Bike: Great Cumbrae circular

[Cycling around Great Cumbrae, just south of the ferry slipway]

Almost everyone exploring the island of Great Cumbrae does so by pedal power: the island's coast road is quiet, scenic, flat as a pancake and - at 10 miles in length - easily manageable for most people. Little need for cars on the island means little traffic to contend with; in fact, bikes outnumber motorised vehicles in summer, and the island is sometimes referred to as "The Island of a Thousand Bicycles" (perhaps just by the cycle hire shops looking to drum up trade). Beaches, headlands, monuments and painted rocks provide countless excuses to stop and admire the panorama: to the Ayrshire mainland on the east side, north into the Highlands, to Bute on the west side, and south towards mountainous Arran. They say pictures tell a thousand words; apart from the first two, the photos on this page show the route in anticlockwise order.

[White Bay]

📌 Bike: Cumbrae circular ★★☆☆☆
▶ 16 km / 10 miles | ▲ Negligible
Start / finish: Millport, G.R.: NS 161548 ///skirt.before.bystander

Route: Circuit of island in either direction, following coast road.
Terrain: Tarmac public road, mostly quiet and nearly flat.
Bike hire: Several options in Millport town centre.
Weather today: Sunny, fairly light winds, temperature in mid teens.

>> Millport page: Millport ★★★☆☆ & town sights

[Millport]

Route map


Route credit: Scotland off the beaten track

More photos

[Lion Rock]

[Looking towards the mainland from the southeast corner of the island]

[Oystercatcher]

[Heading north along the east coast]

[Busy Firth of Clyde]

[HMS Shearwater monument]

[Across the firth to Largs]

[Hooks for wartime anti-submarine nets at Skate Point]

[Skate Point]

[Indian Rock!]

[Bell Bay]

[Not quite sure what this is supposed to be...]

[War memorial]

[Southwest corner of the island, with views to Arran]

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