Directions
We are able to pick you up, provided you wait at an obvious, easy, quick to reach place that is on route to our SUP destination, for example Balloch station if you are coming from Glasgow for our Loch Lomond trips.
Unicorn Paddle is based is just 2 minutes from Alloa railway station, one stop on from Stirling.
And we can also pick up from Stirling, Bridge of Allan, Dunblane station, etc. depending where you are coming from and which direction we are headed to.
Directions to our Loch Lomond base at Portnellan Farm
Directions to Portnellan, Gartocharn G83 8NL
If you come by car:
From the south: M74 / M8 Erskine Bridge / A82 Crianlarich / A811 Stirling
From Glasgow: * Great Western Road / Boulevard / A82 Crianlarich / A811 Stirling * Bearsden Rd / Drymen Rd / Stockiemuir / A811 Erskine Bridge
From Edinburgh: M9 Stirling / Junction 10 / A811 Erskine Bridge
Gartocharn is on the A811 between Balloch and Drymen.
Coming from the east, go through the village – do not leave the 30-mile limit – take last right into Ross Loan – the primary school is on Ross Loan
From the west come into Gartocharn from Balloch and take 1st L down Ross Loan (past primary school)
After Drymen, turn right, when you see the “campground” sign When you see the “Red letter box” don’t drive downhill.Follow the signs to the “Ross Priory” on the right downhill towards the loch Once you are past the small power station and have crossed the cattle grid, park your car to the right (surrounded by trees) and walk 300 m to the farm (uphill) and go to our launching pier (downhill)
On Ross Loan: take 1st L (after 0.7 mile) though black metal gates to Ross Priory Down to bottom of avenue and 1st L over speed bump. As parking space at Portnellan farm is extremely limited and we have a parking permit only for our 8 seater van, if you bring your own car, you will have to park at the water pumping station just before the cattlegrid.
You then walk to cross the cattle grid and continue for the last 200 m you on a concrete road and up to the farm on rough road. Down to the right is the pier and the Unicorn Paddle launch area to Loch Lomond.
FURTHER ON THERE ARE THREE HOUSES ON THE FARM ALL WITHIN 200 M OF EACH OTHER
*Be very careful of the road – the floods have repeatedly washed it out and the ruts are deep – drive to one side or the other
Coming to Stirling University
If you come by car:
Edinburgh – Motorway to Stirling – then just before Stirling turn right heading north on the A9, one more stop to the Bridge of Allan exit.
At the Bridge of Allan exit, you drive all the way through Bridge of Allan, heading to the Wallace Monument until you see a sign for Stirling University on your left, turn left and park anywhere and walk to the central building at Stirling University, which is called the Andrew Miller Building, inside the Atrium (stairs to the left from the MacRoberts Arts Centre you have all the shops, bookshop, bank, supermarket, incl. us the travel agency.
If you come by train:
From Edinburgh Waverley/Haymarket or Park station you get on the train that says “destination Dunblane” (1/2 hourly Mondays to Saturdays / hourly on Sundays) and you get off after 50 minutes in Stirling.
From Glasgow Queen Street station there are three trains every hour to Stirling “all trains that say destination Dunblane, Alloa, Aberdeen or Inverness will stop in Stirling”. The journey time is about 25-40 minutes.
Coming from the North, you take a Glasgow bound train getting off in Stirling.
To get to Stirling University by Bus
From Stirling railway station it is a one minute walk uphill to Murray Place, where you cross to the other side of the road and wait at the big bus stop for the next bus (every 10 minutes) to Stirling University.You can take bus number UL( Unilink), 62, 54, 53, 58 and it takes about 8 minutes.
To get to Stirling University by Taxi
Alternatively outside the railway station there are always taxis waiting and it costs about £5-£7 to get to Stirling University. You should tell them to drop you off at the main entrance of the University, just outside the entrance of the MacRoberts’ Arts Centre (cinema/theatre), to the left are stairs up into the Atrium (Andrew Miller Building), where all the shops are, Unicorn Travel/Unicorn Paddle is between the bookshop and the pharmacy, it could not be easier..
For further timetable information also see:
http://www.travelinescotland.com
Should you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch or ask and we are happy to help.
