Trail Isle

Approaching Little Cumbrae Lighthouse with a view towards the southern end of the Isle of Bute. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

From somewhat open grassy moorland, the path now heads down through thick swathes of Bracken. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

The third generation of 'light' present on Little Cumbrae Island, installed atop the old foghorn tower. The Isle of Arran can be seen in the distance. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A view of the lantern room of the 1793 lighthouse on Little Cumbrae, viewed from the raised beach below. The cable in the foreground will be associated with the lighthouse crane which sits on the clifftop, just out of view in this image. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

This is view is taken sitting on the remains of the 2' gauge rail track for conveying supplies from the jetty to the base of the cliff, to be lifted by the lighthouse crane (visible on the clifftop, to the right of the lighthouse buildings). The dilapidated boat shed and patent slipway remains are to the right of this image, with the former foghorn buildings on the clifftop above. Refer to NS1351 : View from Little Cumbrae Lighthouse lantern room for a view of this area from the Little Cumbrae Lighthouse lantern room several weeks prior. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A view from the jetty under the 1793 lighthouse on Little Cumbrae Island. In the distance, houses in Millport on Great Cumbrae Island can be discerned. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

Note the rails on the remains of the patent slipway in the foreground; the boat shed is largely collapsed, especially at the seaward end. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

The remains of the patent slipway can be noted to the right of shot, and beyond, the jetty which is used by some small vessels on this side of the island. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

An old cast iron stand pump, located on the east side of the stairs leading down the cliff from Little Cumbrae Lighthouse. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A view of the boat cradle (and powered winch to the rear) inside the dilapidated boat shed under the Little Cumbrae Lighthouse. Much of the patent slipway has been washed away. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

The trumpet of the former foghorn on Little Cumbrae Island is tucked away in the undergrowth in the corner of the lighthouse gardens. The system used on Little Cumbrae was a Daboll trumpet, invented by an American, C L Daboll of Connecticut. Having been paid £600 he came over from New York and installed his equipment at Little Cumbrae, where it was said to have worked very well. Dimensions of the trumpet have been quoted as 17' long, with a throat 3.5" in diameter, and a flaring mouth diameter of 38". This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

Built by James Ewing and dating from 1757, this was the second lighthouse in Scotland. The 'Lighthouses on the Southwest Coast of Scotland' website Link gives further information, abridged here: 'It is sited some way from the coast, on top of what is now known as Lighthouse Hill, the highest point of the island. This was the second lighthouse in Scotland. Remains of this old structure can still be seen. Its tower is a circular stone structure standing 8 metres high. The lighthouse keepers were accommodated in a cottage about 9 metres north of the tower. For the light, a coal fire was used, which burnt so fiercely that the grate on which it stood had to be replaced after only one year, and then regularly thereafter. Ewing built the tower for £140.5.8d — considered a low amount. The light was to prove very profitable, and in March 1773 the dues from it were used to pay for the quelling of a mob of sailors who had brought business to a halt in Greenock and Port Glasgow for ten days. The inherent limits of coal-fire lights, combined with the tower's position on top of a hill, meant that the Little Cumbrae light was often obscured by cloud or fog. Complaints from seamen led to a plan in 1790 to replace the light in the tower. This eventually led in 1793 to the Little Cumbrae Lighthouse Trust commissioning another tower nearer the coast, the New Tower. The Clyde Port Authority carried out restoration work on it in 1956.' This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

The descent of Lighthouse Hill back to the main cross-island path involves negotiating dense stands of Bracken. This was the view across the central part of the island where the footpath is nearing 1900 hrs on a beautiful August evening. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

Remains of the staircase can be seen in this shot, taken inside the remains of the 1757 lighthouse building. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

One of the compressed air tanks can be noted just outside the former plant room in this shot. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A view of the westernmost extreme of the Little Cumbrae Lighthouse garden from the lantern room balcony. Millport on neighbouring Great Cumbrae can be seen in the distance. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A view of the exterior of the lantern room, showing the effects of decades of no maintenance. This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.

A valve on the side of a tank in the foghorn engine room. The tank bore the manufacturer's name - 'Pulsometer Engineering Co.' This photograph was taken during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020/21.