Out and About in a weekend in Largs can be contrasting yet still beautiful in equal measure. Before setting out on Saturday, Largs Community Resilience Team had provided early warnings about travelling by road, with a number of flooded areas. The gushing banks of the Gogo were a sight to behold though. The power of the waters at full spate are quite a sight, and might explain why there is so much interest in a hydro electric scheme in Largs!

As I crossed the road at the Mackerston bridge, the burn was in full flow, with quite a gust, made it even more important that I held a tighter grip on to my iPhone, as I filmed the surge. The video itself proved to be a hit on Facebook, and even went viral, gaining 30,000 views on the Largs and Millport News Facebook page, and plenty of comments besides. Its sheer force was now an online phenomenon!

However, as I walked up to towards Charles Street, a common sight for beautiful photographs in all weathers, I was struck by the big massive puddles which had amassed across the Mackerston Putting Green. Former 'News' photographer Grahame Ross once took a picture of the submerged surroundings of the Campbell Fountain during a spring tide back in 1972, but here was a slightly different sight which was too good an opportunity to miss for a keen amateur photographer like myself - pitch, putt and water polo all rolled into one! On Sunday morning I ventured from Fairlie into Largs with Millport photographer Karen Brodie, and as we approached the path between Fairlie Bowling Club and Largs Yacht Haven, we had to carefully walk on the muddy patches at the side as some areas of the route were completely under water. There seems to be a couple of areas, one quite close to the bridge access, which commonly gets flooded at these times of year, and it would be good if the council could keep this particular area better maintained, as it well used by walkers and cyclists alike.  (See Karen's picture below)

Largs and Millport Weekly News:

And it wasn't just myself and Karen enjoying the golden rays of the rare spectacle of sunshine to these parts, but three rams were nestling on a grassy mound next to the Kelburn bridge, and a flock of seagulls looked contented at the ridge of The Pencil. It almost felt as if there was a collective sigh of relief from nature at the calmer day with a light breeze, as we briskly walked along the seashore towards Largs. Two westie dogs were roaming along the shore, running around in circles, and seemed equally delighted to be enjoying the good weather! While there was surprisingly no frost for early December - it has again been a very mild start to the month - it is worth savouring as usually the frosty cold temperatures are not too far away!