Arrochar > Heritage Trail > Firkin
Tarbet
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Firkin - Loch Lomond
Moving in a Southerly direction from Tarbet along
the shores of Loch Lomond you will soon come to Firkin. For many years
Firkin Point has been a popular stop for travellers enjoying the natural
beauty of Loch Lomond and Ben Lomond. Robert The Bruce spent time here.
In 1306 Robert the
Bruce had two bad defeats at the hands of first the Earl of
Pembroke and second by MacDougall of Lorne at Tynedrum. After
this he was heading for Kintyre but accidentally came down the
wrong side of Loch Lomond. On realising their mistake they
looked for a method of crossing the loch. Eventually Bruce’s
closest friend Sir James Douglas found a boat which, after
repairs, could take three people. Bruce, Sir James and an oarsman
crossed first, but it took a whole day and night to ferry the
200 men across – some swam. Tradition has it that
Bruce entertained his men with tales and songs till they were
all across the loch. An old Yew tree is situated at Stuc-am-T.Iobait –
the place of refreshment. This spot was reputed to have been a change over
stop for coach horses during coaching days.
Up on the Westerly hills there was a village called
Clachan Dubh now
referred to as The Back Village. This village was abandoned many years
ago reputedly because of an attack of The Plaque. It could also have
been the case that the landlord - McMurroch was putting people off the
hill and making them go to the shore lands.
Clachan Dubh can be found about 221m South East of the top corner of
Stuckgowan House’s southern boundary wall, About 114 m elevation, just
above the electricity supply
lines. There are two trees growing in the ruins to this day about six
houses are still outlined.
Moving
down Loch Lomond is the Loch Uaine, The Fairy Loch. At 4.3 road miles
south of The Tarbet Hotel, near to a burn coming down the hillside is
the ruin of an old stone house. There is a vague suggestion of a path up
the hill but if the you keep to the North side of the burn and not to
distant from it, after about an hour’s climbing up pretty steep, and in
places rocky, slopes, the Fairy Loch. It may better be described as a
pond which is now nearly overgrown with reeds. It is believed that the
Loch was formed by daming the burn to form a headpond to drive a meal
mill of which there is no trace now. The Loch has the name Fairy Loch
from the fact that when certain lights fall on it, some deposit in the
water shows up a most beautiful emerald green in patches of triangular
shape. Another story is that the local people would deposit their sheeps’
fleeces in the “Fairy Loch” overnight, wish for them to be dyed a
certain colour, and overnight the fairies would carry out their wish.
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