this lodge, in the centre of the glen, the road is inaccessible for carriages, and the dreary monotony of the walk is relieved only by the windings and waterfalls of the Tilt. At a ravine which opens on the left, we cross the Tarf, a stream precipitated over two ledges of rocks. From a high moorish tract subsequently attained, we have (looking back) a good view of Ben-y-Gloe (3724 feet), the chief mountain in the great forest of Atholl, which is said to be more than 40 miles long, and in one part 18 broad, a tract not inferior to the smaller English counties in extent, and of which about 30,000 imperial acres are set apart for grouse, 50,000 partly for grouse and deer, and 50,000 reserved for deer-stalking solely. Traversing the waste to the north of this, we leave the Perthshire Highlands, and enter Aberdeenshire, the distant mountains of which now rise before us.

Eighteen miles from Blair-Atholl, and twelve from Castleton, is the Deeside road, already referred to. Five miles further on is the Linn of Dee, and three from Castleton to the Falls of Corriemulzie, both of which may be visited on the At Castleton of Braemar (afterwards described), there are two good inns-the Invercauld Arms and the Fife Arms.

way.

BLAIR-ATHOLL TO THE FALLS OF THE TUMMEL, LOCH TUMMEL, AND LOCH RANNOCH.

This division of scenery comprises that which extends from Garry Bridge to Loch Rannoch. The distance from Blair to where Loch Tummel is first visible is ten miles; the necessary walking will add two or three more. There are good carriage roads on both sides of the river.

The road leaves the ford or ferry at the hotel, and, following closely the river side, joins the Tummel road to the westward of Garry bridge. It would be difficult, anywhere in Scotland, to point out finer examples of what may be called open river scenery, than those which occur on this part of the stream. There are several salmon fisheries both on the Garry and the Tummel, and this fish is taken likewise in the Tilt.

FALL OF THE TUMMEL.

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But none of these rivers are very productive in this respect; as the fish have a long gauntlet to run from Dundee. Lochs Tummel and Rannoch produce the finest trout; pike are also to be found in Loch Tummel. The trout fishing improves westwards beyond the falls, which impede the further progress both of pike and salmon.

The fall of the Tummel has long been an object of attraction to visitors, and nothing can well be imagined more graceful than the forms which the water assumes. As the Tummel is here a wide and a deep river, the mass of water (though not equal to that at the Falls of Clyde) is very considerable, but the height does not exceed fifteen or sixteen feet. A

walk by the side of the Garry, entering from a gate near the end of the bridge, leads to the cascade. If the visitor return to the same point, he should take a new path to the left, which conducts over a wooded eminence, displaying a beautiful and unexpected view of the Pass of Killiecrankie.

For nearly five miles, which is the distance from Garry Bridge* to the margin of the vale of Loch Tummel, the general features of this land of "the birch" continue with little variation, if we except the glen of Fincastle on the right of the romantic hamlet and bridge of Croft Douglas. Apart from these, however, the landscape is considerably enlivened by the mansion houses of Bonskeid (Barber, Esq.), and Allean (Colquhoun, Esq.), which are snugly situated on the north bank of the Tummel.+ The spectator, buried in woods and surmounted by rocky hills, still sees before him the same valley, when, in an instant, there bursts upon his view the rich and distant

VALE OF THE TUMMEL,

spread far beneath him with its bright silvery lake, its meandering river, its towering Schehallion, and its far distant range

On the southern bank of the river there is also a carriage road, yet as it is necessary to cross one of the fords of the Tummel to reach it from this, it is more convenient to make this expedition on foot or on horseback. If the water be low, the ford of Faskally is preferable, because it introduces the visitor more readily to the scenery; when high, it is a hazardous passage, and that on the Tummel should be chosen. In the first portion of this southern road, taking it up from the ford of Faskally, the tourist will gain a second access to the Fall of the Tummel; after which the road winds up the hill beneath wild overhanging rocks and woods. What chiefly conduces to the superiority of this southern road is the altitude at which it is conducted above the bottom of the valley. The margin of the lake once attained, we find ourselves amid luxuriant green meadows and ash trees, as if suddenly transferred to the rich plains of Staffordshire or Kent. The ford of Foss affords an opportunity of passing the river without the trouble of going round by Tummel Bridge.

A short distance above the latter, entered by a small gate on the left, is a singularly romantic part of the glen called the "Queen's View." The point of view is from the top of a precipitous and wooded rock, overlooking a dark pool, and commands a most extensive prospect of the windings of the Tummel. This view is comparatively unknown to tourists, and although the Queen did not visit the place, the name has been given to it from the fact of its having been selected for her as a resting place during her sojourn at Blair-Atholl, when it was expected she would visit Loch Tummel.

