Day 28: Falls of Dochart, Killin to Craigend Castle, Stirlingshire
Virtual Walk: Scotland 2021
31st January 2021: 103.79km walked today taking the total to 2815.91/8854km. 7% of 211 people's totals submitting 1482.67km.
Today's walk starts us at Killin then we walk south on the Rob Roy Way to Drymen. We continue south following a road route to the Devil's Pulpit, before continuing on into Milngavie where we join the West Highland Way. Grab a cuppa.
Walking into Killin we reach the Falls of Dochart, a series of rapids which can be viewed from the bridge on entering the village. The river flows round the island of Inchbuie, the ancient burial place of Clan McNab. Crossing the bridge, we walk through Killin until we reach Pier Road where we turn right onto the peninsula between the River Lochay and Loch Tay. We soon reach the ruins of Finlarig Castle, a 17th century castle sitting high on a mound, built by Black Duncan (the same Duncan Campbell who planted the forest at Drummond Hill). Black Duncan was also known as Black Duncan of the 7 castles, as by his death he owned 7 castles and over 400,000 acres of land. Finlarig was the last castle he built, and he is buried here.
From here we walk along a disused railway line until we reach Loch Tay where we turn south to continue through woodland along the shores of the loch. If we look back, we should be able to see the Tarmachan Ridge, a great walk along a rocky ridge which includes the Munro, Meall nan Tarmachan. From the car park, the best place to start the Tarmachan Ridge, it is also possible to head east and climb Ben Lawers and up to 6 other Munros close by.
When we reach the River Lochay, we turn to walk alongside it until we reach the disused railway again. We follow this across the railway bridge over the River Lochay, then over the Dochart Viaduct before arriving back at the Falls of Dochart.
From the Falls of Dochart, we re-join the Rob Roy Way to take us south, first ascending through forests before reaching an old military road which we follow until we reach a small lochan, Lochan Lairig Cheile, apparently excellent for swimming and for fishing. We then join the disused railway which will take us through scenic Glen Ogle. The path crosses the Glen Ogle Viaduct which was built not because of a deep valley but because the railway line couldn’t run along the hillside as it would have involved some tight turns, so the viaduct cut across these corners. It has 12 arches, is 42 metres long and is 13 metres high. After leaving the viaduct we soon have views over Lochearnhead to Loch Earn.
We could divert into Lochearnhead which has a crannog visible in the loch and, nearby, yet another castle. Edinample Castle was another castle built by Duncan Campbell in 1630, one of his 7 castles. The castle fell into disrepair but was renovated into a private family home between 1968 and 1998.
We continue to follow the old railway line which crosses another viaduct over the Kendrum Burn. When this route was made into a walking/cycling route this viaduct was missing its central span. A bridge was built using funds raised after Nigel Hester was killed while cycling nearby and is now a memorial to him.
The path now winds through birchwoods down to the old Balquhiddar Station, then passes beneath the A84 to reach the Mhor 84 Motel (formerly the Kinghouse Hotel). Another diversion could be made at this point by walking to Balquhidder village sitting at the end of Loch Voil. The area surrounding Balquhidder is famous as it is associated with the MacGregors, particularly Rob Roy MacGregor, who is buried in Balquhidder Kirkyard.
The Rob Roy Way, which we are still following, climbs the hill up from the Mhor 84 Motel before levelling off and continuing southwards, high above the A84. The path goes through forest but there are still views looking west to the Braes of Balquhidder and the Munros, Stob Binnein and Ben More, as well as south towards Loch Lubnaig and Ben Ledi.
The Rob Roy Way then takes us down into Strathyre, a pretty Victorian village which developed primarily after the railway arrived here. In the centre of the village is the Buchanan Monument which commemorates the poet, Dugald Buchanan. The name Strathyre comes from the Gaelic for ‘broad winding valley’ and for hundreds of years it has been one of the main highways going from north to south or vice versa. It was used by drovers taking their cattle to market, armies moving north or south and fugitives, such as the fictional characters, David Balfour, and Alan Breck, in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, ‘Kidnapped’.
From the centre of Strathyre we follow the path across the wooden suspension bridge spanning the River Balvag before heading to Loch Lubnaig where we walk down the western side of the loch. After we reach the end of the loch, we reach the end of the path which climbs up Ben Ledi. Ben Ledi is a Corbett rather than a Munro, but it is still a great hill to climb as it has fantastic views from the top. Near the top is a cross erected as a memorial to Sergeant Harry Lawrie who was killed on duty with Killin Mountain Rescue in 1987.
