Glencoe and Loch Lomond

June 25, 2026

On June 25, we left Aviemore and headed to Glascow where we would stay the next 2 nights.

We enjoyed our drive through the Western Highlands. Our first stop was at Laggan Dam on the River Splean.

It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the chance to stretch our legs.

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We continue our drive, passing by the Beinn Sgulaird Munro. A munro is a moutain in Scotland that is over 3,000 feet tall. Many mountaineers in the United Kingdom make it a goal to climb all 282 munros in their lifetime. Those who meet this goal are called "Munroists".

The lands of Auchreoch include sites where KIng Robert the Bruce of Scotland fought the Battle of Dalrigh. He was ambushed by Clan MacDougal, who supported the English crown. They won the battle and the king and his men hid out in the Highlands for a while before reemerging to win the war the First WAr of Scottish Independence.

Later we passed over the River Spean.

We paused for a bathroom break in Fort William, the original end of the West Highland Way, a 96 mile trail popular with hikers in Scotland.

We passed the tidal mudflats of Loch Leven as we neared Glencoe.

Glencoe House near the foot of the Pap of Glencoe Mountain is now a luxury hotel.

Finally came the stop that I have been hoping for, the overlook of the Glencoe National Nature Reserve. Luckily our driver, Danny, was able to squeeze our bus in to the busy area. (The stop was never a guarantee.) Although now a gorgeous nature reserve and a popular filming site for movies like James Bond's Skyfall and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, this area has a much darker history.

The story began in 1688 when William the Orange of Netherlands won "The Glorious Revolution" against his father-in-law King James II (also know as King James VII of Scotland) and deposed the British King. Since James was the grandson of Mary Queen of Scots and a devout Catholic, he was beloved in Scotland. The Scottish Highlanders rose up in revolt against the usurper to support King James, become known as the Jacobites.

In 1691 King William attempted to resolve the issue by requiring the chiefs of all Highland clans to swear an oath of loyalty in exchange for a pardon. Reluctant to swear the oath, the chief of the MacDonald clan at Glencoe, Alasdair MacIan, delayed traveling to sign the oath until the last minute. Still, he arrived in time to Fort Williams but unfortunately that was the wrong place. He needed to travel to Inveraray to sign the oath. He still would have made it it time, except for a blizzard that delayed his arrival to January 2. He signed the oath on January 6 - 6 days too late. Still, he did not think the English would quibble over just a few days and he returned home believing his clan to be safe.

On February 1, Captain Robert Campbell of Glen Lyon who was loyal to the king, requested the hospitality of Glencoe for him and his 120 soldiers as the fort at Inverlochy had no room for them. Alasdair honored the Scottish code of hospitality and gave food and shelter to Campbell and his men.

However, on February 12, 1692, Captain Robert received new orders - to kill all MacDonalds under the age of 70. Compelled to follow orders, he carried out the slaughter breaking the Scottish code of hospitality to his eternal shame. The soldiers killed 38 men, women and children and about 300 MacDonalds fled to frozen mountains where many more perished. Although the MacDonalds eventually returned to Glen Coe and rebuilt, the Campbell name was tarnished by the abomination of "murder under trust" (even though no one was ever punished for this crime.)

My father's side of the family descends from the MacIan clan of the MacDonalds of Glencoe. Over time and with the move to America, our last name changed from MacIan to McKean.

Brent and I at Glen Coe. The mountains in the background are known as the Three Sisters.

Gearr Aonach (Short Ridge) is one of the 3 Sisters of Glencoe.

The notch in the background of Gearr Aonach is called "The Toaster Rack" and it lies between the other 2 sisters, Aonach Dubh (The Black Ridge) and Beinn Fhada (the Long Hill)

The remains of this stone arch bridge were once part of an 18th century military road. Now it is one of the landmarks in the Great Glencoe Challenge for hikers.

All too soon, we were driving out of Glen Coe to explore more of the Highlands on our way to Glascow.

The Buachaille Etive Mor is the gateway between Glen Coe and its neighbor Glen Etive.

We passed by several moors (bogs). Peat has been gathered for centuries by the Scots to heat their homes. With neighbors sharing in the summer chore of cutting and bringing in the peat for the winter.

We passed by Lochan na h-Achlaise, a pretty lake on the Rannoch Moor.

The Strome Carronagh Forest has commercially grown timber such as the Sitka Spruce.

We stopped at Loch Lomond for a cruise along the lake. The largest lake by surface area in Great Britain, it also serves as a border between the highlands and lowlands of Scotland. It became even more famous with the folk song, "The Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond" which tells the sad story of two brothers, both Jacobite soldiers imprisoned by the English at Castle Carlisle. They were offered a difficult choice, one would be set free and the other execute. The older brother volunteered for the execution, allowing his younger brother to go free. The line, "You take the high road and I'll take the low road" shows this choice as the high road is the road of the living the low road is the road of the spirit.

It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the bonny (pretty) banks very much.

After the cruise we had our last drive through the Highlands.

The Boreray Blackface Sheep originated in St. Kilda but are now used throughout Scotland because of their hardiness.

Just as we entered the Lowlands, we stopped at the Glencoyne Whiskey Distillery. They still make highland whiskey because the whiskey is made in the Highlands and then stored across the street in the Lowlands. It was interesting hearing their history when they first started making whiskey using the water from a small waterfall on the site.

Afterwards we drove to Glascow and walked into town so Brent could get the Seafood Tower at The Finnieston. I enjoyed my fish and chips there as well.