Local Sights & Activities

Things To Do Around Pitlochry

Blair Castle

Phone code: +44 (0)1796

Seven miles from Pitlochry, and a mile from the village of Blair Atholl, is Blair Castle, traditional seat of the Earls and Dukes of Atholl. This whitewashed, turreted castle dates from 1269 and presents an impressive picture on first sight. This is the headquarters of Britain's only private army, the Atholl Highlanders, and one of them usually pipes in new arrivals. Thirty-two rooms in the castle are open for public viewing and are packed full of paintings, furniture, armour, porcelain and much else besides, presenting a startling picture of aristocratic Highland life in previous centuries. The most outrageously sumptuous of the rooms are the Tapestry Room and the ballroom. The surrounding landscaped grounds are home to peacocks and Highland cattle, and there are woodland walks and a walled Japanese water garden to enjoy. A handy camping site is immediately adjacent to the castle grounds.

http://www.blair-castle.co.uk, Apr-Jun, Sep and Oct 1000-1800, Jul and Aug 0930-1800, house and grounds £7.20, £6.20 concession, £4.20 children. Tel. 481207.

Camping

There's a caravan park within the castle grounds, Tel. 481263, open April-October, with good facilities. A very good walk starts from the caravan park and heads up into Glen Tilt. It's about 10€ miles there and back along estate roads, though this can be shortened by four miles or lengthened by six miles. A leaflet describing the routes is available from the castle or caravan park.

Sleeping and eating in Blair Atholl

There's a selection of accommodation in Blair Atholl village. The Atholl Arms Hotel, Tel. 481205, near the train station, does B&B and serves bar meals. The best food hereabouts is to be found at the Loft, Golf Course Rd, Tel. 481377, which offers superior Modern Scottish/Mediterranean food at mid-range/expensive prices.

Transport

Not all trains stop at Blair Atholl. Elizabeth Yule Transport runs a service between Pitlochry and Blair Atholl, via Killiecrankie, a few times daily, except Sun. You can hire bikes from Atholl Mountain Bikes, Tel. 473553. They have a leaflet listing various cycle routes, including the Glen Tilt route above.

Falls of Bruar

Eight miles from Blair Atholl, just off the A9, are the Falls of Bruar. There's a short walk from the car park to the lower falls, but it's worth continuing to the more dramatic upper falls, which are less visited (see above). By the car park is the excellent House of Bruar, a huge shopping emporium designed like a Victorian hunting lodge where you can buy just about any kind of souvenir and enjoy some very fine Scottish cooking.

Loch Tummel

The B8019 turns off the B8079 road from Pitlochry to Blair Atholl and runs west along the shores of beautiful lochs Tummel and Rannoch, best seen in the autumn when the trees change their colours. At the eastern end of Loch Tummel is Queen's View, a spectacular viewpoint which looks down the loch and across to Schiehallion. There's a visitor centre here, with displays and audio-visual programmes about the area. Apr-Oct daily 1000-1730. Free, but £1 parking charge. Tel. 473123.

Schiehallion

Schiehallion (3,552 ft) is one of Scotland's best-loved mountains, whose distinctive conical peak made it ideal for use in early experiments in 1774 to judge the weight of the earth. These were not an unqualified success, but led to the invention of contour lines as an aid to surveying the mountain. The walk to the summit is fairly straightforward, except for the very rocky final stretch. You'll need to be properly clothed and equipped and take a map and compass. The route to the summit starts at the car park on the B846 Kinloch Rannoch to Aberfeldy road, near Braes of Foss.

Place To See Around Pitlochry

Distilleries

There are two whisky distilleries to visit. The larger of the two is Bell's Blair Atholl Distillery, at the southern end of town, heading towards the A9 to Perth.

Easter-Sep Mon-Sat 0930-1700, Sun 1200-1700; Oct Mon-Fri 1000-1600, Nov-Easter Mon-Fri 1100-1600,£4, tours every 10 mins. Tel. 482003.

A couple of miles east of town, on the A924, is the Edradour Distillery, the smallest in Scotland. http://www.edradour.co.uk Jan and Feb Mon-Sat 1000-1600, Sun 1200-1600, Mar-Oct Mon-Sat 0930-1800, Sun 1130-1700, Nov and Dec Mon-Sat 0930-1700, Sun 1200-1700, Free. Tel. 472095.

Fish ladder

Pitlochry's main attraction is the fish ladder, part of the power station and dam which formed man-made Loch Faskally when it was constructed on the River Tummel. The ladder allows salmon to swim up to their spawning grounds and you can watch them leaping spectacularly in the spring and summer. The best months are May and June. The fish ladder is across the river, a short distance from the Pitlochry Festival Theatre. In summer 2002 the Scottish Plant Collectors Garden will open in the grounds of the theatre. Contact the theatre for further information.

Another excellent walk from Pitlochry, described in the tourist office leaflet, leaves town on the north road and turns left past the boat station. It then crosses the Cluanie footbridge and follows the road to Loch Faskally and up the River Garry to Garry Bridge over the Pass of Killiecrankie. The path returns to Pitlochry along the west bank of the River Garry, before turning west up the River Tummel, passing close by the Linn of Tummel, then crossing the Tummel and following the west shore of Loch Faskally to the dam and fish ladder.

Also here is the Explorers-The Scottish Plant Hunters' Garden that fascinates the visitors with its wide display of diverse plant species and trails, which pays tribute to the story of Scotland's 18th and 19th century botanists and explorers. Apr-Oct daily 1000-1700, £3, concession £2.50, children £1. TEL. 484600, http://www.explorersgarden.com

Pass of Killiecrankie

Four miles north of Pitlochry the A9 cuts through the Pass of Killiecrankie, a spectacular wooded gorge which was the dramatic setting for the Battle of Killiecrankie in 1689, when a Jacobite army led by Graham of Claverhouse, Viscount 'Bonnie Dundee', defeated the government forces under General Hugh Mackay. One government soldier evaded capture by making a jump of Olympic gold medal-winning proportions across the River Garry at Soldier's Leap. The NTS visitor centre has displays on the battle and the local natural history. Apr-Oct daily 1000-1730. Free (honesty box; £1 donation advised). Tel. 473233.

Theatre

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The Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Tel. 484626, is across the river from the town centre. It stages a different play every night for 6 nights a week during its season from May to Oct.