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Main accommodation List . . . . . Lomond Ferries and CruisesThis page describes the loch and lochside road from Balloch in the south end of Lomond, up the west side of the Loch to Ardlui and on the east side from Drymen to Rowardennan.
Loch Lomond is considered by some to be the jewel of the national park lochs, but it's worth looking around the rest of the National Park to decide just what you want to see and do before deciding where your 'base' is to be.
Accommodation near the lochThis space available |
Taobh-an-Allt - a Self-catering cottage at Tarbet, Lomond side .............. DETAILS Self-catering cottage for 4-7 Historic cottage, built 1745, on the shores of Loch Lomond. Beautifully furnished throughout, including romantic en-suite bedroom with four-poster. Kitchen with all facilities, secret playroom for children, gardens with stream, parking for 2 cars. Ideal walking, water sports, & sightseeing. |
Auchenheglish Cottages and Lodges |
14 Lomond Castle. Sleeps 4 ........DETAILS Arden, Loch Lomond This is a luxurious Town House. It has a Living/Dining room, kitchen, master bedroom with an en suite bathroom and balcony. It also has a twin bedroom with a separate bathroom. All the rooms have spectacular views of Loch Lomond!!! The house is set in five acres of gated private grounds, with a private beach and jetty. |
In a hollow gouged from the rock by the action of glaciers during the ice ages, loch Lomond stretches from its broader southern end at Balloch to Ardlui, some twenty-one miles to the northwest. Made famous by the song "the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond " it's one of the many attractions of the national park.
The loch's southern end is dotted with some thirty-eight of Lomond's famed Islands boasting castles, burial grounds and ancient crannogs as well some modern dwellings. It's at its widest at the southern end and it is here that you find the bulk though by no means the best of the visitor attractions on the loch. You can see a photo of the Loch and its islands taken from the south at Duncryne hill at Gartocharn - once the home of Tommy Weir, the walker and TV personality.
Loch Lomond straddles the Highland boundary fault between the lowlands and highlands of Scotland creating a variety of scenery. The west shore is followed by the Dumbarton to Crianlarich trunk road. On the east side, a narrow road from Drymen (north-east of Balloch), follows the east shore through Balmaha to Rowardennan but stops there. Inversnaid, further up the loch can only be reached by a long detour via Aberfoyle or by Lomond ferry services.
The east shore of the loch is fortunate in having many sheltered bays which makes it popular with Lomond's watersport enthusiasts, but this also makes the narrow east shore road one of the more congested parts with parking difficult at peak periods.
Note:
Southwest of Lomond you will find rolling hills which slope down to the sea lochs and seaside resorts of the Clyde coast, places like Helensburgh and Rhu. Further to the west you find the long sea lochs and the rugged mountains more typical of the northern highlands. Loch Long with Arrochar and the fabulous "Arrochar Alps" being typical examples.
To the east you find the beautiful centre of the Trossachs with a variety of lochs - smaller than Lomond but just as beautiful, each with its own unique attractions, and Callander with its variety of shops, pubs, eating places and probably the biggest selection of accommodation in the 'Loch Lomond and Trossachs national park'. In the north east you come to Balquhidder, the home of Rob Roy MacGregor and finally to the north, the lands of the Campbells, MacNabs, and Stewarts by Lochs Earn, Dochart and Tay.

Balloch is busy, has lots of interest and things to do, although it is perhaps not the most beautiful place on the shores of Loch Lomond! Here the river Leven exits the loch and you will find the largest of the many marinas as well as watersports, Lomond trips on motor launches and Balloch Castle.
The railway line from Glasgow terminates here although most trippers now come by road. You'll even find the old Loch Lomond paddle steamer 'Maid of the Loch ' tied up at Balloch pier where it has served as a floating restaurant for some years.
Balloch Castle country park contains the 1808 castle built for Buchanan of Ardoch and also the small remains of the 13c Balloch castle and is open to the public.
Balloch Visitor Information
Over to the west of Balloch the A82 heads north west up locln lomond past the Cameron House Hotel and its resort with marina etc. If you have the time to explore, in the hills above the hotel are the remains of an Iron age hillfort and a little further west, the 'Lang Cairn', a neolithic chambered tomb over 200 yd long. It's about 5000 years old and contained 20 burials.
Continuing northwestwards, turn right to Duck Bay Marina with its bars, nightclubs etc, and after a while some good vistas over loch Lomond are seen. Back up to the main road and at Arden the road to Helensburgh via Glen Fruin heads off into the hills on the left. It was near here in Glenfruin that the Colquhoun Clan was massacred by the MacGregors in 1603.
About 1 mile past Arden the road crosses the Water of Fruin. Rossdu house is now off to the right near the lochside and nearby are the remains of the Castle of Rossdhu and the Chapel of Rossdhu. Further on on the right is Bandry point and Bay.
The main road north passes up the west bank of Loch Lomond passing the Thistle bagpipe works.
At Luss there is a car park from whence you can wander through the lovely old village with its old church, have a cup of tea, and take a sail from the pier at Loch Lomond side. To the south of the pier a path leads to the Church of St MacKessog which was built to commemorate Sir James Colquhoun and four others who drowned in lomond in 1873. Some interesting grave slabs can be found here, two 'cross slabs' probably dating from the 8th or 9th c.
From Luss, the road continues northwards via Inverbeg (Ferry here over Loch Lomond to Rowardennan on the east side. Ardlui Ferry operates April, September & October 9am to 7pm May , June, July, August 9am to 8pm. Contact Ardlui Hotel 01301 704243).
The road to the west here leads from Tarbet to Loch Long via Glen Douglas, one of the highest roads in the area.
