Coatesgate you could park on the southbound side, in what we called the quarry, you then had to cross over, I can’t remember doing that at Elvanfoot, but then again it wasn’t always dual carrigeway.
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.
dafdave:
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.
I remember the Rosebank Dave.
It used to take me 5 and half hours from Sheffield in an AEC MK3 8-legger,5 and quarter in an AEC MK5 8-legger and as I worked me way through Mandators and got a Marathon it took me 4 hours(sometimes less) 
Chris Webb:
dafdave:
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.I remember the Rosebank Dave.
It used to take me 5 and half hours from Sheffield in an AEC MK3 8-legger,5 and quarter in an AEC MK5 8-legger and as I worked me way through Mandators and got a Marathon it took me 4 hours(sometimes less)
Having read your postings Chris I reckon that you used to be a bit of a boy racer 
Anybody remember a garage … .Millar of Abington?
Reason i ask i was with the old man on my first trip to Scotland in a Tk.
Stopped at the BP(Beattock) and i remember saying to the old chap that "it smelt a bit hot "and there was water running out of the motor.
Phone calls were made and a Guy big whatever turns up to tow us in,motor was knackered but they couldnt do anything straight away.A firm came out,towed it to Biggar and it had a new engine fitted the next day!
Seemed like it took forever to do the drop at Forres and get back home, cos the old man would not go over 40 mph, think the new engine was “run in” by the time we got back to Wilts!!
Suedehead:
Anybody remember a garage … .Millar of Abington?
Reason i ask i was with the old man on my first trip to Scotland in a Tk.
Stopped at the BP(Beattock) and i remember saying to the old chap that "it smelt a bit hot "and there was water running out of the motor.
Phone calls were made and a Guy big whatever turns up to tow us in,motor was knackered but they couldnt do anything straight away.A firm came out,towed it to Biggar and it had a new engine fitted the next day!
Seemed like it took forever to do the drop at Forres and get back home, cos the old man would not go over 40 mph, think the new engine was “run in” by the time we got back to Wilts!!
Millars towed me back to Abington from Lesmahagow in 1970.I had an AEC MK5 tanker and the N/S/R hub bearing collapsed just before the Star cafe.The wheels and tyres were on fire,not rayt good when you have 4000 galls of toluene on board.Two Tyburn Road Services drivers helped me put the fire out and eventually the load was transhipped - Scottish TV turned up much to the dismay of the BP safety team from Grangemouth .
Millars got the wheels off,chained the axle up and away I went back to Sheffield,running at night with all the trunkers flashing and waving to me that I had a set of wheels missing,bless 'em.
I can’t remember what wrecker they had then Suedehead.
charlie one:
Chris Webb:
dafdave:
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.I remember the Rosebank Dave.
It used to take me 5 and half hours from Sheffield in an AEC MK3 8-legger,5 and quarter in an AEC MK5 8-legger and as I worked me way through Mandators and got a Marathon it took me 4 hours(sometimes less)Having read your postings Chris I reckon that you used to be a bit of a boy racer
Well Charlie I thought the Transconti,Marathon and a certain AEC Mercury I drove were fast but there were plenty of faster boy racers than me - Charlie Alexander with the wet fish was one
There was an old feller with a Scammell Routeman who worked out of Steel Peach and Tozers Sheffield and never had a night out.He used to do NCR Dundee and back in the day regular and he was as far removed from a boy racer as you could get.He used to say “Englands’ not big enough to have a night out and Scotland’s part of England as far as I’m concerned”.
Dafdave & Dieseldog6, Yes, that was the one, left hand side at the south end of the village, with the wagon park round the back.
I also remember the Coatesgate as others have mentioned. When we were youngsters in the village, after the Saturday night “Jiggin’”, we all used to end up either there or at the Greenhall Stairs, round about 2 in the morning, and have egg and beans and a cup of tea. Funny how these things come back to you nearly fifty years later.
Slainthe!
Nutstrangler.
Nutstrangler:
Hi guys, my first post on here and already I’m asking questions.
Just wondered if any of you were up and down the A74, as was, between about 1952 and 1968 and knew the Merlindale Cafe in Crawford?
