Day 14 - Argyll Exploring

19 April 2023

Today was all about exploring Roger’s McMillan/McKendrick family in Argyll. Again, we were blessed with lovely weather, but very windy, so it was no problem to leave the car to explore farms or burial grounds. Where we are staying near Tarbert is at the top of a peninsular, with Campbeltown down near the bottom. Roger’s family is from Campbeltown plus both sides of the peninsular, so we decided to drive down to Campbeltown on the western side, and back up on the eastern side (the single lane road).

Map of Kintyre showing our route. All of the red markers are locations of interest for Roger's family. Campbeltown is the 'D' at the bottom of the map.

The first stop was the old ruin of the Killean kirk and the accompanying kirk yard. Most of the old gravesites we explored today were in the middle of sheep or cattle fields, next to a beach, and this one was not an exception. There is so much coastline along this part of Scotland, and most of it seems to be grazing land with the occasional little settlement. There are also larger settlements located in harbours, which often have ferry ports with access to the islands. It’s all very pretty.

Just past Killean we came across Glenacardoch farm at Glenbarr. This farm was home to the McMillans for over 100 years and was where many of Roger’s direct ancestors were born, lived, and died. Roger’s Great Grandfather, Duncan McMillan was born there in 1846 and arrived in New Zealand in 1875. It is located on a point on the sea side of the main road, and from there it was clear enough for us to see across to Northern Ireland in the distance. Rog spoke to the current farmer who, although he was obviously busy, was happy to have a quick chat. Everyone here has been so helpful.

After visiting more grave sites and the Killocraw farm where Roger’s McKendrick family lived in the mid to late 1700s, we arrived at Campbeltown. We managed to fit in a couple of Whisky distilleries (Springbank and Glen Scotia), had soup on the quay, and explored town for a bit. Life in Campbeltown seems to revolve around its’ harbour, which has been in commercial use since 1700. The tractors travelling down the main street of Campbeltown reminded us that even though it is a pretty large town, it is still a very rural location.

Travelling back up the east coast was an experience – lots of fast driving locals on a one lane road with lots of blind corners. FUN! Every 100m or so there is a passing bay where you can get past traffic travelling in the opposite direction. Rog did a clever thing of sitting behind a local chimney contractor who seemed to know the road very well. Everyone coming the other way would just pop into the passing bays and let the contractor and us go past. Genius! When we were able to take our eyes off the road for a second, the views over the water were amazing. We even saw a submarine – definitely don’t see that every day.

Last stop was at Tarbert, another quaint and ancient fishing village, for a look around and a walk up to Tarbert Castle. Most castles we have been to seem to have a connection to Robert the Bruce (1274-1329), including Tarbert Castle. The castle is free to visit and is in the middle of a sheep paddock, with amazing views over the harbour and beyond. Most of the castle was destroyed and the rock used to make the habour walls, but what is left was very impressive.

Top photo is of Roger at Glenacardoch Farm, bottom left is one of the cemeteries (all of the blossom is starting to come out - so pretty), bottom middle is the submarine, bottom right photo is Targert from Tarbert Castle.
 

Tomorrow, we head to Glasgow for our final night in Scotland before we fly to Turkey. We both have loved visiting Scotland but realized that we have really seen it at its best having only had one wet day. The locals tell us that the weather is never like it has been, and apparently there is an arctic storm due next week. It looks like we have our timing perfect!