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Argyll and Bute

Carrick Castle

A 15th-century Campbell tower house at the water's edge on Loch Goil, its walls reflected in the loch.

Welcome

Carrick Castle is a tall, roofless tower house on the western shore of Loch Goil, in Cowal, standing right at the water's edge so that on a still day its grey walls are doubled in the loch, with the hills rising steeply behind.

It was built around the middle of the 15th century and became a seat of the Campbells of Argyll, a clan then rising to great power in Scotland.

It is a classic tower house, four storeys high and rectangular, with thick stone walls and narrow windows. Mary, Queen of Scots is believed to have stayed here in the 1500s, and in the 1600s the castle was badly damaged by Cromwell's forces. It is privately owned and the inside is not open, but it is best seen from the shore by the village or from the water, and there are good walks round about: a path of eleven kilometres runs along the loch shore between Carrick Castle and Ardentinny beach.

A short drive awayThe Boat Shed CaféA small café in the boat shed at Loch Goil Cruisers, Lochgoilhead, with home baking and feeders for red squirrels outside the window.8 min by roadSee itA coffee on a timber table at the Boat Shed.
Before you go

The castle is privately owned and not open inside; it is seen from the shore at Carrick Castle village and from the loch.

Where
Carrick Castle, Loch Goil, Cowal.
Inside
Not open; private.
Where it is

Loch Goil, Cowal.

Close byOn Loch Goil.
  1. Loch Goil between steep, wooded hills.Loch GoilA small, fjord-like sea loch in the national park, reached by a single-track road from the Rest and Be Thankful.2 miles5 min by road
  2. The Tinkers' Heart, white quartz pebbles set in a heart in the old road surface.Tinkers’ Heart11 miles20 min by road
  3. Beinn Ìme above an old stone bridge in autumn colour.Beinn ImeThe highest of the Arrochar Alps, 1,012 metres above Loch Long, climbed from Succoth with rocky Beinn Narnain.12 miles21 min by road
  4. Walkers descend a rocky hillside path beside a tumbling burnThe Cobbler12 miles22 min by road
  5. A walker on Ardentinny Beach under the trees.Ardentinny BeachThe longest beach on the Cowal peninsula, on Loch Long, backed by forest, with a shore path to Carrick Castle.30 miles53 min by road
Directions
Red Squirrel Cabin, Argyll and ButeArgyll and ButeRed Squirrel CottageSleeps 6 · 3.0 miles
Seal Cabin, Argyll and ButeArgyll and ButeSeal CabinSleeps 2 · 3.0 miles
A coffee on a timber table at the Boat Shed.CafeThe Boat Shed Café3.2 miles
A dark timber cabin with a pitched metal roof stands among ferns and birch trees.CairndowKabnSleeps 2 · 13 miles
Stay nearby

Places to stay near the castle, and when each is next free.

Red Squirrel Cabin, Argyll and ButeRed Squirrel Cottage
  • Sleeps 6
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 3 miles from Carrick Castle
Check datesSeal Cabin, Argyll and ButeSeal Cabin
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 3 miles from Carrick Castle
Check datesA dark timber cabin with a pitched metal roof stands among ferns and birch trees.Kabn
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Cairndow
  • 10 miles from Carrick Castle
Free 17–19 NovA white harled house with crow-stepped gables catches the sunset glow above a loch, yellow flowering shrubs in the foreground.Glenstriven House
  • To stay
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 13 miles from Carrick Castle
Free 25–27 OctPlaces to stayEvery stay in Argyll and ButeAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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