Sucker for a good view! Scotland part 2.

So with our failed attempt at climbing Ben A'an, I wanted to see the loch that I should have seen from the top and I really needed a wee and so this was the nearest place. Just a little further along the A821 we came across The Trossachs pier on Loch Katrine. There was a small charge for the car park which didn't take cards so we had enough change for 2 hours, enough time for a toilet break, tea and cake and a little walk around the lake.

The Steamship Cafe was just off the pier and had a lovely view of the lake and the cake was just yummy! Well recommended for either before or after a walk or even a sail around the lake on the world famous Steamship Sir Walter Scott.

Loch Katrine is steeped in history, natural beauty and is the gateway to the Great Trossachs Forest National Nature Reserve, in the Heart of the National Park. It is the perfect place for a day trip and cruise. You could also rent bikes if you felt the need.

Loch Katrine is recognised as the favoured and much loved setting of some of Sir Walter Scott’s most famous poetic works.

The history of the loch, Taken from the website Loch Katrine, states that the Trossachs, Gaelic for “bristly territory" were formed during the last ice age. The ice has had a major impact on the landscape of Scotland and many of the typical features of a glaciated landscape can be seen around the loch. Strath Gartney where Loch Katrine is situated is a typical U- shaped valley eroded by glaciers. Resulting in a body of water that is very deep, 154m with narrow beaches and steep sides. The glacier that dug out loch Katrine was very think in some parts, covering the hills around the loch, especially on the south side of, where it merged with ice from the forth valley towards Loch Lomond.

When the ice retreated the loch was formed leaving something like what we can see today. Also left behind were the rocky peaks of Ben A’an and Ben Venue, scarred by the rocks scoured across them by the ice; as well as the characteristic Trossachs mounds and crags between the hills. Many streams run into the loch from the surrounding hills provide a constant supply of pure clean water for the reservoir built in the 19th century.

So after tea and cake we had about an hour and half left on the car to explore, which took us about a mile round the loch which wasn't that far but let's not forget I am a sucker for a good view!

With views like this, I can only imagine what they would have been like from the top of Ben A'an....

Thank you for reading and if you would like to read my blog on my failed attempt to climb Ben A'an follow the link.