Accommodation at Gramercy – a sanctuary for all seasons

East Bay is right in front of the house. Cross the road and if the tide is out go down the steps (they can be slippery!) Have a lovely time pottering about finding beautiful stones, examining the sea weed and finding what little critters there might be.

Plenty of seabirds- eiders, guillemots, oyster catchers, turnstones, occasional heron and more. When the tide is in the beach disappears and the sea comes half way up the sea wall. I swim there quite often and launch my kayak from there.

Swimming pool (Riverside Leisure Centre): 25m 6 lane pool with health suite (sauna, steam room and spa bath) and cafe.
Open normally Mon – Fri: 0700 – 1300 & 15.30 – 1900; Sat/Sun 1900 – 1600.
Contact: 01369 701170 / riverside@liveargyll.co.uk

Gym: Queen’s Hall on the right-hand side just about opposite the foot ferry

Library: Queen’s Hall

Coffee kiosk near ferry and a public toilet.

Bus stances for all the local routes (Toward via Inellan, Inverary via Benmore Botanical Gardens and Glen Branter, Ardentinny via Kilmun, Strone and Blairmore , Lochgoilhead and Carrick Castle, Rothesay, Isle of Bute (West Coast Motors: www.westcoastmotors.co.uk or www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/bustimetables)

Calmac Passenger Ferry. When they are in a good mood the boats (the Argyll Flier and the Alicat) run every half hour to and from Gourock Station. However they aren’t keen on bad weather and recently each boat has been giving trouble so there has only been an hourly service. It is wise to check the Calmac website for times.

Mini Putting course with a couple of fiendish holes. Sticks and balls obtainable from the Boat House Café for a small charge

Boat House Café: Seats inside and out on the sea front at the start of West Bay

West Bay: Lovely to walk along here. The beach is always accessible, even at high tide.

Children’s Playground at the further end of the beach, and public toilets.

From here you can turn inland at Kilbride Road to go up past Holy Trinity Church to Bishop’s Glen (woods and merry burns and wide open hill tops) – brilliant cycling routes including the 15 mile Corlarach Loop

Alternatively you can carry on walking or take the bus towards Inellan (another 4 miles). Inellan has a community store, the Lido, and the Osborne Hotel which does good food and has lovely views over the sea.

Toward is 2 ½ miles further on, with its lighthouse and sailing club and rocky beaches with great views to the isles of Bute and Arran (fantastic sunsets there). It has no shop or eatery so you need to bring your own refreshments as you explore.

If you are driving, the road from Toward leads on to the lower end of Loch Striven – another great base for walks.

Turn left along the promenade and look down at the extraordinary rock formations – last remnants of the Highland Fault Line where millennia ago the southern and northern continents collided and pulled apart. You can scramble all along here when the tide is out.

At Kirn ( a good half mile along) is a friendly little café, Java Walk, and over the road an outlet for Black’s Bakery – lovely bread and good pies, and an excellent haberdashery shop, Ginty and Ba’s for all your crafty needs.

At Hunter’s Quay (a mile and a half from Gramercy) is the motor ferry run by Western Ferries. The sturdy boats run every 20 minutes and it takes a lot to disrupt the service. When the weather is bad they take the passengers from the Calmac ferries and a shuttle bus sometimes runs between the 2 ferry terminals. There are frequent buses from McInroy’s Point in Gourock where the ferry lands, to Gourock Station. Remarkably, a ferry crew is on call every night for patients who might need taking from the Community Hospital to the Inverclyde Hospital.

Another mile and a half brings you to Holy Loch Marina, home to many private yachts, as well as Majestic Cruises which travel around the Hebrides, and Wreckspeditions which take people on diving trips. There’s a pleasant café there, and Croots, which sells country products, good pet food, country clothes and arty bits, and Holy Loch Pottery, with a range of lovely goods all made right there. Pottery classes are often available too.

Queen Street: left out of the gate and first left. This leads you past a pub and a take away and a hairdresser and about 10 minutes’ walk up the road to the Co-op Supermarket. Turn left here, past the Lorne Hotel (a good eatery) and you will be in Argyll Street which is the main shopping street. Various pubs and restaurants, gift shops, clothes and outdoor wear and an outlet shop for clothes, hardware etc. Don’t miss the Burgh Hall, a community owned and run centre for arts, with regular art exhibitions, music and plays (check the website – www.dunoonburghhall.org.uk) . There is a little shop selling goods made by local artists and an excellent licensed café, dog friendly, serving home-made food. Towards the bottom of the street is Bookpoint, an independent bookshop which sells really interesting books of all kinds, including guides to the area. If you walk right down Argyll Street you will come out at Queen’s Hall and the sea front.

John Street: Turn right as you come out of the house and walk along the sea front to the roundabout where you turn right. On your right is Morrison’s Supermarket (about 5 minutes from the house. On your left is the Studio Cinema, an independent cinema that shows most of the newest films including child-friendly movies and live stream opera, ballet and London plays. Check their website – www.studiocinema.co.uk. John Street leads you into Argyll Street. If you cross Argyll Street and continue to walk (another10 minutes or so) you will reach Alexander Street and the start of a network of walking and cycle trails up the hills behind the town.