Loch Lomond

城市概覽

"But me and my true love shall never meet again, by the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond" - lament of a Jacobite awaiting execution after the failed rebellion of 1745 Until the 19th century the Highlands were perceived as dark boggy wastelands, the abode of murderous bandits and rebels. Then they were re-defined as romantic vistas where stags roamed and eagles soared, and Highlanders untainted by southern decadence struck heroic poses while wearing the correct tartan. Better transport and more leisure time enabled tourists to flock here to admire, and to complain how tourism was wrecking the place. The great Highland geological fault line nowadays only experiences minor tremors, but for 200 years this landscape has been roiled by tensions between development and modernisation, housing and other facilities for its residents, and preservation - and preservation of what, exactly? The bonnie banks of Loch Lomond are all in a sense man-made, from its lowland cattle farms to its commercial forestry slopes and high sub-arctic moors. From 1945 there were calls to protect this and similar areas in Scotland, but there was no political will in the London parliament, and control was fragmented between several local authorities. But in 1999 a devolved Scottish parliament was established, which in 2002 designated Loch Lomond and the Trossachs as the country's first national park, with a unified planning body. This was followed in 2003 by Cairngorms National Park, and some fifty smaller areas have broadly similar arrangements. The park has four areas:

Loch Lomond is a fjord, carved out by a glacier in the later stages of the last Ice Age 10-20,000 years ago. In the upper north part this carved through hard schist to create a deep lake in a narrow valley hemmed in by mountains. Near the south end, the glacier crossed the Highland fault line to encounter softer lowland sandstone, so it became broad and shallow. These southern reaches are dotted with islands, notably along the fau

如何抵達

By train Trains run from Glasgow Queen Street (low level) via Dumbarton to Balloch. They're every 30 min and take 50 min. Trains on the West Highland Line run four times a day from Glasgow Queen Street (upper level) via Dumbarton and Helensburgh to Tarbet & Arrochar, Ardlui and Crainlarich. Here they divide, with one portion for Oban and the other for Fort William and Mallaig. The Caledonian Highland Sleeper from London Euston joins the West Highland Line approaching Dumbarton (bypassing Glasgow) and follows it to Crainlarich and Fort William. Trains run every 30 min from Glasgow Central to Gourock, which has a foot-passenger ferry and a car ferry to Dunoon. You need your own wheels to travel further, a bicycle would do.

By bus Citylink buses from Glasgow Buchanan Station follow A82 up the west bank of Loch Lomond via Luss to Tarbet. Some continue north to Ardlui, Crianlarich, Tyndrum, Glencoe, Fort William, Kyle of Lochalsh, Portree and Uig on the Isle of Skye. The rest head west to Arrochar and Inveraray, where some branch for Oban while others continue to Lochgilphead, Tarbert on Loch Fyne and Campbeltown. Buses from Edinburgh run via Stirling to Callander, Crianlarich and Oban. These destinations are ferry ports, serving all the Hebridean islands, so buses get booked out. Buses run frequently from Glasgow to Balloch but take twice as long as the train. Local buses run from Balloch to Drymen and Balmaha, and from Stirling to Callander.

By road

From Glasgow follow M8 west then cross the Clyde by Erskine Bridge to avoid dragging through the suburbs. Head north for Balloch then take the east or west shore as preferred. However for Argyll Forest you could stay on M8 to Gourock then take the ferry to Dunoon. From Edinburgh likewise follow M8 west to reach Gourock and Dunoon. But for the main body of the park, head for Stirling to avoid Glasgow, then branch for Callander and Crianlarich, or Drymen / Balmaha or through Balloch to reach the west bank.

當地交通

"We were desirous to have crossed the mountains above Glengyle to Glenfalloch, at the head of Loch Lomond, but it rained so heavily that it was impossible . . . " - Dorothy Wordsworth described a trip in 1803 with William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge. You need your own wheels, distances are considerable and buses are sparse. A bike will do if you're fit. Ferries on Loch Lomond serve Balloch, Luss, Balmaha, Tarbet, Rowardennan and Inversnaid, with one across the top of the loch between Ardlui and Ardleish. They're summer only and infrequent, see individual towns for timings. The ferry on Loch Katrine plies between Trossachs pier and Rowardennan.

必看景點

“Had Loch Lomond been in a happier climate, it would have been the boast of wealth and vanity, but there is only uncultivated ruggedness.” - Samuel Johnson and James Boswell passed by the loch on their tour of 1773. Inchcailloch is the only island in Loch Lomond that you can visit, by boat from Balmaha. It's wooded with a ruined church, and you can camp here. 1 The Trossachs is a scenic area at the foot of Loch Katrine, which a steamer traverses to Stronachlachar amidst Alpine views. Take a cycle across or hike the ten mile lane around the head of the loch and north bank back to Trossachs pier (the lane is paved but closed to visitor traffic) or follow the public road west to Inversnaid. Falls of Dochart are rapids, not too difficult for kayakers, at Killin village. Here River Dochart combines with River Lochy and enters Loch Tay. The imposing mountain on its north bank is Ben Lawers. 2 Inchmahome Priory is a ruined monastery on an island in Lake of Menteith, where the future Mary Queen of Scots was hidden from powerful enemies. 3 Falls of Falloch are a 30 ft / 9 m drop on A82 towards Crianlarich. The West Highland Way passes here. 4 Benmore Botanic Gardens near Dunoon display Chinese and Himalayan species, including rhododendrons (a riot of colour May-June) without which no Highland estate is complete. Kilmun Arboretum a few miles south specialises in non-native woodland such as sequoia, redwoods, Oregon maple and eucalyptus. Autumn colours come early to the park with the first cold nights of Sept / Oct. They're glorious in the sunshine but by mid-afternoon the sun drops behind mountains and the show's over.

體驗活動

The West Highland Way is a long-distance hiking trail from Milngavie northeast of Glasgow to Fort William. It reaches Drymen and enters the park after 12 miles through lowland woods and fields. The route then crosses Conic Hill to Balmaha (with a bad weather alternate route near the road) then along the east shore of Loch Lomond to Rowardennan, Inversnaid and Ardleish, and onward to Crianlarich and Tyndrum where it leaves the park. The Inversnaid-Ardleish section is the hardest, scrambling over a jumble of boulders on the steep loch banks. 1 Ben Lomond at 974 m / 3196 ft is a "Munro", usually climbed by the obvious trail from Rowardennan. Reckon 3 hours up and two hours down, compatible with a day trip on t