Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Loch Lomond Water Bus ( www.lochlomond-trossachs.org/waterbus ) timetable is available
from tourist offices, national park centres and online. Fares quoted are one-way.
Detour:
Alloway
The pretty town of Alloway (38 miles south of Glasgow) should be on the itinerary of every Robert Burns fan - he
was born here on 25 January 1759.
The impressive new Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, part of Burns NationalHeritage Park (NTS;
www.nts.org.uk ; adult/child £8/6; 10am-5pm Oct-Mar, to 5.30pm Apr-Sep; ), has collected a solid
range of Burns memorabilia, including manuscripts and possessions of the poet, like the pistols he packed in order
to carry out his daily work as a tax man.
The admission fee also covers the atmospheric Burns Cottage, connected via a walkway to the Birthplace Mu-
seum. Born in the little box-bed in this cramped thatched dwelling, the poet spent the first seven years of his life
here. It's an attractive display which gives you a context for reading plenty of his verse. Much-needed translations
of some of the more obscure Scots farming terms he loved to use decorate the walls.
Near the Birthplace Museum are the ruins of Alloway Auld Kirk , the setting for part of ʻTam o' Shanter'.
Burns' father, William Burnes (his son dropped the ʻe' from his name), is buried in the kirkyard; read the poem on
the back of the gravestone.
Western Shore
The town of Balloch , which straddles the River Leven where it flows from the southern
end of Loch Lomond, is the loch's main population centre and transport hub. A Victorian
resort once thronged by day-trippers transferring between the train station and the steamer
quay, it is now a 'gateway centre' for Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.
Loch Lomond Shores ( www.lochlomondshores.com ) , a major tourism development a half-
mile north of Balloch, sports a national park information centre plus various visitor attrac-
tions, outdoor activities and boat trips. In keeping with the times, the heart of the develop-
ment is a large shopping mall. It's also home to the Loch Lomond Aquarium
( www.sealife.co.uk ; per person £13.20; 10am-5pm) , which has displays on the wildlife of Loch
Lomond, an otter enclosure (housing short-clawed Asian otters, not Scottish ones), and a
host of sea-life exhibits ranging from sharks to sea turtles.
The vintage paddle steamer Maid of the Loch ( www.maidoftheloch.com ; admission free;
11am-4pm Sat & 2-4pm Sun Easter-Aug) , built in 1953, is moored here while undergoing restor-
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