Photographs of the village of Fairlie on the Ayrshire Coast of Scotland

Clydeport Hunterston Terminal from Fairlie

The port, completed in 1979,

was originally called Hunterston Ore Terminal

and was intended to handle iron ore

for British Steel's Ravenscraig steelworks.

Existing facilities at General Terminus Quay on the upper River Clyde

were unsuitable for increasingly large vessels,

hoever Hunterston, with its one-mile-long ( 1.6 km ) jetty,

is able to handle modern ships of any size.

Wikipedia - Hunterston Terminal

Isle of Cumbrae

from Fairlie

Jetty at Fairlie

with Largs and Knock Hill

in background

Kelburn Castle and Estate at Fairlie

Kelburn Castle is a large house near Fairlie

It is the seat of the Earl of Glasgow.

Originally built in the thirteenth century

( the original keep forms the core of the house )

it was remodelled in the sixteenth century.

In 1700 the first Earl made further extensions to the house

in a manner not unlike a French château

which is virtually how it appears today

In 1977 the house and grounds opened

to the public as a country park.

It is one of the oldest castles in Scotland

and has been continuously inhabited

by the same family for longer than any other.

The castle is protected as a category "A" listed building,

while the grounds are included in the Inventory

of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.