A Wet Day in Stirling and the Trossachs – Castle and Whisky
A day by car, from Stirling and back.
The route
When the rain sets in over Stirling, the views from the castle walls and the hills of the Trossachs are the first things to disappear.
This is a day out from Stirling for exactly that weather. It keeps you under a roof for most of the time, in royal halls, in an old cotton mill by Doune that now makes whisky, and in a warm café or two. Its minutes outdoors go to the things rain improves. Beyond Callander there's a river that comes down white and loud after a wet night, and mist lying low on a loch in the hills. There are Highland cows to meet at Kilmahog too, and the day ends back in Stirling.
Before you go
Book a timed ticket online for 10am, then catch a P2 from Castleview Park and Ride (check the times) that reaches the Cowane Centre or Sheriff Court stop a quarter of an hour before your ticket time; on a Sunday, check it runs, or park in town and walk up.
Book the tour for about 1.30pm, after lunch at the Coffee Bothy (on a Monday it's shut, so have lunch later at the Lade Inn), and check the age limit when you book, as young children can't join it.
The day
Stirling
A day from Stirling up the A84 to the edge of the Trossachs and back, setting off about nine. The morning is spent inside Stirling Castle and the middle of the day at a distillery on the River Teith. The afternoon is a run of short stops beyond Callander, where the rain is part of the view.
2 hr 2 min at the wheelAbout 41 miles
Stirling Castle
An attraction
It's 7 minutes' drive to Castleview Park and Ride, as the castle's car park is for disabled-badge holders and coaches; leave the car there, on the way to Deanston. Take the P2 bus (check the times) to the Cowane Centre or Sheriff Court stop and walk up, about ten minutes. Inside are the golden Great Hall, the Royal Palace with its Stirling Heads and the Great Kitchens. At ten past noon, walk 7 minutes down to the Youth Hostel or Bow Street stop for the P2 back to the car.
13 min by car
Deanston Distillery
An attraction
Drive 13 minutes north-west on the A84, past Doune, to Deanston Distillery, a cotton mill of the 1820s on the River Teith that became a distillery in 1966. Lunch is at the Coffee Bothy inside, open until 3pm from Tuesday to Sunday; on a Monday, eat later at the Lade Inn at Kilmahog. Then the tour, booked for about 1.30pm. Young children can't join it, so with them take the Doune Castle detour. Whoever is driving won't be drinking, so ask what Deanston offers drivers when you book.
19 min by car
Trossachs Woollen Mill
An attraction
It's 19 minutes' drive on through Callander to the Trossachs Woollen Mill at Kilmahog, a big shop and café full of knitwear and tweed, and a warm place to dry off over a coffee. Three Highland cows, Hamish Dubh, Honey and Holly, live beside it; buy them treats inside, but in heavy rain look for them first, as they may be sheltering. This day suits February to October. From November to January, leave out the mill to keep about an hour of daylight for the falls and the loch.
3 min by car
Falls of Leny
An attraction
It's 3 minutes' drive up the A84 into the Pass of Leny, and a minute more to the free Ben Ledi car park, signposted for Strathyre Cabins. It's 15 minutes' walk back down the cycle path to the falls, or park beside them if there's room. Here the River Leny crosses the Highland Boundary Fault in a run of rocky falls, white and loud after a wet night. The way down can be wet and slippery, so keep back from the edge and hold small hands.
40 min by car
Loch Lubnaig
An attraction
Drive 3 minutes further up the A84 to Loch Lubnaig Car Park, beside the loch. This is the day's last stop and its shortest, a quarter of an hour, and the weather does the work: cloud low on the hills around it and mist lying on the water. Stay on the shore, as the loch deepens quickly and is very cold. The Cabin, a minute's drive on, has hot drinks and toilets. Then turn for home: it's 40 minutes' drive back to Stirling.
If the rain stops
If the rain stops by the afternoon, Bracklinn Falls is 7 minutes' drive back through Callander from the woollen mill. From the free car park on Bracklinn Road, a woodland path of about a kilometre leads to a footbridge over the falls, a quarter of an hour each way. Its stones are loose and uneven after rain, so wear walking boots, keep to the path and hold small hands. Allow most of an hour, then it's 9 minutes' drive to the Falls of Leny; if the light is going, leave out Loch Lubnaig, or the falls too and head home.
Worth a detour
- Doune Castle
For anyone who'd rather skip the whisky, or has children too young for the tour, Doune Castle is 6 minutes' drive from Deanston and keeps the afternoon under a roof. It was rebuilt in the late 1300s by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, and its great hall and kitchens will be familiar from Monty Python and the Holy Grail and from Outlander. Tickets are for a set time, so book ahead. It opens 10am to 4pm from October to March, so check the hours for other months; last entry is 45 minutes before closing. The path up from the car park ends steep on cobbles. Going on to Kilmahog from here adds about 8 minutes at the wheel.
Where to eat
StirlingThe Golden Lion HotelA restaurant
StirlingIndian CottageA restaurant
StirlingBite EastA restaurant
StirlingThe PortcullisA restaurant
StirlingUnorthodox RoasterA café
StirlingBob and BertsA café
StirlingMintA café
StirlingCaffe PompeiA café
StirlingDarnley Coffee HouseA café
CallanderMhor BreadA café
CallanderBen Ledi Coffee CompanyA café
Photographs by Zirtluangi Chawnghlut via Google; Bert Kaufmann