 A breathtaking view across the loch
Loch Lomond
Recommendation added: 11/02/2007 13:52
By: velvet202 (YSUK rating +191)velvet202 has been thanked 3 times for this contribution
"Loch Lomond has a remarkable beauty, an intriguing history, and a mystic charisma.
With an enormous length of 24 miles and a width of 5 miles, Loch Lomond is the largest freshwater lake in the UK. The loch itself is ribbon like, dammed by a terminal moraine, in turn built by a melting glacier in thousands of years ago, and reaches from Glasgow to Fort William.
Its famous islands are the hard areas of rock which were not eroded with the rest of the valley. The loch is crossed by the Highland line, and this perhaps explains the gradual changes in the characteristics of the scenery as it moves from north to south, which makes Loch Lomond a famous international scenery.
The earliest residents of Loch Lomond are said to have arrived in the area during the New Stone Age many thousand years before Christ's birth. These people became known as the Caledonii tribes, or 'people of the woods' and their existence is proven by the imposing stone circles and burial cairns which can be found everywhere in the area.
When the Romans invaded Britain in the first century, they marched towards Scotland, and the Caledonii tribes were forced northwards. After the Romans departed in the third century, three ancient kingdoms rose up around the loch: the kingdoms of Strathclyde to the south, Dalriada, kingdom of the celts to the north west; and Pictland to the north-east.
Christianity was brought to the area by the Irish missionaries in the sixth and seventh centuries. The early Christians regarded Loch Lomond as a place of sacred pilgrimage, and some of the 37 islands in the loch provided ideal retreats and bases for the construction of priories and churches. The island of Inchmurrin is the largest island in the loch, and named after St. Mirrin who spent a considerable amount of time there.
Loch Lomond has been attracting tourists to the area for centuries and its visitors have included celebrated authors, poets, statesmen, kings and queens.
Loch Lomond has a unique place in Scottish folklore and is surrounded by a number of myths and mysteries. One of the legends of Loch Lomond is transcribed in the famous song with the same name, which is believed to be the story of two of Bonnie Prince Charlie's men who were captured in Carlisle, of whom one was destined to take the low road to death, and the other the treacherous road of the rugged countryside to life.
The surroundings offer the opportunity of spending many hours exploring the breathtaking beauty of both the Scottish nature and its astounding history and sights including Arden and Auchenhalish House, Balloch Castle and the beautiful Cameron House. Scotland's most impressive and prestigious golf club Loch Lomond Golf Club, which hosts the Scottish Open is also situated near the lake's shore."
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