Lovely Glen Lochay

Willie Shand braves the cold temperatures to enjoy a Stroll near Killin in Perthshire.

Factfile

● Killin's bridge over the River Dochart was built in 1760, long before motor vehicles, so it does well to carry all today's traffic.

● Behind Finlarig Castle we can still see Black Duncan of the Cowl's infamous "beheading pit", which, by all accounts, he put to good use.

● Glen Lochay and its enclosing hills were once a favoured hunting forest for Scotland's monarchy.

● The Forest of Mamlorn restoration project might eventually attempt to reintroduce Scottish wildcats into the area.

FROM high in the hills to the north of Crianlarich, the River Lochay wends its eastward course for almost 20 miles before spilling into the waters of Loch Tay at Killin.

It doesn't join the loch alone, though, as towards its end it accompanies the River Dochart.

Here at Killin, the two rivers display quite different characters.

While the Dochart puts on a spectacular display tumbling through the Falls of Dochart, the Lochay is happy to slip past without drawing much attention.

As a consequence, they've become known as the "Furious Dochart" and the "Gentle Lochay".

Few visitors to Killin don't stop to admire the Falls of Dochart as the river races wide and angry beneath the narrow road bridge and on around Innes Bhuidhe - the burial isle of the MacNabs.

Not so many, however, take time for the less dramatic Lochay, its final stage so often still and carrying wonderful reflections.

Today, I thought I'd head west into the glen of the Lochay as it cuts deep into the hills of Breadalbane and Forest of Mamlorn.

Like neighbouring Glen Lyon, Glen Lochay is a particularly bonnie glen during the autumn.

With mountains rising steeply above the narrow floor of the glen, in places the winter sun struggles to climb above the skyline.