Last year while visiting Edinburgh, Chris and I took a day trip with our friends up to a couple of locations at the boundary and just beyond into the Scottish Highlands. While we had hoped to travel farther north, our time constraints in Scotland made a quick journey the best option for us. Our tour included Stirling Castle, Loch Lomond, and Glengoyne Distillery. Castles, lakes, and whiskey–is there anything more you need in life?
Loch Lomond
Nerd alert as I discuss the human-created and geological differences between the Highlands and Lowlands of Scotland. The social science geek in me (of course) is (always) interested in the impacts of history and culture on landscapes. While the human-created “Highlands Line” is the divider between the Highlands and Lowlands, it isn’t a a static, distinct boundary, but instead changes as people move, cultures shift, and languages change.
Where are we?
Mainland Scotland is divided into two main regions: the Lowlands and the Highlands. The definition between the two regions is not clearly defined; while the Highland Boundary Fault cuts between the areas north and west of the major fault zone, exact boundaries have never been truly defined between the two regions. Historically and culturally, the division between the two areas started during the Middle Ages when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic in most of the Lowlands.
Stirling Castle
From the 15th century to the mid 1900s, language became one of the biggest divisions between the Lowlands and Highlands; Gร idhealtachd (typically the Highlands and Islands) is the Scottish Gaelic-speaking part of Scotland, although the Highlands form of Scottish English is spoken there today. Clan units governed the Highlands until the Jacobite uprising of 1745 and remains a source of romanticized culture (see: Outlander).
Loch Lochmond
The Lowlands include Scotland’s largest cities, Edinburgh and Glasgow; the Highlands are sparsely populated. While the Highland Boundary Fault does not necessarily define the line between the two regions culturally, it does play a huge role in the geology of both areas. The Highlands contains the majority of the mountainous terrain in the United Kingdom, while the southern part of Scotland is flatter, with less elevation.
View from Stirling Castle
You can spend weeks (or in a perfect world, years) exploring the Scottish Highlands. The landscape is absolutely beautiful, with so much to see and experience. We just crossed over from the Lowlands and our tiny sliver of the Highlands was one of my favorite days in the United Kingdom.
Stirling Castle:
Located on a giant volcanic rock, Sterling Castle is at a meeting point between the Lowlands and the Highlands.
While the castle dates back to the 12th century, it is believed that most of the buildings were constructed between 1490-1600.
Prior to the union with England, Stirling Castle was used both as a palace and fortress. Nearly every Scottish monarch until the Union of the Crowns (1603) either lived, crowned, or died here.
More than eight sieges have taken place here, the last occurring in 1746, when Bonnie Prince Charlie was unable to take the castle during the Wars of Scottish Independence.
One of the major battles at the castle was Wallace’s victory over the English in 1297.
Hochschild sighting.
The Church of Holy Rude (pictured here in the distance) was founded in 1129 and is the second oldest building (only after the castle) in Stirling.The National Wallace Monument can be seen in the distance. This monument was built for Sir William Wallace (yep, THAT William Wallace, although like all films in our youth, the movie is a lie compared to the actual story) and was built on a hill overlooking Stirling.
Loch Lomond:
Loch Lomond (Gaelic: Loch Laomainn, meaning ‘Lake of the Elms’) is a freshwater lake crossing the Highland Boundary Fault and located in the Trossachs National Park.
Loch Lomond is the largest lake (by surface area) in Great Britain and the second largest in Great Britain by volume.It also contains the largest fresh water island in the British Isles and was voted as the sixth greatest natural wonder in Britain (2005).
Kristin always getting the best shot.
When we visited the weather started out rainy and dreary, but later cleared up after we made the trek over to the water. It was a beautiful walk.
The loch was formed by glaciers between 20,000 and 10,000 years ago. People first began to inhabit the area 5,000 years ago, during the neolithic era.
The loch is featured in the popular song ‘the Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond’, first published in 1841.
St. Mocha Coffee Shop & Ice Cream Parlour:
Quick stop for coffee (and a break from the rain) at St. Mocha Coffee Shop. This cafe is adorable with a ton of options for coffee and snacks. The space is small but absolutely worth your time if you can snag a table.
Glengoyne Distillery:
Glengoyne Distillery was founded in 1833 and located just at the start of the Highlands. While Glengoyne became “official” in 1833, it is thought that they were one of the Scottish whiskey operators that illegally produced spirits in the forests of the Highlands. Glengoyne produces Highland single malt whiskey, although due to the use of air rather than peat to dry the barley, their malt is “stylistically closer” to a Lowland single malt.
The Distillery is beautiful and the tour was informative and fun. So proud of Kristin for sampling her whiskey!
Incredibly thankful to experience a little slice of the Scottish Highlands โค
Me fulfilling my lifelong dream of designing postcards of hills and graveyards.
I absolutely adore Scotland and can’t wait to visit again.
Currently:
Reading: Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed by Men (Caroline Criado-Perez) Watching: Years and Years (HBO) Listening: The Scarlet E (On the Media)
she / her I have a lot of Leslie Knope tendencies. Studied political science | sustainable food & justice. I’m a dog mom to the terror duo of Porkchop Reptar and Arya Tonks. Forever an intentional wanderer and admirer of black coffee.
I like inappropriately fake eyelashes and podcasts of the documentary variety. I’m an advocate for building a more radically empathetic world.
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