This walk is around 4.5miles (7km)and you should allow two hours. A shorter version is possible, which would take less than an hour. The full route is NOT suitable for dogs as there are cattle present all year round.
This fairly easy circular route follows hard tracks most of the way, through a mixture of pleasant woodland and open ground, with lovely views of loch Indaal from Knockdon.
Start at Bridgend Woods car park, first of all taking the roadside path (pictured above) which leads uphill towards Newton. At the top of the hill, turn left and follow the single track road past New Houses and on towards Knockdon.
As you walk along this road, on your left you’ll see this gateway to Eallabus House, and shortly after this is an access road, also going off to your left. Diagonally opposite this is a track on the right, leading down to Loch Skerrols .
This makes worthwhile detour there is a loop of track (pictured above) which although somewhat muddier than the main road, will lead you alongside the loch, with the opportunity to watch out for otters and wildfowl.
Loch Skerrols is a man-made loch, constructed in the late 18th century to provide water to power the mills on the estate. Water from here also once supplied the long-gone Newton Distillery, at Newton House.
If you wish to do a shorter route, simply turn off left at the access road to Eallabus House (pictured above) and follow the road as it goes straight, bears left alongside the house, then bears right up to a junction. From there you can turn left and walk back to the car park where you started. This shorter route is ideal for pushchairs, smaller children and for dogs, as long as they are kept on a lead.
If you’re doing the longer route then keep walking around the loch and loop round to the left to rejoin the main track. From here you’ll turn right and continue to Knockdon, passing the farmhouse on the hill to your right as you follow the path straigt on.
A gentle climb takes you onto the farm track behind East Cararbus – stay on this track, leaving all gates as you find them and staying clear of livestock – until you meet the single track road at Carnain. Turn left and walk towards the main road. A short distance further on is a gate on your left above the road, at a cattle feeding station.
If the feeder is not in use, it is possible to turn in here and walk along the fields behind the woods. If the cattle are feeding continue down the road and either access the field by crossing the wall and fence behind the houses at Carnain or – for the less nimble – stay on the road and enjoy the walk along the edge of Loch Indaal.
Whichver route you take, your next destination is Whin Park, approached from the rear if following the field route, or by the main access road a few hundred yards from Cross House if following the main road.
From Whin Park, follow the estate road back to Islay House Square -once a busy farmstead, now a collection of craft workshops – and from there to the car park.