We continue to follow the path down the side of the river Garbh Uisge (also called the River Leny) through the Pass of Leny before we take a small diversion from the route to see the Falls of Leny. These are a series of waterfalls where the river crosses the Highland Boundary Fault. Going back to the path we head towards Kilmahog before heading south around the side of Bochastle Hill. We then cross the Gartchonzie Bridge over the Eas Gobhain River and following the road down towards Loch Venachar. Gartchonzie Bridge is one of the locations used in the film ’The 39 Steps’ in 1959.
After following the south shore of Loch Venachar, we reach the Invertrossachs Car Park where we turn left to take a forestry road, gradually going uphill through a felled area, with views back over Loch Venachar to Ben Ledi, before entering a forest of tall Sitka spruces. We soon reach a small lochan, Allt A’Chip Dhuibh, hidden in the trees, which we pass to the north side before reaching the highest point of the walk between Callander and Aberfoyle.
The path then descends through forest around the edge of the Menteith Hills with views across to the Lake of Menteith, a popular place for fishing. This is the only lake in Scotland, but it isn’t clear why its name was changed from the Loch of Menteith in the 19th century. It has several islands, the largest one called Inchmahome, where there is an ancient priory founded by a small community of Augustinian canons dating from 1238. Their founder and patron was Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, who lived on Inch Talla, a nearby island and who, at the time, was part of the most powerful family in Scotland. A 4-year-old Mary Queen of Scots was once hidden here for a few weeks.
We soon reach Aberfoyle Golf Course where we walk westwards between it and the edge of the forest. Before descending to Dounans Camp we leave the Rob Roy Way to take a walk in Achray Forest round the Lime Craig Trail. This walk starts quite steeply uphill, along what used to be a 19th century wagonway bringing limestone down from Lime Craig where it was quarried to the kilns in the glen below. A further climb takes us to a great viewpoint of the Highland Boundary Fault, with the craggy hills of the Trossachs to the north and the fertile plains to the south.
Descending from the viewpoint we turn right and follow the trail downhill, firstly passing the ‘Go Ape’ attraction, where you can experience zip wires, climb nets, cross rope bridges etc, before passing a hide where there are feeders to attract red squirrels. We then pass a double waterfall before reaching a bronze statue commemorating the lumberjills; women who undertook forestry work while the men were away fighting in World War 2.
We reach the Lodge Forest Visitor Centre, previously called the ‘David Marshall Lodge’ after its founder. It is built beside a lochan and inside we can watch CCTV of a nearby osprey eyrie and have a cup of coffee in the cafe. After leaving the Lodge we head back to where we left the Rob Roy Way, then head down through Dounans Camp, an outdoor centre into Aberfoyle.
We turn into Aberfoyle and pass the Scottish Wool Centre where you can discover all you would ever want to know about wool, see live sheep shows, watch sheepdogs herding ducks and other demonstrations. On the main street we visit the Trossachs Discovery Centre where we learn more about the area and its history.
Heading south we cross the River Forth passing Inchrie Castle, built in the 17th century on a hill above the town. It was turned into a hotel and from 1949, when a Scottish Covenant was launched here, supporting self-government for Scotland, it became known as the Covenanters Inn. The dungeons of the castle became the home of the ‘Stone of Destiny’ when it was removed from Westminster and hidden here in the 1950s. After the new Scottish Parliament was formed, the hotel returned to its original name, Inchrie Castle Hotel, but has since closed.
From here we head into Kirkton, where the old town of Aberfoyle was situated before the town moved north of the river. One of the oldest buildings here is Kirkton church, built in 1744 but now roofless. In front of the doors of the church are 2 cast-iron coffins or ‘mort safes’. These date back to the early 19th century when grave robbing, where recently deceased corpses were dug up, was common. To stop this happening, relatives of the deceased would put the body in one of these mort safes.
The tomb of the Reverend Robert Kirk is found at this church. He is famous for being fascinated with the fairy kingdom and in 1692 wrote a book called ‘The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and Fairies’. Kirk thought that a sacred place among the fairies was Doon Hill situated close to Aberfoyle. It is said that the fairies were so angry at Kirk for writing about their secrets that they captured him on Doon Hill, took him to their realm, and left a changeling in his place. This changeling was buried in the churchyard, and a lone pine tree at the summit of Doon Hill is said to contain Kirk’s spirit. Although this is what the Reverend Robert Kirk is best remembered for, he was also the first person to translate the Bible into Gaelic.
