''Note: ''Cladach'' is a general Scottish Gaelic word for "beach" or "shore" and occurs in many Scottish placenames'' Cladach () is a tiny settlement on the

Isle of Arran The Isle of Arran (; ) or simply Arran is an island off the west coast of Scotland. It is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde and the seventh-largest Scottish island, at . Counties of Scotland, Historically part of Buteshire, it is in the ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The settlement is within the parish of Kilbride. In the vicinity of the island's main village,

Brodick Brodick ( , ("Castle Beach") or ''Breadhaig'') is the main village on the Isle of Arran, in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. It is halfway along the east coast of the island, in Brodick Bay below Goat Fell, the tallest mountain on Arran. The name ...

, Cladach is the site of the Cladach Sawmill and in more recent times, the Arran Brewery. The company, Arran Aromatics is located nearby, as is Brodick Castle.

History

Cladach was in the past a much larger settlement, and was in fact the site of the original village on Brodick Bay, with modern Brodick being built on the south side of the Bay later. There were in the past a series of houses on the Coast Road in Cladach, but they were demolished many years ago. There were also a series of houses that were let to employees of the sawmill by the sawmill owners. However, in recent years Cladach has essentially been depopulated and the buildings that used to house residents either demolished or converted into small businesses.

Geography

Cladach sits on the eastern coast of the Isle of Arran, off the Coast Road across the Brodick Bay from Brodick.

Economy

The Cladach Visitors' Centre is now the main attraction on the site of Cladach. Cladach is the usual starting point for climbers who seek to ascend

Goat Fell Goat Fell (Scottish Gaelic: ''Gaoitbheinn'') is the highest point on the Isle of Arran. At 874 metres (2,867 ft), it is one of four Corbetts on the island. The mountain, along with nearby Brodick Castle, is now owned by the Natio ...

mountain. An entrance into Brodick Castle Gardens is also located in Cladach. There is a hydroelectric scheme based at Cladach. Water is taken from a reservoir at around 800 ft on the slopes of

and electricity is generated at the turbines behind the Sawmill. The original electricity generation was for the Castle which was one of the first places in Scotland to receive electricity along with the Castle on

Rùm Rùm (), a Scottish Gaelic language, Scottish Gaelic name often Anglicisation, anglicised to Rum ( ), is one of the Small Isles of the Inner Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland, in the district of Lochaber. For much of the 20th century the ...

. A courthouse, which was demolished in 2004, used to post important messages about hearings and agriculture on an Ash tree outside its doors. Locals still put posters up advertising events, which echo this long held tradition. The restaurant is called the Wineport, named after the former port 500 yards north, a small harbour which was where supplies for the village and castle were landed.

References

External links

Canmore - Arran, Brodick Castle site record
Villages in the Isle of Arran {{NorthAyrshire-geo-stub