When my Dad left the Army, he and my Mum bought the place and ran it during those years. I used to work there after I came home from school, washing up and serving at the tables. Sometimes I even got to act as banksman to help the Drivers park up for the night. It was a fairly hard life for my folks, up at 5am to get the breakfasts cooking and start the early calls, go through the day with passing trade, and then serving dinner in the evening - three courses, mind, and bread & butter. Supper, tea & biscuits at 9.30-10.00, then turn in at about 11.00-11.30 after preparing for the morning. If I remember correctly, dinner, bed & breakfast was 10/6d (53 p.), and you were given a car-park ticket to the value of 2/6d ( 25 p.)
After they retired, they got bored and moved back into the village, where they bought another place, this time B&B only, called The Glengyle.
I have quite fond memories of the place, but I left in January 1961 when I joined the Army, as a boy soldier.Just a few memories from another oldie, "Keep on truckin’! "
I used to stay at the Merlindale and the Heathergill in Crawford in the 60’s I had a regular run to Baxter’s of Speyside, the trip would take 5/6 days loading both ways and depending on the weather. The two digs were at opposit ends of the village, I think the Merlindale was next to the Council depot and the snow ploughs would run out of there during the night 
Was the owner called Bob ? too many birthdays it is well over 40 years ago. regards Big Al
dafdave:
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.
Do you remember Jennifer 
regards Big Al
bob-lad:
the cafe with the revolving door was the coatsgate at beattock
Remember pulling on the Coatsgate car park about 0200 hrs one night heading from Doncaster to Galbraith Stores Paisley with a load of beetroot. Parked over by the stream were two Yorkshire Imperial Metal lorries loaded with copper tubes which overhung the back of the trailer, two men were busy hacksawing away at the pipes About a 100 yards south of the cafe was a barracks type brick building (was the old offices of the quarry) I once had the misfortune to spend a night out there, cold or what. Speaking of cafes anyone remember the Dak on the A74 ? or the ■■■■■ Cottage up past Dundee heading for Arbroath 
regards Big Al
As I remember Elvanfoot,the cafe was on the Northbound side with a big parking area on the s/b side,and it was a single carriageway.
The original cafe was on the southbound side, hence the parking area that you remember.
Dave.
[
or the ■■■■■ Cottage up past Dundee heading for Arbroath
Hi Al, Early 70’s used to stay there every tuesday night for nearly a year.But the less said on here the better.
happy memories.
Dave.
Big Al:
dafdave:
Anyone remember the rosebank cafe at gretna?in the 70s it used to take me 4 and a half hrs from manchester in an owd atki borderer.Do you remember Jennifer
Sorry al cant say that i do,my memorys not what it was,it was a long long time ago.
I used to go to a cafe with my dad called ‘berts gone mad’, near camberley I think.
Anyone remember The Kernal cafe, A34 walsall to cannock road!! My god good food and plenty of it…And plenty of the other 
There was a couple of pubs over the road from it…The Ivy house was one…Was the other one called the Bush? Can’t remember…And then after there was a night club upstairs…My god it was full of…Well we’ll leave that shall we…
rambo19:
I used to go to a cafe with my dad called ‘berts gone mad’, near camberley I think.
I remember when I was in the army in the late '60’s,there was a greasy spoon on the A3 at Camberley called Bert’s.
wagsie:
Anyone remember The Kernal cafe, A34 walsall to cannock road!! My god good food and plenty of it…And plenty of the other
Aye wagsie i remember the kernel,the good food,the other as you say,the snooker table,and the load testing potholed park that used to flood when it rained.Happy days.
bestbooties:
rambo19:
I used to go to a cafe with my dad called ‘berts gone mad’, near camberley I think.I remember when I was in the army in the late '60’s,there was a greasy spoon on the A3 at Camberley called Bert’s.
Berts Gone Mad was actually at Bagshot.Not far from Camberley I know.However I’m being picky today.Opposite was the Dolly Varden.When I was driving a tanker for Harp Lager many years ago.I used to get a full breakfast in exchange for three bottles of lager.No loss for me because I hated the stuff.
.