Bute is 15 miles long and 5 miles across at its widest point. It can be accessed by Calmac car ferries from Colintraive to Rhubodach (a very short crossing that takes only a few minutes) or from Weymss Bay to Rothesay. If you travel via Wemyss Bay, take a minute to go into the railway station, which is adjacent to the ferry port. It has an amazing curved glass and iron roof. The Caledonian Railway rebuilt the original 1865 station in 1903: it was designed by architect James Miller and engineer Donald Mathieson.
Bute has been continuously settled for at least 6,000 years. In 2011 the population was 6,498. Most people live in Rothesay or the adjacent village of Port Bannatyne.
I visited Bute for the first time in September 2004 for two nights and one day. I stayed in a B&B at Port Bannatyne. My main reason for visiting was to find some geocaches. However it poured with rain all day on the only full day I had there and every field I had to walk through was full of cows. I presume this is the main agricultural activity on the island.
I made two day trips to Bute in May 2022: the first day we brought the car, so we could explore the island and the next day we came back on the ferry as foot passengers to explore Rothesay and to visit the lovely Ardencraig Gardens.
Rothesay is the only town on the island. It became a Royal Burgh in 1403 and has been popular with holidaying Glaswegians since Victorian times, although its heyday was over by the end of the Edwardian era. The granite and sandstone villas along the seafront at Rothesay were originally built for Glasgow merchants. Notable buildings in Rothesay include the castle, Winter Garden - made of glass and cast iron in an art nouveau style - and the public toilets, which were built in 1899.
Bute has a marked walking trail called the West Island Way. It was opened in 2000 and runs for 25 miles from Rhubodach to Kilchattan Bay via Rothesay with a circular loop at either end.
Isle of Bute sculpture in Rothesay
Highland Boundary Fault Marker in Rothesay
The Highland Boundary Fault runs through Bute from Scalpsie on the west coast to Rothesay on the east coast. The northern two thirds of Bute are geologically in the Highlands, while the third to the south of the fault line is in the lowlands. The line of the fault is commemorated in the Esplanade Gardens in Rothesay. The valley created by the fault is occupied by Loch Quien and Loch Fad.
Winter Gardens, Rothesay
Rothesay Harbour from Bogany Wood
Rothesay Seafront
Rothesay Harbour
Rothesay
Rothesay Town Hall and County Buildings
Victorian public toilets in Rothesay
Colourful lamp post, Rothesay
Bogany Wood, Rothesay
Ardencraig Gardens were originally laid out by Percy Cane (1881-1976) for the owners of Ardencraig House. The walled garden part of it was acquired by Rothesay Town Council in 1970 and is currently in the care of Argyll and Bute Council. There are outdoor flower beds (empty when we visited in mid May), glass houses full of cacti, fuchsias and other tender and exotic plants, several aviaries and a little pond. The gardens are free to visit but donations are welcomed. There is a lovely footpath from Rothesay to Ardencraig Gardens via Bogany Wood.
Ardencraig Gardens
Buzz the Senegal parrot in Ardencraig Gardens
Cactus Glasshouse, Ardencraig Gardens
Glasshouse at Ardencraig Gardens
Glasshouse at Ardencraig Gardens
Ardencraig Gardens
Rothesay Sea Front
Dinosaur Rock, Rothesay
Winter Gardens, Rothesay
Rothesay Castle dates back to at least 1230 and is closely connected to the Stewart family. It was built as a defence against raiding Norwegians. It was attacked on numerous occasions during its history. It was burned by the Duke of Argyll in 1685 and left as a ruin until it was restored by the Crichton Stuarts (Marquesses of Bute) in the 19th century. It is now in the care of Historic Scotland. It is unique in Scotland because of its circular form.
Rothesay Castle
The Victorian Fernery at Ascog was built in 1870 and restored in 1997. It contains subtropical ferns. It and the surrounding gardens are open to the public. It is well worth a visit and when I was there the owners were very friendly and happy to chat about it.
Victorian Fernery
The biggest house on the island is Mount Stuart, which has been the home of the Bute family for over 250 years. The current house was built in the late 19th century by the 3rd Marquess of Bute after a fire in 1877 destroyed the previous one, which had been built in 1719. It was designed by the architect Robert Rowand Anderson in the neo-Gothic style. The Georgian wings, which survived the 1877 fire, were incorporated into the new house. The house and gardens are open to the public but not every day and the only day I had on Bute in 2004 they were shut, so I was unable to visit. During our 2022 visit, we only had time to visit the extensive gardens (covering 300 acres).
Mount Stuart
Mount Stuart
Mount Stuart
Glasshouse at Mount Stuart
Bird of paradise flower in the glasshouse at Mount Stuart
Avenue at Mount Stuart
Strange enclosure in the grounds of Mount Stuart
Mount Stuart
There are also several ruined chapels on the island, including St Blane's Church near Kingarth at the south end of the island. According to tradition, a monastery was founded at Kingarth by Catan in the late 6th century. Catan's sister Ertha became pregnant by an unknown man and she called her son Blane. Catan was enraged by the birth of Blane and set him and his mother adrift in an oarless boat. The boat finally drifted ashore on the Ulster coast. Blane lived in Ulster for 7 years. When he returned to Bute he was reconciled to his uncle and later succeeded him as Abbot of the monastery and bishop of the local area. Blane later moved to the mainland and founded a church, which was later to become Dunblane Cathedral. The monastery on Bute continued to thrive until it was destroyed by Vikings in the late 8th century. The church was rebuilt in the early 13th century, extended in the 14th century but abandoned by the late 16th century.
St Blane's Church
St Blane's Church
St Blane's Church
Hog-back Viking tombstone at St Blane's Church
St Blane's Church
Kerrycroy Beach
Kerrycroy
The first cottages in this picture perfect little English style estate village on the east coast of Bute and to the of north Mount Stuart, were built by Maria North, wife of the 2nd Marquess of Bute, in 1805-6 to accommodate estate workers. The Arts and Crafts style houses were added in the 1880s.
Kilchattan Bay
Kilchattan Bay
Stone picnic table and seat at Kilchattan Bay
Guaranteed not to blow away!
Kingarth/Blackpark Stone Circle
Kingarth/Blackpark Stone Circle
Standing stones at St Ninian's Bay, Straad
Memorial at Ettrick Bay
This memorial commemorates a Bute blacksmith called Andrew Blain Baird (1862-1951). In September 1910 he flew a home made monoplane he had designed and built himself from the beach at Ettrick Bay. This was the first all-Scottish heavier-than-air powered flight.
Wemyss Bay Railway Station
Wemyss Bay Railway Station
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