Maucum two

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Review of Slow Ways Maucum 2 (Mauchline to Cumnock two)
I walked this route with another person on a cool and blustery day in early June 2024. The route is a modified version of the previous Maucum 1. The route begins in the centre of Mauchline and follows Station Road and Haugh Road until it joins the River Ayr Way at Haughyett. The route is initially on metaled roads but at Haugh Farm the surface changes to gravel and then packed earth. The River Ayr Way is well signposted and is easy to follow. However this part along the river (while very scenic and full of interest) has some steep and/or muddy sections making it unsuitable for those on wheels. Eventually the pleasant village of Catrine is reached, with opportunities for rest and refreshment. Leaving Catrine, the route departs from the River Ayr Way, heading southeast on the B705. This is a fairly quiet road but has many blind corners and the lack of pavement means that care must be exercised. Nevertheless the views across open countryside are very enjoyable. After quite a long, uphill section, the route leaves the B705 just before Auchinleck and enters the village via reclaimed industrial land (now informal parkland) and housing estates. Soon the centre of the village is reached with another opportunity to make use of the facilities available. The next part of the route is alongside the moderately busy B7083, thankfully with a wide pavement supplied. There is then a short downhill section through the outskirts of Cumnock, using less-busy streets to good effect. Finally, the route terminates at Cumnock Bus Station. Overall this is an interesting route which follows a variety of surfaces ranging from metalled roads (with and without pavements) to grassy paths. Unfortunately, all but the most intrepid of wheeled travellers would find some sections impossible to negotiate. However it is well mapped and the likelihood of a wrong turning is very small. There is much to interest the traveller along the way including historic buildings, post-industrial landscapes, wildlife-rich wooded gorges and bustling villages. I am happy to recommend this route.

After leaving Mauchline, the first section of this route was along the River Ayr Way, which I found to be an absolute delight. There was a fair bit of up and down, with steps in places, and some short boardwalk and bridge sections, and I guess it could be muddy at times, but there was so much of interest walking through the woods and past sandstone cliffs above the river.
We arrived into the very friendly village of Catrine, and stopped at the Honey Bee Café for a coffee.
The next section was not so nice, it was 2.4 miles along the B705. There was a fair bit of traffic although it was not constant, so we needed to step onto the verge quite a bit. Eventually we found a way through to the woods and grassland around Glensham Rock Farm which was much nicer. (I think there may have been an access point further north but we couldn't find it anywhere, maybe there is a path from the minor road to the east, which could reduce the B705 distance to 1.6m.)
We arrived into Auckinleck hoping for a pub lunch but we had picked the wrong day, unfortunately, and had to continue on to a nice café at the edge of Cumnock. A few residential streets and a short riverside walk brought us to the endpoint at the bus station.
Possibly this route's River Ayr Way start, combined with the original route for the rest would be the optimum route although it wouldn't go through any settlements on the way.
I’d easily give 5* to the first section including Catrine, but the roads knocked a couple of stars off for me. Having said that, I’m struggling to find a route which doesn’t involve a relatively busy pavementless road section!.

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