Staycation Stories: On the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond

So back to The Bonnie, Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond....2 teenagers in tow, a limited timeframe and the fact that we only decided to go a week beforehand meant vacancies were limited and we needed somewhere that didn't involve a day of driving (I wanted to go to Harris but that will have to wait!), had some non-walking based activity as my children are not keen to summit a Munro, and plenty of food close to hand as we all know that 15 year old boys need fed constantly. So a beautiful lodge a stone's throw from the banks of Loch Lomond it was. Safe to say that 10 minutes after we arrived I was wading out for my first swim as the sun went down, and the view was amazing.

Loch Lomond is a freshwater Scottish loch home to over 30 different species of fish, and the largest inland stretch of water in Great Britain by surface area (Loch Ness is the largest by water volume as it is so deep...all the better for Nessie to hide in!). The loch contains many islands, which we had a great time paddling to on our canoes, including Inchmurrin, the largest fresh-water island in the British Isles. My husband kept reminding us of his piece of knowledge that Loch Lomond lies on the Highland Boundary Fault, the boundary between the Lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands. His way of claiming we were visiting the Highlands despite only travelling more than 2.5 hours from home in south east Scotland! This is why Loch Lomond is so popular, not only is it beautiful but it is also very accessible, and if you are in Glasgow you can be out waterside by train in no time at all. Loch Lomond is 24 miles (39 kilometres) long and between 0.75 mile (1.21 km) and 5 miles (8 km) wide. In my fitter years my brother-in-law and I had a moment of madness and competed in a Swim Run event where you swam between the islands and ran across them so I suppose I can claim to have swum the width of Loch Lomond. Marketing Manager, Emily, my son Harry and I did also complete the Great North Swim a few times, so safe to say we are quite keen on our open water swimming, so much so that we even devoted a blog to the wonders of Wild Water Swimming in Scotland earlier in the year.

On day one we took a wee wander round the corner to the village of Balloch, home to the Loch Lomond Highland Games which we attended for a few years prior to Covid and look forward to returning to again soon. Head out of the village along some very well maintained paths and you discover Balloch Castle, an early 19th-century country house originally the property of the Lennox family from the 11th century, with the old castle built in the 13th century. In the 19th century the estate was purchased by John Buchanan of Ardoch, a partner in the Glasgow Ship Bank, who demolished the ruins of the old castle and erected the building that still stands today. Balloch Castle stands within a beautiful estate which was designated as a country park in 1980, and since 2002 has been part of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. Free days out don't come much better than this and don't miss the walled gardens, as you stroll through the grounds imagining yourself as the Earl of Lennox in days gone by!

Now in May we celebrated Clan MacFarlane so imagine how excited I was when I spotted the signs for their ancestral lands of Arrochar, Tarbet and Ardlui. I won't go into the full story here as you can read this on our clan pages and blogs but going back to the 12th century, Gilchrist, the youngest son of Alwyn, Earl of Lennox, had lands at Arrochar on the shores of Loch Long and the MacFarlanes descended from this line. It wasn't until 1767 that the 20th chief of Clan MacFarlane, Walter, died and these lands were sold off.

While the north-west of Loch Lomond belonged mainly to the MacFarlanes, Luss and the south-west have been held within the Colquhoun family since 1150 AD, when the lands were granted to the Laird of Luss. The beautiful village of Luss (you can take the ferry or a cruise here from Balloch or from the north end at Ardlui) is still home to Sir Malcolm and Lady Colquhoun of Luss. The Colquhouns in fact originated at Old Kilpatrick on the River Clyde, and it was when Robert of Colquhoun married the daughter of the Laird of Luss in 1358, that the Luss lands came into their hands. I recommend a visit to this very picturesque little village, perfect for wandering around with a nice little beach and very calm waters that slope very gently out ideal for young children, or if you fancy a swim or an attempt at paddle boarding. Emily visited the Luss Highland Gathering in July 2019 and you can read her interview with Clan Chief, Sir Malcolm Colquhoun, where he gives an insight into the role of a Clan Chief, admitting he no longer has the power to raise an army anymore!

Travelling home we stopped for lunch and a stroll up to the Mountain Viewpoint in Crianlarich and time for more fun facts from me, much to the teenagers delight. Did you know that the name Crianlarich comes from the Gaelic for "low pass" because this little village lies right at the junction of the two main routes from the lowlands to the north west highlands. Going back to the 1750s, two military roads met, one running from the south from Dumbarton along the banks of Loch Lomond and Glen Falloch, and the other coming from the east along Glen Dochart from Stirling (amazing Castle and home to the Wallace Monument) via Callander (great for an ice cream and stretch of your legs en route to the highlands). From the meeting point in Crianlarich just as so many tourists do today, the routes then proceeded north west along Strath Fillan to Tyndrum before veering either north for Fort William or west for Oban.

If you are a walker then Crianlarich is also the crossroads for the West Highland Way heading for Fort William from Milngavie, and the Coast to Coast Walk which runs from Oban to St Andrews. None of the team have done either of these walks so I feel a bucket list addition coming on! Niall in our stock team is however a keen Munro bagger and from here you can climb Glen Falloch or Ben More, the highest local Munro at 1174 metres. He shared a few top tips for taking on these challenges in his latest blog.