The Ham Nomads

6 Jul 2014. <GB-SCT> Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park; Inverary; Glen Coe, Argyll —

Geese on Loch Lomond

A lazy Sunday start on the banks of Loch Lomond. We got ourselves moving, then out for an hour's walk along the banks of the Loch. Beautiful. On the way we noticed a field with at least 200 geese in there grazing, and realized that the 'ducks' we has seen swimming on the Loch about half and hour earlier were in fact these geese! On our return to the picnic spot, went into the cafe for morning tea of coffee and — wait for it — brownies (there were no scones!).

We set off for a site we had found in a brochure we picked up in the cafe this morning — Inveraray Castle. This involved a minor amount of backtracking, to Tarber, and then setting off westwards on the A83, skirting Loch Long and Loch Fyne (in themselves destinations worth seeing!), until we got to the castle.

Inveraray Castle

Inveraray Castle is the ancestral home of the Dukes of Argyll, the heads of Clan Campbell. They have held lands around Loch Awe since 1280, and later were supporters of King Robert the Bruce. The Castle itself is a wonderful construction in grey stone, with round turrets at each corner. There are three stories (plus a basement), but one claim to fame is its Armory Hall, a room that rises the entire height of the castle (and is actually higher than other parts of the building) — this room is the tallest room in the whole of Scotland (21 metres)!

Dining Room

Saloon

Tapestry Drawing Room

Robert the Bruce

There is history everywhere you look. The piano in the Saloon is the very one on which Lerner and Lowe composed several of the songs for 'My Fair Lady'. The statue of Robert the Bruce in the Armory Hall was sculpted by Princess Louise, daughter of Queen Victoria, and wife of the 9th Duke of Argyll. There is a State Dining Room that has to be seen to be believed — the painted walls and ceiling, done by two French painters Girard and Guinand in 1784, are exquisite — there are trompe d'oeil 'bas reliefs' that cannot easily be distinguished from the genuine bas relieves they live alongside. There are four spectacular silver gilt ship table decorations ("Nefs") of 19th century German manufacture which have the Argyll arms engraved in the sails. The whole place is a joy to explore ... and, for fans of Downton Abbey, the 2012 Christmas episode was partly filmed here, the castle standing in for the fictional "Duneagle Castle."

After about 2½ hours exploring and enjoying the castle and its gardens (not to mention the cafe, which served ... you got it! ... coffee and scones), we pulled out of the carpark and journeyed northwards on the A828 towards Glencoe, one of the most historic sites in Scotland. But that's tomorrow's story. On the way, we drove beside Ardmucknish Bay, Loch Creran and Loch Linnhe, some exquisite scenery!

On Loch Creran

We decided to park near the Glen Coe Visitor Centre to give us a good start in the morning.

Distance driven — today, 96 miles ( 154 km ); to date, 3,756 miles ( 6,045 km )