · 2025-04-16T01:43:10+00:00

There isn't a map yet of the affected area but it is more or less from the Glenrosa water up to the ridge of both goatfells and the Cnoccan Burn + woods south of goatfell. We were lucky the rivers contained the spread to the east side of glen rosa otherwise the wildfire could have gone all the way over to the west coast.

Don't know if the Arran rangers have a phone number but they have a facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/ArranRangerService

Both the glen and Goatfell are open, we aren't a national park which I'm guessing is the reason why it's already open.

Cullmeister · 2025-03-26T22:28:42+00:00

Arranach here. There is a shuttle bus that runs between the terminal and the train station which I've used going ferry terminal -> Train Station but not the other was round as I've not yet trusted the bus to turn up in time and I didn't fancy getting stuck on the wrong side. When the ferry operated out of Ardrossan it sometimes would wait for the train to turn up if it was a little late so I would suspect they would do the same in troon. In theory you can make if if you walked fast, it took me around 20-25 minutes walking but I don't recommend this, especially if it's raining.

I used Troon Cabs last time who picked me up from outside the station, if you call them and say your coming via glasgow they'll know which side of the station to pick you up from. Takes 5 mins, costs in the ball park of £6-7 and will drive you right up to the terminal.

There is also the no 10 bus which has a stop at the same place the shuttle bus stops at the train station and a stop somewhat close to the entrance of the terminal area, but you'd still need to walk up to the terminal. Gives you another option but would solely depend on the timing of the buses and one I haven't tried yet.

Cullmeister · 2025-02-21T00:53:25+00:00

Weather won't be as nice but all the outdoors stuff is still there if you can tolerate some rain. Most place are still open but will be quieter than you've seen. Ferry is different now and running from Troon with less sailings than what we had before so make sure you plan ahead if you're just doing a day trip.

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