Sawney Bean's Cave. Girvan Trip.

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Back In February Alan suggested an overnight trip to visit Sawney Bean's Cave. (seems to be two spellings of Sawny, this being the other.) Amazingly, considering we know Scotland fairly well, neither of us had been in it, too focused on bagging hill lists in the past. Sawney Bean equates to Alexander the Killer, as he was reputedly the head/ father of a cannibal family who lived in this cave centuries ago who pounced on luckless victims, robbed them, killed them then dragged them back to eat in the cave. A large family grown through many years/decades of incestuous breeding. It is a well known tale and several films have been inspired by it. The Hills have Eyes. The Descent, An X Files episode etc. This is the view from the layby on the A77(T) a few km south of Lendalfoot, and the cave is marked on the OS Landranger sheet 76 map. A steep path goes down to this small bay, snaking down grass above a vertical cliff. You need to be careful here with children or dogs as this photo is taken from the lay-by with a sudden drop of 150 feet straight down although there is a fence. Looking at the sea the grass path down starts to the right of the lay-by. The nearest town is Girvan.

Once down the grass path, seen in this photo, to the beach, the cave is hidden in the first ravine, the dark slot in this photo. At high tide it may be cut off. It was almost high tide when we did it but we still managed to scramble round into it.

This is the cave just behind the second boulder up. Although there is scant documented evidence as to the truth of this story ( they were supposed to have killed hundreds of folk before they were caught) I was impressed by the location as this cave is not obvious. You have to scramble over a six foot awkward boulder to gain entry and even then it's just a slot.

The view looking down from the cave.

The cave entrance. Inside it is large enough to hide 20 to 30 people as it goes back a good way though you have to be prepared to crawl in places if you want to explore all the various slots. We walked in around 30 to 40 feet but after that it's wriggle time and I'm too old and un-bendy for that stuff nowadays. On You Tube a brave/ mad girl... Ruth Aisling ...slept in it but I certainly do not fancy that. (Her video is worth a watch.)

For one thing it's covered in graffiti and for another it's next to the seaside and I've seen too many times what comes out of the cracks in sea walls after it gets dark. All manner of creepy beasties live in sea walls. None of them poisonous in the UK, just unpleasant as evening bed companions. Not for me although I have slept in mountain caves a few times but they were cosy and bright by comparison to this one.

Anyway, it was an adventure just being in it so thanks to Alan for the suggestion  to come here.

After the cave we ended up in another nearby layby at the village of Lendalfoot and the Varyag Monument. We had passed this on the way down. After the Russian/ Japanese War and the First World War Russian Cruiser Varyag had ended up here then sunk just offshore, hence the monument.

A bit faded but history info here.

The weather was grey and damp but mild, a couple of degrees above freezing so I camped in this large layby. Being midwinter no campsites or tourist facilities were open but luckily no one moved us on. Alan slept in his vehicle which was a wise move as it was a very windy night which rattled the tent and pulled several guy lines out. Also it was a noisy road with large HGV's ( presumably some off the Irish Ferry) passing 20 feet from the tent at 1:00am, 2:00am, 3:00am etc right through until dawn. A good trip though. Leaving nothing behind we left the next morning to use the toilets in Givan at Asda and buy breakfast which was a hot mince pie for me. Very tasty. Then this back in the house for dinner.

Beans and buttered toast. Smashing stuff.

The Barras Market and Art Gallery Day.

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A Sunday a few weeks ago down The Barras Market with Alan. This will be low on words as I have a keyboard problem to do with predictive text. Probably an auto upgrade or something or I've pressed an F12345678910 etc key by accident on the keyboard and messed it up somehow.

I had a better, longer post than this ready to go a few days ago and one jumbled key stroke lost the lot. Hours of work gone in an instant. Which really pissed me off. So this is a second attempt to see if it will upload this time.

Nowadays The Barras have to compete with Amazon, Charity Shops, Car boot sales etc so it's not the force it once was but it was busy enough on the Sunday we were there. A sunny or dry day helps the atmosphere. Rain does not.

It has a collection of street stalls and undercover areas and it's the undercover areas that are the most interesting. An almost Dickensian warren of passageways through these sheds.

Started by this woman in the early 1920s who hired out carts ( or barrows) in this vicinity between the Gallowgate and London Road centred around Bain Street. Just East of The Saltmarket.

The Bay City Rollers here might help to date this artwork.

A Gaza mural outside The Barras. The Bride....

Traffic cones permanently stuck on certain statue's heads is a Glasgow oddity. The council used to remove them but eventually gave up. 

Maybe because of all the other outlets, charity shops etc The Barras these days has had to cater for the unusual. Creepy stuff. WWII memorabilia, clothes, old vinyl records, Film posters, bric a brac etc.

But we also went round some of the period buildings in this area as well, including this church.

Which was nice inside.

Open on Barras time so mainly Sat and Sunday.

