Bracklinn Falls and Bridge near Callander

In geological terms, about 410 million years ago, England collided with Scotland with a bit of a crunch and the layers of rock 'scrunched up' to form gigantic ripples. Some of the ripples were over stressed, cracked and slipped to form the highland boundary fault - one of the results is the Callander Crags and another is the vertical slabs of rock visible at the Bracklinn falls.

In geological terms, the rocks are described as: " Sedimentary rocks of Devonian age, conglomerate with quartz clasts, interbedded with pebbly sandstones. A diachronous, transitional contact with the typical sandstone facies of the undivided Teith Sandstone Formation, sharp, diachronous contact with sandstone and mudstone facies of the undivided Teith Sandstone Formation."

The river Keltie flows over these vertical slabs of sandstone and has eroded the softer rocks to form the gorge and series of cataracts we now know as Bracklinn falls. The falls consist of 5 cataracts in quick succession ranging from 6 ft to perhaps 25 ft.

The Bridges

A Victorian Description (Black's Picturesque Tourist of Scotland)

The Falls of Bracklinn, a mile and half to the north-east of the village, form one of the most attractive objects in this vicinity. They consist in a series of short falls, shelving rapids, and dark linns, formed by the Keltie Burn. Above a chasm where the brook precipitates itself from a height of at least fifty feet, there is thrown a rustic foot-bridge, of about three feet in breadth, which is scarcely to be crossed by a stranger without awe and apprehension. It was the scene a few years ago of a melancholy accident, in which two persons belonging to a marriage party lost their lives.

The History

There have probably been bridges of some kind here for centuries as farmers had to cross the gorge for access to the pastures at west Bracklinn farm and on the summer pastures beyond Tom Dubh.

Image 1 is a drawing of the falls and the gorge by Thomas Allom, and was probably done around 1850.

Photo 2 is from about 1890 and is taken from a point below the falls looking upstream into the gorge where the bridge is just visible at the top.

Queen Victoria visited Callander and the Falls during a stay at Invertrossachs House around 1870 and a new cast iron bridge was erected. It was showing signs of its age and was re-built by the Royal Engineers then repaired once again in 2000 - photo number 3.

Number 4 shows the newly repaired bridge from the west side and number 5 shows a party of visitors gingerly approaching the bridge.

The Flood

In August 2004 a sudden storm caused the level of the river to rise very quickly by about 50ft to wash away the bridge and an adjacent boulder weighing in excess of 100 tons.

There were nine bridges at various points over the River Keltie before the flood including the ancient bridge of Keltie beside the main Stirling road.

After the flood, only three of these bridges, the main road bridge, an old railway bridge and the old Bridge of Keltie, remained intact. The old Bridge of Keltie collapsed on the 17th September due to damage to the abutments. This photo of the flooded main road in Callander shows the volumes of water which flowed off Callander Crags into the town.

Photo 6 was taken the day before the flood and number 7 the day after.

The rocks were scoured completely clean, a footpath on the east side of the river was washed away and the trees and foliage were completely stripped to reveal views of the falls unseen for generations - unfortunately there was now no way to cross the river to explore the walks and woods on the east side.

How the Bridge was Built

In 2008 the National Park Authority commissioned a feasibility study which provided a basic design and and this led to funding applications to the Forth Valley and Lomond LEADER, Scottish Natural Heritage, and the Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park. For six years efforts to replace the bridge had come to nothing until Callander Community Development Trust secured funding early in 2010, for a new bridge to transform the Falls into a visitor destination of the highest order.

The bridge was assembled on site ( 8 & 9 ) from four Douglas Fir tree trunks each measuring 12 metres long as there was no suitable access overland or by helicopter. After assembly the completed bridge was winched into its final position ( 10 ) over two greased girders which were assembled above a temporary timber bridge. The view from the centre of the bridge ( 11 ) down into the deep chasm of the gorge was never seen prior to the completion of this fantastic new bridge - an experience not to be missed!

The bridge project was part financed by The Scottish Government and European Community Forth Valley & Lomond Leader 2007-2013 programme.

The building of the bridge at the side of the gorge has been completed by Strong Bridges of Crieff and on 8 October 2010 the bridge was winched across the gorge by hand on a temporary metal bridge to its final position.

The bridge is not only a new destination in itself and a place to view the impressive cataracts but also can be utilised to create a series of walking circuits in the Callander area.

A Walk to the Bracklinn Falls and Bridge . . . . . See location and walks map here . . . . Back to top

If you have children with you, keep an eye on them as there are un-guarded cliff edges around the gorge ar the falls and bridge.

The easiest walk to the Bracklinn Falls and bridge starts at the Falls car park which is about 1/2 mile up Bracklinn road (which is at the east end of the Main Street). The walk is level most of the way but the last 200 yards or so is either down some steep steps or alternatively down an 'all ability' path which is also steep at one point. There is a bench near the top of the steep section where you may rest and enjoy the views to Stirling and the Campsie hills.

At the falls, you may like to turn right just before the bridge and follow a rough path downstream for perhaps 100 yards where a break in the trees permits an excellent photo-opportunity looking up the gorge past the falls to the new bridge.

If you have the energy and if time and weather permit your walk can be extended to a 4 mile round trip as follows:
Cross the bridge and turn left to follow random tracks through the woods and descend easy slopes to the riverside. A little way upstream you can find the remains of an old track which was damaged by the flood. Follow this track which turns right to climb up to meet a forest road. Follow the forest road upstream, ignoring all right turns (or you'll get lost) intil you drop down to the river again at a bridge above a pool.This is 'Scouts Pool'. Continue up the hill to a minor road and turn left to follow this road (with occasional traffic) to find the car park on your left where your walk began.

 

If you are super energetic, you can turn right off the minor road mentioned above at a telephone pole bearing the number 34. This track is quite rough, but leads up to the summit cairn on the Callander Crags where expansive views open in all directions. Continue past the cairn, through a gate and down a little scramble over rocks - sometimeas slippery. When you reach a little bridge a path leads off left down about 80 rough steps. Follow this track, ignoring any narrow paths on either side until you reach a forest road. Turn left here and follow down to a parking area and Bracklinn Road where a left rurn and a short uphill stretch returns you to the car park at the falls path. This last route overs almost 4 miles and strong footwear is advised - and perhaps a waterproof if the weather is doubtful!.