Portavadie ( gd, Port a' Mhadaidh) is a village on the shores of

Loch Fyne Loch Fyne ( gd, Loch Fìne, ; meaning "Loch of the Vine/Wine"), is a sea loch off the Firth of Clyde and forms part of the coast of the Cowal peninsula. Located on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound o ...

on the west coast of the

Cowal Cowal ( gd, Còmhghall) is a peninsula in Argyll and Bute, in the west of Scotland, that extends into the Firth of Clyde. The northern part of the peninsula is covered by the Argyll Forest Park managed by Forestry and Land Scotland. The Arrochar ...

peninsula in

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute ( sco, Argyll an Buit; gd, Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd, ) is one of 32 unitary authority council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 2020) ...

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

. The Portavadie complex was built by the then

Scottish Office The Scottish Office was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Following the e ...

for the purpose of constructing concrete platforms for extraction of oil from the North Sea. However, the intention was soon overtaken by acceptance that steel platforms were the future for the oil industry in Scotland. Despite suggestions to turn the complex into a holiday village, it lay redundant until in the mid-1980s the enclosed port was used by a local fish farm company. A further report in the

Dunoon Observer and Argyllshire Standard The ''Dunoon Observer and Argyllshire Standard'' is a weekly tabloid newspaper serving the Cowal Peninsula area of Argyll and Bute, in western Scotland. It is edited and printed in Dunoon, and is known locally as ''the Standard''. The newspaper ...

, says that the derelict "village", known as

Polphail Polphail was a ghost village in Scotland. It was demolished in 2016. Location Polphail was located at Portavadie Portavadie ( gd, Port a' Mhadaidh) is a village on the shores of Loch Fyne on the west coast of the Cowal peninsula in Argyll ...

, was sold to a forestry company who plan to demolish the buildings and build new houses. It remains in situ currently.

Portavadie Marina

In late 2009 the marina was used for the first time to tie up yachts for the Scottish series by the

Clyde Cruising Club Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a to ...

, won by Nigel Biggs; England; J109-IRC. The new

Portavadie Marina Portavadie ( gd, Port a' Mhadaidh) is a village on the shores of Loch Fyne on the west coast of the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scottish Highlands. The Portavadie complex was built by the then Scottish Office for the purpose of construc ...

complex opened to the public in 2010. The first phase of the complex consisted of five-star luxury apartments, with private sauna facilities and four-star cottages, alongside a restaurant, conference suites and a retail space. The second phase, The Lodge, arrived shortly after, consisting of hotel style accommodation, fully accessible studio apartments, staff accommodation and a second "family style" restaurant. The third phase was officially launched in August 2016, with a luxury spa and leisure complex being added to the amenities.

Loch Lomond and Cowal Way

The

Loch Lomond and Cowal Way The Loch Lomond and Cowal Way is a waymarked footpath through the Cowal peninsula, in Argyll and Bute, between Portavadie on Cowal and Inveruglas on Loch Lomond side. It was formerly known as the Cowal Way, but was renamed in December 2018 to re ...

starts and finishes at Portavadie; this long-distance waymarked footpath takes one to

Inveruglas Inveruglas ( gd, Inbhir Dhubhghlais) is a hamlet on the west shore of Loch Lomond, fairly near the north end of the loch and is within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. It is situated on the A82 trunk road, connecting Glasgow to ...

on the shore of

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; gd, Loch Laomainn - 'Lake of the Elms'Richens, R. J. (1984) ''Elm'', Cambridge University Press.) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Ce ...

, in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, of walking later.

Portavadie Ferry Terminal

National

There is a

Caledonian MacBrayne Caledonian MacBrayne ( gd, Caledonian Mac a' Bhriuthainn), usually shortened to CalMac, is the major operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, and ferry services, between the mainland of Scotland and 22 of the major islands on Scotland's west ...

ferry service across

Tarbert Tarbert ( gd, An Tairbeart) is a place name in Scotland and Ireland. Places named Tarbert are characterised by a narrow strip of land, or isthmus. This can be where two lochs nearly meet, or a causeway out to an island. Etymology All placenames ...

on the

Kintyre Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north ...

Peninsula.

References

External links

Caledonian MacBrayne, Portavadie page - Website

Portavadie Marina - website

Loch Lomond and Cowal Way - Website

Clyde Cruising Club - website
History of the petroleum industry in the United Kingdom Marinas in Scotland Ports and harbours of Scotland Villages in Cowal {{Argyll-geo-stub