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 Glengoyne Distillery |
 The Maid of the Loch |
 Dumbarton from Dumbarton Castle |
Loch Long and Gare Loch mix spectacular scenery with the intriguing possibility of rounding a corner and finding an aircraft carrier parked virtually at the side of the road. This area is home to a number of major naval installations dating back to the cold war and earlier. Garelochhead lies, as the name suggests, at the head of Gare Loch, while Kilcreggan marks the southern tip of the Rosneath Peninsula and is home to the last surviving Victorian steamer pier on the Clyde.
Gare Loch meets the Clyde at Helensburgh, a planned settlement that emerged at the end of the eighteenth century. Further east, Luss is to be found off the A82 on the west side of Loch Lomond. A popular tourist halt, its pretty cottages are part of the estate village built by the Colquhouns.
Loch Lomond is Scotland's largest loch by surface area. Its accessibility makes it a popular choice for day visitors and for weekends away from the city. Balloch, at the southern end of the loch is only a half hour drive from the centre of Glasgow and its Castle Country Park is open all year.
Balloch pier is also home to the paddle steamer, Maid of the Loch, currently undergoing restoration, while nearby is the Loch Lomond Shores development. Balloch Pier is also used as the point of departure for some of the services of Loch Lomond Seaplanes.
On the eastern side of the loch the B837 leads to Balmaha. Sitting directly behind it is Conic Hill, a humpy mound which marks the geological line where the highlands begin. This is a busy place in summer, being the stopping off point for boat excursions round Loch Lomond's islands.
At the end of the road is Rowardennan, a favoured starting point for the ascent of Ben Lomond, Scotland's most southerly Munro. A track also continues eastwards from here forming part of the West Highland Way. This is the 95 mile long distance footpath from Milngavie, near Glasgow, to Fort William.
At its northern end, Loch Lomond narrows considerably, with Tarbet on the west shore and Inversnaid on the less accessible east shore.
East of Loch Lomond, on the hills overlooking Endrick Water is the village of Drymen. Drymen lies on the route of the West Highland Way and is also the start point for the Rob Roy Way unofficial long distance footpath to Pitlochry.
Visitors choosing to stay awhile can rent bikes in the village and follow the Loch Lomond cycleway or take in a visit to Glengoyne Distillery, close to the attractive vllage of Killearn.
In this area of gently rolling hills and farmland there is much to see and do. The Campsie Fells Trail links the villages of Fintry, Kippen, Gargunnock, Balfron and Lennoxtown. The Forth and Clyde Canal walk gives access to the second century Antonine Wall.
At its western end the Antonine Wall meets the River Clyde at Old Kilpatrick. A little further down the river lies Dumbarton, with its magnificently located castle perched improbably on Dumbarton Rock.
