Arcadia Scotland

Part of the reason I chose to study abroad at St. Andrews was for the opportunity to explore Scotland’s gorgeous landscape. Lucky for me, there’s a club at St. Andrews called Breakaway where you can sign up for hiking trips out into the highlands! Join me on a day trip to Crianlarich and Tyndrum. 

6:00  – Wake up and pack lunch. Head over to the Student Union for the bus.

6:30  – Meet up with some friends and board the bus. It’s a 2 and half hour drive, so I’ll try to sleep through as much of it as possible.

9:15 – We arrive at the hiking trail in Crianlarich and get off the bus.

9:25 – We pass by some highland cows! This is my first time seeing them, so I’m especially excited.

9:30 – We come across the Kirkton burial ground. Among the grave stones, which range from the 18th to early 20th century, are four Early Medieval cross slabs which may date to around the 7th or 8th century. Simple incised cross slabs are common throughout the West Highlands.

9:35 – Right next to the burial ground is St. Fillan’s Priory, the ruins of which date from the 13th Century. Robert the Bruce endowed the priory in 1317. There were a number of holy relics associated with St. Fillan that were kept by the hereditary guardians known as Dewars. Some of the relics were lost forever after the dissolution of the Monastery in 1607, but two of the relics, the Quigrich (crozier) and Bernane Bell, are now in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.

9:45 – We pass a huge flock of grazing sheep. I mean, c’mon. Look at that view!

10:00 – We arrive at Allt Auchtertyre Waterfall, which was created by a basalt dyke (an injection of volcanic rock into a crack in the main rock) to create a hard ‘step’. The river cuts away at the softer mica schist rock on either side of the dyke. The mica flakes from the rock are very shink and can be seen in the riverbed. From our viewing spot, the waterfall is framed by the turning leaves of September in such a way that makes you want to start painting.

10:13 – We pass under the Auchtertyre Railway Viaduct, which carries the West Highland Railway Line that goes from Glasgow to Fort William and Mallaig. This section of the line, from Glasgow to Fort William, was opened in 1894 after five years of grueling construction. The main span of the viaduct is 35 meters above the Allt Auchtertyre. 

10:21 – We take a look back at the railway viaduct and hear a train in the distance. We wait to see if it’ll pass over the viaduct, but it does not.

10:30 – We begin a trek through peatlands towards a bridge that’ll take us on a loop and put us back out to near the priory. Peatlands are terrestrial wetland ecosystems in which waterlogged conditions prevent plant material from fully decomposing. Consequently, the production of organic matter exceeds its decomposition, which results in a net accumulation of peat. In cool climates, peatland vegetation is mostly made up of Sphagnum mosses, sedges and shrubs and are the primary builder of peat, whereas in warmer climates graminoids and woody vegetation provide most of the organic matter. TLDR: You’re gonna get a lot of water in your socks while walking through peatlands.

10:53 – We come to the bridge we are supposed to cross, but alas! It is closed! We have to turn around and walk back the way we came (not so bad – I mean, look at this view).

11:38 – We head along a trail towards Tyndrum.

11:45 – We come across a point in the River Fillan called the Holy Pool. The pool is divided unequally into two by a rock formation that extends back into the field above. The deeper upstream section is known as “Pul nan Bain” (the pool of the women) and the lower pool as “Pul nan Fear” (the pool of the men). This peculiar division of the pool and its designation as “Holy”, derive from its connection with an ancient healing ritual that was performed in the pool for many centuries. Tradition has it that St. Fillan’s first chapel was built on the north bank of the Holy Pool (though no trace is to be found today), and so the waters became imbued with his miraculous powers. The Bernane Bell, one of St. Fillan’s holy relics, was used in the healing ritual. It is now on display at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.

12:02 – We pass by the field where the Battle of Dalrigh supposedly took place. The battle was fought in 1306 between the army of King Robert the Bruce against Clan MacDougall of Argyll, who were allies of Clan Comyn and the English. Clan MacDougall and Robert the Bruce were allies during the Wars of Independence in 1296. WHen Robert the Bruce murdered the nephew of the Clan Chief in 1306 (who was also in line for the Throne) they became enemies. Clan MacDougall then allied themselves with Edward I of England. After he was beaten in battle near Perth, Robert the Bruce and the remnants of his army were ambushed by Clan MacDougall here at Dalrigh in the summer of 1306. Caught by surprise, the battle was a short, frantic engagement with the last of Bruce’s horsemen killed and several of his key allies injured. Afterwards, Robert the Bruce went into hiding. Then two years later he went on to defeat the MacDougall’s at the Battle of the Pass of Brander.

12:16 – Next, we came across the Lochan of the Lost Sword. Time for another history lesson! Legend has it that after he was beaten at Dalrigh, Robert the Bruce and his army threw their weapons into this small lochan. This included Robert the Bruce’s long sword (Claymore), and local legend suggests it lies here to this day. In reality, though, a Lochan nan Arm is located to the south of the monument. It is thought this might be the real location of the weapons dump. In July of 2015, a team from MacDonald Armories in Edinburgh came to metal detect the site and local lochans. Unfortunately, they did not find and real evidence of the battle or dumped weapons.

12:36 – We carried on to find a place to sit and eat lunch.

13:03 – We settled down on a lush mossy mound right off the path to eat and chat for an hour. I even took a short nap!

14:30 – We started back on the path to Tyndrum, passing by an old lead smelting site and some camping grounds that boasted luxury hot tubs!

15:00 – We arrived in Tyndrum and made our way to the Green Welly Stop, which has been around since 1965! We grabbed some coffee and snacks and lounged by the park next door while we waited for the bus to come back and pick us up.

16:00 – Boarded back on the bus to begin the 2-and-a-half-hour trip back to St. Andrews!

18:54 – We made it back! I head back to my dorm to make dinner and take a well-earned shower after walking a nice 8 miles!