The Trossachs Overview

The lush tranquility of the Lowlands meets the rugged beauty of the Highlands in the Trossachs, Scotland’s first national park. The most accessible tract of Scotland’s wilderness, the Trossachs are popular for their moderate hikes amid dramatic scenery. Here you will find cycle routes winding through dense forest, the glassy tranquility of Loch Katrine, and Scotland’s most manageable peaks.

Transportation. Accessing the Trossachs is easiest from Stirling. First (☎01324 613 777) bus connects the region’s main towns, running buses #59 and M59 between Stirling and Callander (45min., 12 per day, £3.20) and bus #11 between Stirling and Aberfoyle (45min., 4 per day, £2.70). Scottish Citylink runs a bus to Edinburgh and Callander via Stirling (1hr., 1 per day, £9.60). Bus service between Aberfoyle and Glasgow requires a change at Balfron. During the summer, the useful Trossachs Trundler (☎01786 442 707) loops between Callander, Aberfoyle, and the Trossachs Pier at Loch Katrine. One daily trip begins in Stirling and is the only public transportation that connects the Trossachs towns (July-Sept. M-Tu and Th-Su 4 per day; Day Rover £5, concessions £4, children £2; with travel from Stirling £8/6/2.50). Postbuses reach some remote areas of the region; find timetables at TICs or call the Stirling Council Public Transport Helpline (☎01786 442 707). At the Trossachs Pier on Loch Katrine, rent bikes from Katrinewheelz. (☎01877 376 316. £10 per ½-day, £15 per day.) Another rental option is Cycle Hire Callander, Ancaster Sq., beside the Callender TIC. (☎01877 331 052. £8 per ½-day, £12 per day. Open daily 9am-6pm. MC/V.)

Accommodations And Food. For lodgings and hiking, the star of the region is   Trossachs Backpackers , Invertrossachs Rd. A TV lounge, barbecue, kitchen, and cycle hire await visitors, making it worth the 1 mi. walk from Callander’s town center. (☎01877 331 200, bike hire 331 100. 32 beds in 2- to 8-bed rooms. Breakfast included. Laundry. Bikes £8 per ½-day, £13 per day. Dorms £17.50-20. MC/V.) In Callander’s center, White Shutters B&B , 6 S. Church St., is just steps from the main road. There are no ensuite rooms, but the owners make a delicious hot breakfast. (☎01877 330 442. £18.50 per person, £17.50 for subsequent nights. Cash only.) Limited camping is available at the well-equipped Trossachs Holiday Park , 2 mi. south of Aberfoyle on the A81, with a game room and TV lounge that are nicer than those at most hostels. (☎01877 382 614; www.trossachsholidays.co.uk. Toilets, showers, laundry, and bike rental. Open Mar.-Oct. £14-20 per person. AmEx/MC/V.)

Co-op grocery stores are easily found in both Callander and Aberfoyle, as well are number of bakeries and eateries whose delicious aromas fill the town centers. Munchy’s Restaurant , 114 Main St., serves affordable entrees in a classy atmosphere. (☎01877 331 070. Entrees £5.95-8.50. Open M-Tu and Th-F 10am-5pm, Sa-Su 11am-5pm. MC/V.)

Outdoor Activities. Get the scenic layout of the area by taking a drive or a ride on the Trossachs Trundler down the Trossachs Trail. Really just the A821, the road offers fantastic views of the majestic Loch Katrine, the setting of Sir Walter Scott’s The Lady of the Lake. The popular Steamship Sir Walter Scott cruises Loch Katrine from Trossachs Pier, stopping at Stronachlachar on the northwest bank in the mornings. (☎01877 332 002. From mid-June to mid-Sept. at 10:30am, 1:30, 3pm; call ahead to check sailing times and for advance bookings. £8, concessions £7, children £6.) For a good daytrip, take the ferry to Stronachlachar and then walk or ride back along the 14 mi. wooded shore road to the pier. Above the loch hulks Ben A’an (1187 ft.), a reasonable 2.5 mi. ascent beginning from a car park 1 mi. down the A821.

Set beside the quiet River Teith, the town of Callander makes a good base for exploring the Trossachs and lies close to outdoor attractions. Dominating the horizon, Ben Ledi (2883 ft.) is a manageable trek. A 6 mi. trail up the mountain begins just north of town along the A84. A number of walks depart from Callander itself: The Crags (6½ mi.) heads up through the woods to the ridge above town, while the popular walk to Bracklinn Falls (5 mi.) wanders along a picturesque glen. In Callander, cyclists can join The Lowland Highland Trail, a lovely stretch running north to Strathyre along an old railway line. Passing through forest and beside Loch Lubnaig, a sidetrack from the route runs to Balquhidder, where the Scottish folk hero Rob Roy and his family are buried. The renegade’s surname, MacGregor, was outlawed in Scotland, but his grave is marked by a stone reading, “MacGregor Despite Them.” Callander’s Rob Roy and Trossachs Visitor Centre, Main St., is a combined TIC and exhibit on the 17th-century local hero. Pick up Ordnance Survey maps, Explorer #378 (£8), or Landranger #57 (£7). Walkers will find the Callander Walks and Fort Trails pamphlet (£2) useful, and cyclists can consult Rides Around The Trossachs. (☎01877 330 342. Open daily July-Aug. 10am-6pm; Sept.-Oct. and Mar.-June 10am-5pm; Nov.-Feb. 10am-4pm. Exhibit £3.60, concessions and children £2.40, families £9.60.)

Aberfoyle is another springboard into the surrounding wilderness. The Queen Elizabeth Forest Park covers a vast stretch of territory from the shore of Loch Lomond to the slopes of the Strathyre Mountains, with Aberfoyle at its center. For more information on trails, visit the Trossachs Discovery Centre, a TIC in town. (☎01877 382 352. Open July-Aug. daily 9:30am-6pm; Sept.-Oct. and Apr.-June daily 10am-5pm.) Aberfoyle is also the self-proclaimed “Faerie Capital of Scotland,” thanks to the Reverend Robert Kirk, who wrote The Secret Commonwealth in 1691, claiming to expose the world of elves and pixies. Legend has it that members of the spirit world took revenge on the reverend for revealing their secrets by trapping him inside a giant pine tree on top of Doon Hill. A 2.5 mi. walk from town leads to the top of the hill, where the ancient tree still stands (faerie sightings have been scarce since Kirk’s disappearance).