Cowal Peninsula

For those who want to taste the highlights of the West Highlands on a tight schedule, Cowal is an ideal choice. It is only a short drive from Glasgow, or an even shorter boat trip across the Firth of Clyde from Gourock to Dunoon, but the minutes invested in travelling here can feel like they’ve taken you a millennium away.

Accessibility helped Cowal to become a popular steamer trip destination in the early 1900s, and Dunoon, its main town, grew to its current size largely as a result.

Today, you can still enjoy a stroll along the town’s seaside promenade, where fans of Robert Burns will note that the statue of his sweetheart Highland Mary is gazing south towards the poet’s Ayrshire home. Alternatively, browse the shops for local produce and gifts, or uncover local history at the historic Castle House Museum. Set in lush mountainside just outside Dunoon, Benmore Botanic Gardens

Benmore Botanic Gardens

Walk along Benmore’s avenue of towering redwoods and you gain a sense of the age and stature of this mountainside garden. Highlights include spring rhododendron displays and the Victorian fernery. rbge.org.uk

Argyll Forest Park

The UK’s first Forest Park, stretching from the Holy Loch to the peaks of the Arrochar Alps. Highlights include Glenbranter’s Allt Robuic gorge, once owned by music hall star Harry Lauder. forestryandland.gov.scot boasts 120 acres of exotic and colourful plantations. An awe-inspiring avenue of giant redwoods welcomes visitors to the attraction and further exploration transports you to globally-themed plantings from the Tasmanian Ridge to a Bhutanese Glade. There are delights year-round and in spring the garden is ablaze with the vivid colours of azalea and rhododendron plants.

Cowal’s attraction lies largely its wild landscape, which blends a craggy coast, formidable forests and majestic mountains, so it’s little wonder that it draws those in search of an outdoor adventure, whether they choose to head off the beaten track or to take advantage of the many established scenic hiking and biking routes. This is also an exceptional place to sail. The views are memorable and there is a choice of marinas, inlets and quiet anchorages, as well as yachting events to either spectate or compete in. Other water sports, from kayaking to paddle-boarding and rib-boat trips, give a fresh perspective on the ocean. Forests define Cowal as much as the coast does, and it is home to the celebrated Argyll Forest Park, which stretches from the Holy Loch, an inlet of the Firth of Clyde, to the Arrochar Alps. The dramatic silhouettes of this landscape are caused by the park’s place at one end of the Highland Boundary Fault. It includes plenty of marked walks for all abilities and visual treats including lochs and waterfalls. For memorable hill-walking in Cowal, why not head to the north tip and Glen Croe, home to the Rest and be Thankful (so named because of the inscription ‘Rest and be Thankful’ carved a stone by soldiers who built the old military road at the site in the 18th century) or make the village of Arrochar your base to explore the nearby ‘Alps’ which include The Cobbler, one of Scotland’s most popular mountains. Cowal offers respite for those seeking solitude, but there is a social scene to explore too, and you’ll find atmosphere and quality cuisine in the hotels, bars and restaurants, where menus consistently offer fresh local produce, including seafood sourced close by.

DIARY DATE:

Punk on the Peninsula, May 25-28th.

An outdoor festival of punk, ska and alternative music, with a line-up that includes the Outcasts and Monica and the Explosion.

More info: punkonthepeninsula.rocks