The loch narrows considerably here as the road continues up Lomond to Tarbet. About a mile after inverbeg is Rubha Mor (the Great Point) then several little bays best accessed by water. Firkin Point and Rubha Dubh (Dark point) follow shortly and in the hills above Stuckgowan are the ruins of a village, Clachan Dubh (Black village) which was wiped out by the plague in medieaval times.
Views of Ben Lomond are now seen over the loch most of the way to Tarbet.
At Tarbet, the west fork from the lochside road takes you over the short pass to Arrochar, Inverary and Scotland's west coast.

The top end of Loch Long was used as a torpedo testing range and the admiralty pier still remains on the west side of the Loch at the foot of the old 'rest and be thankful' road over to Inverary. The torpedo testing was finally stopped after a torpedo of the type used here exploded unexpectedly on land at another testing range.
Loch Long is a popular diving venu with a number of interesting wrecks to explore.
Arrochar makes an excellent base for exploring the ' Arrochar Alps ' which include Ben Arthur, seen in the above photograph, usually known as 'the Cobbler' and famous for its rugged and interesting skyline.
The West Highland railway also crosses the pass here before continuing up Loch Lomond side and on to Crianlarich.
The Train can be boarded at Tarbet Station .
The east fork from Tarbet leads up the lochside and on to Inveruglas where you can see some wonderful views down the loch and over the now narrow Loch Lomond to Inversnaid.
From the lochside car park a lomond ferry will take you over the loch to Inversnaid and Rob Roy's cave, or down to Rowardennan and Inverbeg. You can also see the parallel pipes which carry water from Loch Sloy to the power station by the road. Loch Sloy was once the gathering place of the Clan MacFarlane and 'Loch Sloy' was their war-cry.
For walkers, the best access to Ven Vane is obtained about 700 yards south of the car park.
In the bay is Inveruglas island upon which lie the remains of a castle, once the stronghold of the MacFarlanes, this is one of the many castles in Scotland which Cromwell burned to the ground.
The loch is now little over half a mile wide and on the left of the road you can see an early attempt at conservation where the railway viaduct was built of local stone and with castellated piers to match the residences of the local gentry.
Hidden among the trees on 'Isle I Vow', the little island out in the loch are the remains of a castle built by another chief of the MacFarlane clan in the 16th c to replace that burned by Cromwell. It was occupied until the mid 19th century!
The road continues to reach Ardlui and Inverarnan
Looking over Loch Lomond, to the south side of the hotel you see a magnificent waterfall on the high slopes over the loch. The west highland way passes up the shore on the opposite side but no bridge was ever provided due to a dispute with the Colquhounes of Luss. The only way over is by ferry from the pier at the marina or by the bridge 4 miles north of Ardlui.
Ardlui ferry crosses the narrow north end of Loch Lomond to access the west highland way. Ardlui Ferry operates April, September & October 9am to 7pm May ,
June, July, August 9am to 8pm.
Contact Ardlui Hotel 01301 704243
A left turn at Drymen takes you to Balamaha, about 4 miles away on the shore of Loch Lomond. Balmaha is I suppose the eastern pleasure boating centre of Loch Lomond nestling in a sheltered bay, permanently populated by pretty pleasure craft. Quiet in winter, impossible to park in summer, it's a popular stop for walkers and climbers on their way to the West Highland Way or Ben Lomond.
A popular walk along the Loch Lomond shore leads eventually to the old steamer pier. The island seen offshore and reached by ferry is 'Inchcailloch'.
The island boasts an ancient burial ground of the MacGregor Clan.
A couple of miles up the road is Milarrochy bay, a wooded area with a shingle beach. A little further up is a sailing club - the 'Canoe Club', then a Caravan club park and the Forest Enterprise camp site at Strathcashel point. Offshore in Loch Lomond are the remains of an ancient 'Crannog' or man made island.
Some 6 miles up the road is Rowardennan, on the Lomond shore and among the trees. Rowardennan boasts a lovely beach.
The small steamer pier here is still used by pleasure boats taking visitors on Loch Lomond and round some of the islands.
The West Highland way continues here all the way up Loch Lomond via Inversnaid and ultimately to Fort William via Rannoch Moor.
Most walkers intending to tackle Ben Lomond start their attempt here at Rowardennan and ascend by the 'tourist route' which starts at the car park, climbs up through the wooded lower slopes before following the long shoulder northwards to the peak. A circular, but harder route returns over a small hillnamed 'Tarmigan' which lies to the south of ben Lomond.
The road stops here and unless tackling the West Highland Way or Ben Lomond, the only way out is to re-trace your steps.
Car Park space here is limited especially in peak season.
Before deciding where to holiday, take a look at other parts of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park:
The following people operate ferries on the loch, mostly on a seasonal basis.
Try a cruise on Loch Katrine on the SS Sir Walter Scott - the 100 year old steamer. Two smaller cruisers also operate.
Short audio . . Full length audio
Lyrics of Loch Lomond song.
By yon bonnie banks and by yon bonnie braes,
Where the sun shines bright on Loch Lomond
Where me and my true love were ever wont to gae,
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o Loch Lomond.Chorus
O yell tak the high road and Ill tak the low road,
And Ill be in Scotland afore ye.
But me and my true love will never meet again,
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o Loch Lomond.Twas there that we parted in yon shady glen,
On the steep, steep side o Ben Lomond.
Where in deep purple hue, the hieland hills we view,
And the moon comin out in the gloamin.The wee birdies sing and the wild flowers spring,
And in sunshine the waters are sleeping:
But the broken heart, it kens nae second spring again,
Tho the waefu may cease from their greeting.
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