VALE OF THE TUMMEL.

279

of blue mountains. Looking backwards, the view is closed by Ben-y-Gloe.*

Loch Tummel is three miles long, and at the west end about half a mile broad, contracting towards the east. Its southern banks form numerous indenting capes and bays, fringed with copse, and thickly clad with birch-wood, and rise gently from the water. The ground on the north side of the loch is arable. On the south side rises the fine screen of wild hills which bounds the vale of the Tummel to the southward, surmounted by the rugged outline of Farragon and the beautifully simple and conical form of Schehallion (3500 feet), which is said to have afforded a refuge to King Robert the Bruce after the battle of Methven. Reflecting every tree on its margin, the lake expands blue and calm beneath the eye; while immediately under our feet, the high overshadowing rocks and trees darken its bright glassy surface.

The triple and blue mountain seen in the remotest distance is part of that ridge of which Buachaille Etive is the chief, and which separates that wild valley from Loch Etive.

At Tummel Bridge Inn,† sixteen miles from Blair, there is comfortable accommodation, and post-horses can be procured. The surrounding scenery is extremely beautiful; and towards the south-west of the loch stands Foss, a seat of Sir R. Menzies.

* It is unnecessary for those who merely wish a good view of the loch, and intend returning to Blair, to proceed further in this direction, as it appears with every advantage from this point. But the tourist may ascend an eminence on the left, from which he can look down on the Tummel itself, as, at a distance of many hundred feet beneath him, it issues brown and dark from the lake.

From the bridge of Tummel, an alpine road of thirteen miles in length leads to Strath Tay and Kenmore. The ruins of a high square keep, called Garth Castle, occupy a narrow rocky promontory 150 feet in height at the confluence of two rivulets. Garth was originally the seat of the fierce wolf of Badenoch, brother of the Earl of Buchan, and ancestor of many of the Stewarts of Atholl. The stream runs through a richly wooded dell, and the view from the confined channel of the burn, over-canopied by slanting trees, is very striking. Before reaching Coshieville it exhibits three falls, called the falls of Kiltney, well worthy of notice when the stream is full. The tourist now descends along the edge of another deep and wooded dell, bordered by sloping cultivated ground, by Coshieville Inn, and Fortingall, as the lower part of Glen Lyon is called. He then crosses the Lyon at Comrie Ferry (where there is an old castle of that name), and there gains a good road through the policies of Taymouth to Kenmore. (See p. 288). The whole distance by this route is 29 miles.

Mount Alexander, in Gaelic called Dun Alister (the residence of General Sir John Macdonald, K.C.B.), is the last point of the attractions of the Tummel, and is about half way between this and Kinloch-Rannoch. The mansion has been rebuilt at a very large cost, and is now one of the finest in the Highlands. The situation is peculiarly striking, and forms, with its surrounding wooded grounds, which occupy a bold rocky hill, the central object of a rich and singular landscape. Immediately opposite, on the south side of the water, is Crossmount House a seat of W. Macdonald, Esq. of St. Martin's, with a noble background, consisting of the ever magnificent and graceful Schehallion, which rises suddenly from the very house itself, richly covered with scattered woods and rocks.

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*

Loch Rannoch, which comes now into view, is about eleven miles in length, and one and a half in breadth, and is surrounded by mountains covered on the south with natural birch and fir-wood, called "The Black Wood of Rannoch." At the east side is the residence of Robertson of Struan, the chief of his clan, and the representative of one of the oldest historical families in Scotland. Duncan, one of his predecessors, was the friend and follower of King Robert the Bruce, and, after him, the clan for a long time assumed the name Donnoquhy," or clan of Duncan. The north side is the property of Sir Robert Menzies, Bart., the south, Thomas V. Wentworth, Esq. (Dall House), and A. D. Stewart of Inverhadden. Robertson of Struan lately erected a fine castellated mansion near the margin of the loch; the eastern extremity belongs to General Sir John Macdonald of Dun Alister. The loch abounds with trout and char; and there is a good road on both sides. At its eastern extremity is the village of Kinloch-Rannoch, where there is a good inn (Macdonald's Arms), prettily situated, and affording very considerable accommodation. At the west end are the Barracks, built

* For much of the ornamental planting Dun Alister is indebted to the famous Robertson of Struan, who figures as the Baron Bradwardine in Waverley. During his life time (1688-1749) he was thrice outlawed and exiled for his adherence to the Jacobite cause.

By a recent decision of the House of Lords, the fishing on this loch is now open to tourists frequenting this inn, but care must be taken not to land on any other property than General Macdonald's, which extends to only about 1 mile