Good selection of stained glass windows inside.

Like any street market it sometimes has a slightly edgy feel to it as this mural maybe depicts but even in its current incarnation there still is nothing like it anywhere else in Scotland, especially wandering inside the sheds ( male and female toilets are available inside the main shed area.)

Period style sign. This was the main reason I came here in the 1960s as a child. My mum got fish/ seafood and dishes, plates, cutlery/tablecloths, curtains here and my dad just liked browsing the various stalls for bargains. Nowadays though I go to local charity shops for bargains but it is still interesting here in its own way. For the history and also for the fact very few places like this still exist in the modern world.

It had a few surprises. This yellow doorway led into a large undercover area of the weird and unusual that I've not seen anywhere else.

Movie prop material .... or a goth's bedroom perhaps. 

Not really my taste. But creative.

We then wandered along Argyle Street for a tour of several art galleries.

Where Alan noticed some of the homeless had triangular insulated sleeping pouches instead of tents... which would be warmer in winter I'd imagine although you can't sit up in them.

 Grey heron here.

Argyle Street Murals.

Robotic Street Entertainer.

Famous Glasgow TV Character. Rab. C. Nesbitt.

An old favourite mural photo as it might not be here much longer. Looking faded now.

By this time we had been in several art galleries along Argyle Street and Queen Street before we ended up at the GoMA, seen here, above. Gallery of Modern Art. I did like some more traditional but new oil paintings in another upmarket gallery nearby but the best one was £45,000 to buy so not for my already empty wallet and too big for my walls anyway. My last 3 framed pictures by amateur but exciting artists were all free or cost very little money in charity shop giveaways. 

 I've never been much of a fan of a lot of modern art. Dribbled paint on canvas, unmade beds, or animals sliced in half then pickled leaves me unmoved so most of the stuff in the GoMA over the decades has not provoked much of a positive response in me. Note the traffic cone at the GoMA, above, which is what the earlier photo mural was a direct reference to.

I did like this though. There was an exhibition on inside but this was my highlight. Which was only a bare tree to start with that visitors stuck coloured dots on if they liked the exhibition. So they made it themselves in other words. Says something when this was my personal favourite. In other studios elsewhere in the city centre we also took in a vintage rock/pop photo gallery and paintings by several famous people like Billy Connolly and Bob Dylan. B.C's work I'd seen before featured on Scottish TV but Dylan's Americana paintings were new to me. 

And I liked the toilet art in the GoMA. Funnily enough years ago I was in Edinburgh's Gallery of Modern Art and the best thing in there was the colourful toilets as well, which I also took a photo of.

And I've always liked the GoMA interior of the building... rather than the exhibits inside. I used to go here when it was a public library as I've always loved books, films and art, still do,  and this place had a very good selection as did Rutherglen Library. Back in the day.

GoMA interior Staircase.

For visitors if you do go to The Barras several other places are within easy walking distance.

Five minutes stroll away is Glasgow Cross and the High Street, seen above. Ten minutes walk up that takes you to Glasgow Cathedral, The Necropolis, Museum of Religious Life etc... The Merchant City District and Glasgow City Chambers ( daily tours inside) is another option nearby... as is Glasgow Green and River Clyde walkway. Also ten minutes from The Barras. As is the Calton heritage trail.  So plenty to see, even on a Sunday.

 

Watching Bob Dylan's biography a couple of nights ago about his early life was interesting. I liked Blowing in the Wind and Mr Tambourine Man but a full album of Bob's strident semi preaching delivery was a bit too much for me as I preferred the gentler tones of Donovan, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, and Melanie Safka. I still have many of their LPs in my collection.

Which brings me to this. A beautiful song and video that mirrors my own feelings about 60 plus winters spent in Scotland although in central Canada winters can easily drop to 40 below. And she did get out... to a warmer climate. So very appropriate for the arrival of a new Spring in 2025.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA2OYBDXXsQ

 

Renfrew to Braehead River Walk. Clyde View Park. Robertson Park. Storm Damage.

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Renfrew Ferry slipway. A walk I did a few weeks ago just after Storm Eowyn and 80 to 100 mile an hour winds that brought down over 500 trees in Glasgow, many thousands across the Central Belt of Scotland. The Isle of Man and Ireland and countless power/telephone lines and garden fences. The Renfrew Ferry is still operating between Yoker and Renfrew ( £3:00 each for adults. £1:50 for concessions each trip. Mon to fri plus Sat Sun.) so this walk is a good option for me to reach Renfrew and Paisley easily. A traffic/ pedestrian bridge between Yoker and Renfrew should also be completed by April 2025, all going well.

