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Crinan Harbour was peaceful and still. The Crinan Trail began on a seaweed-strewn rocky beach and wound upwards through wet, muddy forest to coastline views. We had coffee on a bench overlooking the Argyll skerries and then climbed higher and higher to Castle Dounie, the ruins of a fort on a headland peak with a staggering view north and south along the coast.
Down to the coast again
The descent was through sap-dropping, moss-blanketed, lichen-sprouting forest glades on paths that merged and emerged, twisted and meandered back to the surprising sight of the car – a metal incongruity in such a primitive, natural landscape.
Arduaine Gardens
Arduaine Gardens is a lovely, lush semi-tropical paradise with winding paths and yet more romantic views of the Argyll coast. Rhododendrons, azaleas, magnolias, giant Himalayan lilies and forget-me-nots compete for attention in what seems like a series of hidden “garden rooms.” Very relaxing. The garden was begun in 1898 when collecting exotic flora from around the world was a favourite pastime for intrepid plant hunters who had the resources to fund journeys of discovery, sympathetic retrieval, and collection.
Kilmartin Glen's Prehistoric Treasures
An imaginative guide gave us a guided tour of Kilmartin Glen taking in prehistoric burial cairns, stone circles and standing stones. There was a Canterbury Tales-style hotchpotch of eccentric fellow travellers from around the world to keep the guide on his toes. I learned a new word: cists – meaning a stone-built “coffin box”to hold the bones or full bodies of the dead. A deluge fell from the heavens as we returned to the on-sight café – were the ancient gods displeased with us for disturbing the ancient burial chambers?
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