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A country road curves between hedgerows along a coastal hillside under an overcast sky.
Ayrshire

Electric Brae

A stretch of the coast road south of Dunure where a car seems to roll uphill, one of Scotland's best-known optical illusions.

Welcome

A mile or so south of Dunure, the A719 coast road runs along a quarter-mile stretch known locally as Croy Brae, and to everyone else as the Electric Brae.

Pull into the layby, release the brakes, and your car seems to roll slowly uphill.

It is an optical illusion. The road actually rises gently, at 1 in 86, but the shape of the land on either side makes the slope appear to run the other way. The name comes from an old notion that some electric or magnetic force was at work. A carved stone by the layby explains it all; it replaced metal signs that visitors kept taking home.

General Eisenhower, who stayed at nearby Culzean Castle after the war, liked to bring his guests here. Stop only in the layby, never on the road itself.

Before you go

A public road, open at all times.

Stop only in the layby, never on the road.

Where
A719, a mile south of Dunure.
Length
A quarter of a mile.
Gradient
1 in 86.

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Did you know

A country road curves between hedgerows along a coastal hillside under an overcast sky.
Did you know

Seventeen feet.

The inland end of the Electric Brae is seventeen feet higher than the end nearest the sea.

A carved stone monument reading "The Electric Brae, known locally as Croy Brae" explains the road's optical illusion, an electric vehicle charging point standing beside it.
Did you know

A general's party trick.

During the Second World War, General Eisenhower brought guests from Culzean Castle to see the Electric Brae.

Hidden Scotland

From our guide to Ayrshire

Pull into the layby on the A719 south of Dunure, let off the handbrake, and your car seems to roll gently uphill. The road actually climbs at 1 in 86, but the lie of the land on either side makes the slope look as though it runs the other way. Locals know it as Croy Brae, and the old name came from a belief that some electric or magnetic pull was at work. General Eisenhower liked to bring his guests here when he stayed at Culzean. A carved stone by the layby explains it all. Only ever try it from the layby, never on the road.

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Where it is

On the A719 coast road about a mile south of Dunure, with a signposted layby and the carved stone.

Close byThe Carrick coast.
  1. Dunure LabyrinthDunure LabyrinthA turf maze below a ruined castle.2 miles 6 min by road
  2. Two llamas side by side in a field at Heads of Ayr Farm Park, one brown and one black and white, under a blue and white sky.Heads of Ayr Farm Park4 miles as the crow flies
  3. Culzean CastleCulzean CastleRobert Adam's clifftop castle.5 miles 12 min by road
  4. Fish and chips at the Kirkmichael Arms, a golden battered fillet on a white plate with a lemon half, a pot of chopped herbs and a cup of thick-cut chips.The Kirkmichael ArmsA village pub of 1700 in the South Ayrshire hills, revived by chef Justin Galea and now listed in the Michelin Guide.6 miles as the crow flies
  5. Greenan CastleGreenan CastleA lone tower above the beach.8 miles 15 min by road
  6. Brig o’ DoonBrig o’ DoonThe steep medieval stone bridge over the River Doon in Alloway, where Tam o' Shanter escaped the witches and his mare lost her tail.8 miles 13 min by road
Directions
Circular stone monument with columns rising above trees and blossom in AllowayAttractionsBurns Monument7.7 miles
a large bronze sculpture of a mouse standing upright in a clipped garden, hedges and trees behindWalksPoet’s Path7.7 miles
Ruined stone church with bellcote surrounded by weathered gravestones among treesAttractionsAlloway Auld Kirk7.8 miles
Burns Cottage's thatched roof and whitewashed walls beneath a plaque marking the poet's birthplaceAttractionsBurns Cottage7.8 miles
Stone entrance building at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, surrounded by lawns and treesAttractionsRobert Burns Birthplace Museum8.0 miles
Patterned booth seating below a "Stop Thinking Start Drinking" signRestaurantsThe Fox & Willow8.6 miles
Two bakers prepare dough beneath a neon "BREAD" sign in a bakeryCafeNarture Sourdough Bakery9.1 miles
Wooden farm shop building with picnic tables on gravel courtyardRestaurantsThe Coo Shed10 miles
Single-storey stone cottages with white-trimmed windows and a pale blue doorAttractionsStraiton12 miles

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