This is the small passenger ferry here, halfway across the river, which also takes cycles (free) and runs every 10 minutes, or thereabouts from 6:30am to 18:30pm Mon to Fri and 10:00am to 18:30pm Sat Sun. I used to use it every summer for enjoyable circular bike tours round Glasgow and Paisley in a loop over Bells Bridge and past Partick and Govan via several city parks. Hopefully it will still operate after the bridge is open. Two interesting walks on the Renfrew side are available here.  One runs up Meadowside Street and Fishers Row, slightly inland through a brief industrial landscape of factories and small works then cuts back after a wooded section to the River Clyde (downstream) and follows a pleasant path around the edge of Renfrew Golf Course then up the White Cart Water as far as Porterfield  where you can circle round inland back to the ferry via Robertson Park. ( this walk may be disrupted at the moment due to the new bridge travelling through this area but should be ok again after April 2025.)

In the other direction, walking upstream along the River Clyde walkway, this path contours round several old jetties and watery in-shots used by boats and river traffic in previous eras of industry and shipbuilding. It's an interesting walk to Braehead Shopping Centre from here, passing Clyde View Park on the way.

After several ins and outs skirting the old docks, the riverside path runs straight, passing  Clyde View Park. This is what I was here to see as last summer they ( the surrounding residents) had banners up with Save Our Park on them. I thought this was council owned but apparently it's in private hands and had not been maintained so the grass was very overgrown and the stream system was choked with weeds and floating green scum. I'm pleased to report a maintenance team had been in and tidied it up, cutting grass and what looks like stream maintenance. ( last time I was here it was high summer and the stream section was almost dry and completely choked with weeds. A shame because this is a special small park)

You could hardly see any water at all the last time so either they have improved it (tidied it up) or winter rains have made their own landscaping alterations here. 

The grass has definitely been cut in the park as it was knee to waist high here last time and I talked to some locals this time around. It looks much improved but the same situation remains with uncertainty over who is responsible for future maintenance and upkeep. I've visited this small park every couple of years since it opened decades ago and it is a cracking asset for both the surrounding locals and visitors, with a trickling stream and pool feature (it used to have two working fountains in two deep pools to move the water flow around.) It also has sculptures, one of which shows the airships/ dirigibles that used to be built in Renfrew/Inchinnan. I loved Bioshock Infinite (a game that can also be watched and enjoyed as a film in 30 minute segments on You Tube for it's colourful immersive world and imagination as it features a floating city/community in the sky. And now I'm just after reading that with net zero targets to meet... the bygone age of airship travel of the early 1900s is being revived with several companies investing in future airship factories. For lifting heavy materials across country, or for upmarket holidays, or for military purposes, or hard to reach places,  it makes sense as with new materials and design innovations making it safer it may well be an alternative to airplane travel in certain ways. For a start you do not need a conventional airport or runway just a portable docking facility ( a long tethering pole) that can be moved to any location via ship or truck. With the severe winds we get in Scotland though, around 20 named storms per year, maybe not the best country to set up operations in.

Looking down the River Clyde towards Glasgow. From Clyde View Park. Once at Braehead I jumped on the number 26 bus to Roberston Park on the opposite side of Renfrew.  This bus runs from Glasgow to Paisley along King's Inch (road) and is a frequent service so very handy. You can get it back to Renfrew Ferry or Paisley or in this instance, Renfrew's other park. Best to avoid between 3:00pm and 4:00pm weekdays when the number 26 is packed with schoolchildren going home. No need to ask me how I know as I made that mistake on this outing and it took me 3 stops past Robertson Park before I managed to get off it again. Everyone packed tight together like sardines in a can.

 

Not much visible tree damage in Clyde View Park, as the trees are smaller and newer, but Robertson Park took a direct hit. I've read in other reports that over 500 trees were toppled during that one record breaking January 2025 storm in Glasgow alone, with thousands down countrywide. Certainly in Robertson Park a row of five mature beech trees got toppled, all in a line, and more smaller ones fell over as well. About 10 in total here. If wind speeds and storms continue to increase in Scotland many more trees will disappear in the coming years. I counted over 50 mature large trees down in my district, many bringing down internet/ telephone/power lines as well when they toppled over.

 From the size of these trees they are around 80 to 100 feet tall and over 100 years old. Multiply that by several thousand and you get an incredible number... of growth history wiped out in one single storm. I was also saddened to learn that the historic Darnley Tree near Nitshill, reputedly around 500 years old, was badly damaged and also several old giants in Edinburgh's Botanic Gardens.  

.....and yet through it all nature attempts to revert to normal, despite human interference and indifference... and that gentleman in the White House. Snowdrops appear.

An aquatic mural. Robertson Park.

Bike hub mural. Robertson Park.

UK war ships being built in 2025. River Clyde. A good flat walk of several hours duration.

Bioshock as a film. I've watched loads of Hollywood and UK films nothing like as entertaining, wildly imaginative or as mesmerizing and beautiful as this floating world of airships. Better to watch it on You Tube though. This link is only to highlight how to find it quickly and is the cinematic version out of dozens more clips available that are not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elvGT8_ZiWo