From Port Ellen, going north out of Port Ellen, go left before the maltings, sign-posted The Oa. Follow this single track road for 4 miles ( after about the first mile DO NOT go straight ahead to Kintra, after you pass the woods go to the left,go past the cemetery on your left staying on the same road ). When you reach 4 miles from the Oa turn off, you will be going down a steep brae with a white house on the left....you will see the twin lochs to your right, go through the gate on the right and carry on along the gravel track for 1 mile to the lochs.
Glenastle Lochs
The Glenastle lochs as you will see them as you aproach on the gravel road which you turn right onto from the single track Oa road. This loch fishes best at the start and end of the year but is still well worth a visit all year round with the chance of catching a good sized trout. This loch probably holds the bigger fish of the angling club's lochs.
There is a small car park at the end of the road and the road itself, although you wont be breaking speed limits on it, is good enough for most cars to drive on without resorting to a 4x4. The angling club would ask that all drivers drive carefully and avoid any unnecessary damage to the road surface, and remember to leave gates open / closed as they found them.
This picture ( below ) shows the first loch ( Glenastle Loch ) from the west where it flows into the second loch ( lower Glenastle Loch ). This narrow stretch of the loch has a shallow sand floor compared with the more typical stoney bottom that the rest of the two lochs are made up of.
Both lochs will have a boat available all season, for which permits can be obtained from Iain Lauries newsagents shop in Charlotte Street, Port Ellen. The Boat on the 1st loch is moored at a jetty on the near side of the loch and the boat on the 2nd loch is moored on the near shore of the loch. Both boats will be kitted out with oars and lifejackets.
