Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE ANTONINE WALL
Rough Castle
, signposted off the B816 just west of Falkirk, is one of the forts set up at
two-mile intervals to defend the entire length of the Roman
Antonine Wall
. The most
northerly frontier of the Roman Empire, the wall was built in 142 AD, of turf rather than stone,
and stretched for 37 miles right across the country from the Forth to the Clyde. Assailed by
skirmishing Picts and the grim Scottish weather, it didn't take long for the Romans to abandon
the wall and retreat to Hadrian's Wall, just south of Scotland's present border with England. The
signposted site lies along the potholed back road, and though little more than a large grassy
mound interpreted by a couple of information boards, the remains at Rough Castle are the
best-preserved part of the wall, which has UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
in 1820 with a substantial bequest from local lad John MacNabb; its pupils and staff
account for around a third of the town's population. he walk from town up the glen
to moody Castle Campbell makes for a dramatic approach.
7
Castle Campbell
Castle Rd • April-Sept daily 9.30am-5.30pm • Oct daily 9.30am-4.30pm • Nov-March Mon-Wed, Sat & Sun 9.30am-4.30pm • £5.50; HS •
T
01259 742408
Above Dollar, the steep ravine of
Dollar Glen
is commanded by
Castle Campbell
,
formerly, and uno
cially, known as Castle Gloom - a fine and evocative tag but,
prosaically, a derivation of “Gloume”, an old Gaelic name. A one-and-a-half-mile-long
road leads up from Dollar's main street, but becomes very narrow and steep and stops
short of the castle, with only limited parking at the top. A series of marked
walks
leads
up the glen, taking in mossy crags, rushing streams and, if you strike out on the
three-hour hike to the top of Dollar Hill, great views.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION
DOLLAR
By bus
The Stagecoach bus service #23 between Stirling
and St Andrews travels along the A91 through the Hillfoot
villages to Dollar.
Maps
A map shows the walks on a board on the way up to
the castle, though it's advisable to buy the relevant OS map
(Explorer 366) if you're setting off for the longer hike.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Café des Fleurs
44 Bridge St
T
01259 743699.
Stylish
little café/tearoom featuring impressive home baking: you
might encounter a lemon drizzle cake, strawberry and
white chocolate scones or mini red velvet sponges.
Daily
9am-5pm.
Kennels Cottage
Dollarbeg
T
01259 742186,
W
guesthousescotland.co.uk.
A great B&B located
in an
attractive whitewashed former gamekeeper's cottage at
Dollarbeg, just sout
h of
Dollar. Their own chickens provide
the breakfast eggs.
£80
Kinross
Although by no means a large place,
KINROSS
, ten miles east of Dollar, has been
transformed in the last couple of decades by the construction of the nearby M90
Edinburgh-Perth motorway. Not far from here is Balado Farm, location of the annual
T in
the Park
(
W
tinthepark.com), one of the largest outdoor weekend music events in Britain.
Loch Leven
Without doubt the most attractive part of Kinross is by the shores of trout-filled
Loch
Leven
, signposted from the main street. he whole loch is a National Nature Reserve;
it's a good place to see visiting geese. here's a reasonable
café
by the ferry ticket o
ce.
Loch Leven Castle
Loch Leven • Daily: April-Sept 9.30am-5.30pm • Oct 9.30am-4.30pm • £5.50 including ferry trip; HS •
T
07778 040483
From the shore a small ferry chugs over to an island on which stands the ruined
