Inveraray and Auchindrain
Inveraray is an 18th century planned town which housed the Duke of Argyll’s estate workers. On a cold, July “summer” day, we had a quick stroll around before lunch, but it wasn’t our ultimate destination. By Loch Fyne is the war memorial and the puffer Vital Spark, which brings back memories of the TV programme Para Handy based on Neil Munro’s stories.
The main street is extremely elegant. These are views from different sides of the central building. If you enlarge the pictures, you can see the bell here:
And the clock on the other side. The George Hotel on the left is where we had lunch – and very good it was too.
Our destination was Auchindrain (pronounced Aach-anDRYan) a few miles along the road. Now an outdoor museum, this is a survival of the old farming townships that mostly disappeared after the Highland Clearances. Unusually, this one was still occupied until 1967 so many of the original buildings are intact. You could view them outside –
– and inside. I would not like to have lived here!
At one point, we found ourselves followed by a cat who was quite persistent in tracking us down and demanding strokes. Then, she suddenly disappeared. Looking back, we spotted that she had attached herself to another group. Feline fickleness! There was one occupied house on site (much newer than the others) and when we passed behind it we noticed a cat-flap in the back door, so the mystery of where she came from was solved.
From the museum carpark, a six-mile circular trail led off down one side of the River Leacainn to the village of Furnace on Loch Fyne and back up the other side. We hadn’t known this existed, but decided to go for it. Here are some highlights.
The High Bridge and Miller’s Falls.
More bridges and nice views.
The village of Furnace which, unsurprisingly, has an old iron furnace dating from 1755.
Uphill from there is Bridge Terrace, built at the beginning of the 20th century to house workers in the nearby quarry, and towards the end of the walk is the Wolf Stone. Some say that the last wolf in Argyll – or maybe even Scotland – was shot here as it stood baying at the moon.
We’d packed a lot into the day and still had an hour and a half’s drive home, but this is one of the beauties of the Scottish summer. We might complain about the weather, but it does stay light very late and allows you to walk well into the evening.
Linked to Jo’s Monday Walks.
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
Loved all the photos. This is a very surprising place. I loved the old town. Visiting palces that are still like in the past is a wonderful experience. Well, it is for me 😉
You know? I experienced the long summer days once I was in Dublin in June. I didn’t expect to be light until past 23:00. I was very very surprised. Here in Italy, light never lingers past 22:00 nor even in June.
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Thanks. It was a bit shocking to come home after 3 weeks in the states to find it was back to getting dark from around 7pm!
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It seems that lush green places are very rainy! The weather might not be good in Scotland but Inveraray looks beautiful. And so interesting to see how the old farms looked like in Auchindrain!
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Thank you! You’re right, we don’t get green without rain.
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Lovely, little houses, btu probably damp & cold… I’m more of a comfort creature.
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Me too!
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We often visit Inveraray (usually on our way to and from Oban). We’ve been to The George a few times, but our favourite place to eat is Mr Pia’s across the road (amazing chips).
I’ve never really explored the surrounding area though, definitely one to add to the list for when the weather improves (we’ve got gale force winds and disrupted ferries right now).
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Oh dear, that doesn’t sound good! Will remember about the amazing chips for next time…..
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Lovely photos. I wouldn’t like to live in that cottage either.
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Not many people would these days!
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Just lovely! Perhaps next time a dog will befriend you – and not betray you for greener pastures!
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Dogs are definitely more loyal, that’s for sure!
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Auchindrain looks similar to the Highland Folk Museum I visited in Newtonmore. I have to agree that though the cottages look quite quaint from the outside, there is no way I would want to live in one! Dark and cold and cramped!
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It is very similar except that Newtonmore was created as a museum whereas this is exactly as it was when people lived there. So glad for 21st century comforts!
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This is extremely fascinating and decent pics…Those little houses are entirely charming and simple to warm up. A debt of gratitude is in order for sharing this fascinating walk, Anabel!..
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Thank you!
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