Mid Argyll
Pieces of the past Mid Argyll
Carnassarie Castle near Kilmartin. S
et foot in the atmospheric Kilmartin Glen and you step back in time, to the beginnings of civilisation in Argyll, a
prehistoric landscape littered with evidence of our ancestors. Within a six mile radius of the village of Kilmartin are more than 350 an- cient monuments, and while some are less visible, you can encounter many exploring the area on foot. While most of the west Highlands is a jag- ged landscape of peaks and troughs, the area around the Kilmartin is fl at and fertile, and it is littered with archaeological clues, from hill forts to mysterious rock carvings, to help evoke the lives and livelihoods of the past. Within a six mile radius of Kilmartin are more than 350 ancient monuments, with more thought to be undiscovered beneath the peat. The imposing standing stones at Nether Largie and Temple Wood and the mysterious cup and ring carvings at Achna- breac are relics that repay a closer look. Visitors to Kilmartin village can view the work of Loch Awe’s early stonemasons on carved crosses in the church yard, or ac- cess hands-on history at the award-winning Kilmartin House Museum (10am – 5.30pm, 01546 510278) where exhibits help breathe life into the shapes of the mounds outside, and a cosy cafe provides a good place to enjoy the view. Between March and the end of May the museum will host an art exhibi- tion on the theme ‘the wilds of Argyll’. South of Kilmartin, the hill fort of Dunadd was seat of the kings of Dalriada, as the Ar- gyll area was once known. Here you can see
the faint rock carving of a wild boar and two footprints believed to be linked to a corona- tion ceremony, or look out over the nine-mile Crinan Canal, which snakes its way across the plain linking the villages of Crinan and Ardrishaig. Nicknamed the country’s most beautiful shortcut, the canal was completed in 1809 to allow sea-going vessels to avoid the long and potentially dangerous passage around the Mull of Kintyre. It remains popular with leisure vessels from yachts to barges, and a towpath along its length provides a pleasant walk or cycling route – with the option of a mid-way stop in the scenic village of Cairn- baan. A mile from the Ardrishaig end of the canal is Lochgilphead, the capital of mid Argyll and a good base from which to explore the area, with far-reaching views over Loch Fyne, and an eclectic mix of independent shops and tea rooms. For a wildlife experience you won’t get any- where else in the UK, head to Knapdale For- est, where families can follow a ‘detective trail’ for a chance to encounter beavers liv- ing in the wild for the fi rst time in 400 years. You can fi nd out about the project and other local wildlife at the visitor’s centre at Barn- luasgan. The beaver families may have only been in Scotland for a couple of years, but elsewhere in North Knapdale, near Tayvallich, are some of the country’s oldest living residents, the ancient atlantic oaks of the Taynish National Nature Reserve.
CAIRNBAAN HOTEL and Restaurant on the Crinan Canal
Situated at Crinan Canal’s Lock 5, approximately nine miles along, one of Scotland’s most famous canals, Cairnbaan Hotel is steeped in history. Originally a Mid Argyll coaching inn, Cairnbaan Hotel was built at the same time as Crinan Canal, the famous waterway that has for centuries conveyed mariners in relative safety from the shelter of Loch Fyne to the foaming
Getting there: The A816 goes from Oban to Loch- gilphead through Kilmelford and Kil- martin (smaller villages are signed from the main road). Buses between Oban and Ardrishaig stop at Kilmar- tin.
Links:
www.kilmartin.org;
www.scottishbeavers.org.uk;
www.kilmelford.com
Telephone: 01546 603668
www.cairnbaan.com
waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Cairnbaan Hotel has become a special place to hundreds of people over the years and has many colourful claims to fame. Among its more famous guests have been The Princess Royal, Commodore Lawrence, ex-US president Bill Clinton and his wife Hilary, to name but a few.
13
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64