After leaving Kirkton we soon reach a forest track which we follow through the Queen Elizabeth Forest Park, eventually reaching a cottage at Clashmore. We keep to this track passing 2 domed shafts, part of the Loch Katrine water scheme, which was opened by Queen Victoria in 1859. This scheme takes water from Loch Katrine, by gravity, the 88 kilometres to Glasgow through aqueducts and tunnels. We then reach the Corrie Aqueduct which is also part of this scheme. It carries the water in an iron trough, 304 metres in length across a burn. We follow the line of the aqueduct along a forest track with views to Ben Lomond if we look behind us. We reach a crossroads where we turn right along a road which steadily climbs past the hill, Bat a Charchel, past the Muir Park Reservoir before descending into Drymen and the end of the Rob Roy Way.
Drymen is unusual in Scotland as it is centred around a village green. It has a long history as there are remains of a medieval motte, which can be seen by the bridge in the village. During the 18th and 19th centuries Drymen was a stopover for Highland cattle drovers. The Clachan Inn is the oldest licensed pub in Scotland, licensed in 1734.
Just to the west of Drymen is the ruined Buchanan Castle, built in the 19th century in the Scottish Baronial style by James Graham, 4th Duke of Montrose. Its name comes from the fact that the land was originally owned by the Buchanan Clan but was then sold to the Graham Clan in the 18th century. The castle was used as a hospital during the war, with patients including Rudolf Hess, who was brought here after his flight to Scotland in 1941. The roof was removed in 1954 to avoid paying taxes and, even though it is roofless, it is still the seat of the Clan Graham.
From Drymen we have a bit of road walking to do, firstly down Drymen’s Main Street to the A811 before continuing along the A809 to Finnich Glen. Just after the B834 goes off to the left and after crossing the river we reach the path which takes us into Finnich Glen, where the mushroom-shaped rock called the Devil’s Pulpit is situated. The path is level to start off with before steps take us down into the Glen itself. These steps are not very safe, and care should be taken as we go down. If the river is running high, then paddling is required to get to the Devil’s Pulpit. There are a lot of stories attributed to this rock. Some say the rock is where the Devil stood to address his followers, others say Druids held secret meetings here and there are also stories of witches using the rock as an execution block. Some of these stories probably resulted from the water’s red hue which is due to the underlying red sandstone. This location is extremely popular, particularly since it was used in ‘Outlander’ as the Liar’s Spring.
Continuing along the A809 we come to another walk you could do called the Whangie. This is a short walk to a strange rock formation in the Kilpatrick Hills. The path starts quite steeply uphill before contouring round Auchineden Hill to its end, where you enter the Whangie, a giant gash in the rock. You can walk right through the cleft with 15-metre walls towering above you, the outside wall only a few metres thick. These walls are often used for rock climbing.
We continue to follow the A809 until we reach a sign to Milngavie Golf Club where we turn left down Loan Road. We then join the Clyde Coastal Path, a long-distance footpath which joins the Ayrshire Coastal Path to the West Highland Way. We cross Milngavie Golf Course before entering woodland and reaching the Allander Water where we follow the path beside the river crossing the footbridge at the Craigton Burn. The Craigton Burn soon joins the Allander Water where we cross another bridge to reach the east bank of the Allander Water. In the past the Craigton Burn and Allander Water supplied water for cotton-spinning, bleach fields, a distillery and a dye works. We follow the Allander Water until we reach Clober Road in Milngavie (pronounced Mill-guy) where we turn left, then left again along Douglas Street to reach the start of the West Highland Way.
Starting the West Highland Way, we walk back along Allander Water before heading into Mugdock Country Park where we walk through the deciduous woodland of Mugdock Wood.
Not far away are 2 reservoirs, Mugdock and Craigmaddie. Mugdock Reservoir is the original reservoir which opened in 1860, designed as the main water storage area from Loch Katrine, able to hold an 11-day supply, as part of the Glasgow Corporation Water Works to supply Glasgow with clean drinking water. Craigmaddie Reservoir opened in 1896, when the whole system from Loch Katrine to Glasgow was duplicated and, although next to Mugdock Reservoir, is completely separate.
It is worth coming back to Mugdock Country Park as there are many walking trails within the park and 2 castles to visit, Mugdock and Craigend. Mugdock Castle was the stronghold of Clan Graham, built in the 14th century with 4 square towers on each corner connected by a curtain wall, and protected by Mugdock Loch. The castle was destroyed in the 1640s and a small mansion house was built within the ruins before being replaced by a larger mansion in the 19th century. This was purchased by Lord Fraser in 1945, of House of Fraser fame, but burned down in 1966 so the mansion was demolished in 1967 leaving one tower of the old castle standing. In 1981 Sir Hugh Fraser gifted the castle and the surrounding estate to be used as a country park. Craigend Castle, also within this park, was built in 1812 in the Regency Gothic style and was occupied until 1954, and at one time hosted a zoo, before being abandoned. The house is now fenced off, but the stables are used as a tea room and visitor centre.
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