Janet Christie's Mum's the Word - No such thing as bad weather on a trip doon the watter

Ettrick Bay, Isle of Bute, January 2023. Pic: J Christie

Applying the Billy Connolly mantra, “There's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothing, so get yourself a sexy raincoat and live a little,” my pals and I wrapped up and headed for the island of Bute in Argyll to welcome the New Year.

Three days to explore, whatever the weather. A dander around Rothesay revealed a castle with a proper ice-filled moat, an array of shops including antique - tartan breeks, waist 38 inch, inside leg 28 inch anyone? - and a visitor centre full of history and photographs of thousands taking trips ‘doon the watter’. “The Madeira of Scotland,” intoned a film with footage from the Fifties showing the island bathed in sunshine as the rain pelted against the panes before clearing and gloaming lit the hills with a rosy glow.

As the only male in our crew, Dundee Man doesn’t mind being mistaken for a Mormon but he was probably craving a moment’s peace when he headed for the public toilets on the front. However, ‘award-winning’ and ‘Victorian’ announced someone, so in we all trooped. Now the ‘Ladies’ are lovely, but not antique, so we breenged into ‘Gentlemen’ where the plumbing is something to be admired, all ceramic complicated cisterns and testament to those clever, ostentatious Victorians, with knobs on.

The view from Port Bannatyne, Isle of Bute, January 2023. Pic: J Christie

Mount Stuart was closed, but those grounds! and Ettrick Bay, a perfect crescent of sand overlooked by a glowing cafe with windows through which to watch clouds scud, crammed with walkers and dogs creating a steaming fug of soup, spaniel and cheese and onion toasties. Bliss.

Everywhere were stunning views - was that snow-capped mountain mainland or island? Was that sea or sky? No matter, it was beautiful, and just being beside the sea put smiles on our faces that widened when the wind blew us into the cosy community-owned pub, The Anchor Tavern at Port Bannatyne.

There a singalong and bagpipes heralded in New Year among locals in ‘the pub they’d bought’, alongside visitors, enjoying bubbles, stovies, the skirl of Auld Lang Syne and cries of “Get your lips over here”.

“It’s not just a pub,” an islander told me, “it’s somewhere for people to be together, get warm, make contact, because we lost that during Covid. Pubs aren’t just about having a drink. They’re more than that.”

So if the weather’s getting to you, get yourself a sexy raincoat, get out there, and live a little.