North Shore, Ardrossan

[canfactory]

Thanks Penny Tray for lots of memories re the Greasy Pole.

As a 4 or 5yo I was taken most (sunny) days down to it by my mother who was part of that large group of strong wimmin (Bessie Bunch, the Troddens, Blackwoods & Campbells etc etc) who all met there. It wasn't as much a picnic but a 'team meeting' ! Us kids were allowed to play, under close supervision of course, and the wimmin blethered (and not about knitting patterns!) I am sure that's when I first became aware of voices get lowered and things being S_P_E_L_T out if we were closeby

Happy, happy memories of people mostly all now gone and who really would have given you their last.

Campbell

[bobnetau]

Canfactory, my hubby, Bobby McCubbin talks about the group at the Greasy Pole, and all the names you mentioned were there. Also the Finlays. We have a group photo somewhere with all that crowd in it. If I get time will look it out and pass it to Hugh to put on 3ts.
Netta

[Sarah]

Im sure we were in among that group, some Sundays it looked like a Sunday school picnic.

[down south]

What seemed mystifying to me, was why such a thing would ever be set up there in the first place. But I find that this question has been much discussed on 3T already:

http://www.threetowners.net/forum/viewt ... 7833#p7833

http://www.threetowners.net/forum/viewt ... 66#p125566

I can't say I'd ever heard of it, or paid it any heed, until a fondly-remembered picnic in the summer of 1970. We'd been driving round the countryside , and planned to end up at one of our old favourite spots near Kilwinning, but found them all closed off or in the process of being built over for Irvine New Town, so we headed up to North Shore instead, and stopped at this nearest spot instead of the beach part where we'd usually go. And my sister, who at 23 was definitely old enough to know better , climbed at least part of the way up the Greasy Pole in spite of her decidedly short mini-skirt and less than suitable shoes...Not me though, you'd definitely never have got me trying to get up there !

Susan

[canfactory]

Netta

It would be great to see the photograph. I forgot about the Finlays and also the Denvers and that reminded me of Findlay Denver. I wonder if he is still in the three towns.

Campbell

[stevenwignet]

I was along the North Shore in Ardrossan today - sniffing the salt air, smelling the seaweed and remembering swimming around and diving off Big Jumbo.

What is the history of this rock?, how did it get there?
I know there is one near fairlie and its claimed it rolled down from the hills, as there is no hills around Ardrossan how did this rock appear?

Here's an advertisement for the Rowan Tree restaurant from the later 1960s:

phpw2ZwbkAM.jpg

Susan

I did not know this place was called the Rowan Tree back then, I thought it was built as the little chef and it was the uk hq for the company.

[Meg]

I worked in the Rowantree when I was at school - so that would have been 1969. It was known locally as the Chalet, as it was a restaurant called that before it was changed to the Rowantree. It was a garage on one side and a restaurant on the other. It became a Little Chef - and it was also the Scottish HQ - in the early 70's. Think it dates back to the 50's originally.

Meg

[morag]

What was the restaurant across the road - ish, the Tarbert comes to mind?

[Meg]

The Tarbet Hotel Morag - also locally called the Beach House. Used to be great dancing in there on a Sunday night.

Meg

[little plum]

The Tarbet Hotel Morag - also locally called the Beach House. Used to be great dancing in there on a Sunday night.

Meg

I heard there were some great nights in there, it wasnt for me. How could I get a tattie howkers daughter tae walk me hame tae Stevenston point ( feart o' the dawrk so a' am) and try to explain to her dad why she never got home on the same day she went out.
Went in there one day after it had been take over by one of the consortium's, it was called Charlie Chalks , It might have been owned by "Brewers Fare" not sure.? Microwave meals, small discs with a number on it nailed to the table, what did this say about their staff.
It had/has a play area for children allowing the the parents to relax at the bar after their microwave meal and partake of small refreshments.
What about the house opposite this venue, it sat a jaunty angle on the junction of the shore road and the back road to Westkilbride. It had 2 ornamental lions either side of the driveway, the colour might have been sienna but not sure. ?

[morag]

They did a fair dinner back in the day. It was a 'special occasion' place for us. My uncle John always opted for rainbow trout when we ate out and apparently, theirs was really good. Talking 60's. Great location!

[largsfairlie]

[quote="Penny Tray"]This 'structure', for the want of a better description, has protruded from the sand behind Loup Cottage for 55 years or so that I can speak of personally and probably many years before this.

Does anyone know for sure what it was originally, presumably a small shipwreck?

My family has been closely connected with the loup cottage caravan site since 1937 to present day. while no one knew for certain what this was I was always told it was part of an old jetty which served the area. I see something on old maps called "Ann's lodge" across the road from Loup cottage which we always called " the orchard". Could it have served this house in the early 19th century?