Luss Village Paths

Four walks set off from the visitor LOcHside PatH (15 minutes, all-abilities) explores Luss Heritage PatH (1 hour) brings all the walks Luss gLebe LOOP centre by the car park, leading you the village and the lochside by the pier, which has together to form a full circuit of the village, the river and Where the Lochside, welcomed cruise boats since 1850. the surrounding countryside. It offers some stunning views Riverside and Heritage through the village and the as well as a good walk. Afterwards, reward yourself with a Paths meet behind Luss surrounding countryside. They river PatH (30 minutes, all abilities) follows the drink and something to eat in one of the cafés or hotels. Church turn left onto a banks of Luss Water past the meadows where sheep include two short, all-abilities bridge for a short loop graze. tHrOugH tHe gLeN If you want a longer walk, follow the around Luss Glebe’s paths that are suitable for walkers, Luss Glen road up to the hills. Leave your car in the village Quarry PatH (30 minutes) strikes a line up into the meadows, oakwoods wheelchair-users and buggy- and follow the Quarry Path in an anti-clockwise direction to and loch shore. hills, where Luss water tumbles by one of the old mills the foot of the glen, using the footbridge to cross the A82 pushers. and the quarry where men cleaved the rock to roof behind the school. Then follow the road up into the glen. the tenement houses of 19th century .

WondeRfuL A rich seam of blue-grey WoodLAnds slate runs through the village and many villagers worked in Once woodlands like the slate quarries. these covered most of , but now they cover only a small area. The oak woodlands are very old and go most of the way around the loch. Villagers used to cut the trees in a 24-year rotation known as fLoCK And fLee coppicing. The trees were cut and a single shoot was allowed In 1747, blackface to regrow. Their bark provided sheep were introduced tannin, which softened leather used in machine belts. to Glen Luss and it was noted how well they did. Soon landlords all across the Highlands were evicting their tenants to make way for sheep in one of Scotland’s most heart- rending stories – The Clearances.

Look out for the Tupp Bridge which bears a sculpted sheep’s head and the inscription ‘Wm Johns Built this Bridge 1777’. Sheep still graze on the surrounding hills, so please keep dogs under control at all times and leave them at home in the lambing season.

The present church was built in 1875, but the Visitor Information graveyard is much older. The earliest stones date Parking from the 7th or 8th century. Look out for GLEBE Toilets the 11th century Viking LOOP hogback grave. Remember, the houses are private homes – please respect the residents’ privacy. Lochside Path (15 minutes, all abilities) explores the village and the shore. Riverside Path (30 minutes, all abilities) follows the banks of Luss Water. slate Quarry Path (30 minutes) passes one of the old mills and a slate quarry. Luss has a long sandy beach Luss Heritage Walk (1 hour) is a full circuit of the village, the river and the surrounding which is ideal for picnics and countryside. paddling. The water quality is tested regularly during the Map by Claire Hewitt, based upon Ordnance Survey material reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of HMSO. © Crown copyright and bathing season as part of the database right 2011. The neat rows of cottages eu Bathing Waters directive. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey Licence number 100031883 were built by the laird around Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to 150 years ago to house the But be warned – the water is prosecution or civil proceedings. The representation of features or boundaries workers in the mills and slate in which LLTNPA or others have an interest does not necessarily imply their true quarries. cold all year round ! positions. For further information, please contact the appropriate authority. gettiNg Here is easy by cycLe, bus Or car Luss is on the A82 from Glasgow to Fort William. It’s 8 miles P l north of Balloch on the West Cycle Path and e Luss a s is readily accessible by bus from Glasgow, Balloch, e

p

Crianlarich and Argyll. For more information on public a Village Paths s s transport services, pick up a copy of ‘Exploring the National t h i s

Park by ferry, bus or train’ or contact Traveline l e

a a NatiONaL Park

Scotland on tel: 0871 200 2233 or f l e

t fOr everyONe

www.travelinescotland.com. o n

w h

remember e n

y It’s the nation’s park. To discover, to explore, to enjoy. Please remember that the houses in the village are private o u residences set in a working landscape. h It’s all about finding your own space. And then a v

e choosing what you do with it...

• Please respect residents’ • Take your litter home f i n

i There is so much to enjoy in Loch Lomond & The privacy • Avoid all risk of fire s h

e Trossachs National Park – woods and forests, wild • Avoid disturbing livestock • Use gates and stiles to d

w flowers and wildlife watching, watersports, climbing or i

• Keep dogs under control at cross fences, walls and t h

just taking in the view. i all times hedges t ! There’s always something to do. Whether you love explore this adventure or prefer more passive pastimes, you’ll find conservation village an activity to suit. on a range of walks taking 15 minutes to 1 hour

If you would like further information about paths in the National Park please contact:

Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Headquarters, Carrochan Carrochan Road, Balloch, G83 8EG Tel 01389 722600 email: [email protected] web: www.lochlomond-trossachs.org Large print version of this leaflet is available on request

This leaflet has been produced with the cooperation of numerous organisations and individuals. We would like to thank everyone for their help including: The Clan Colquhoun Museum, Luss Estates, Scottish Natural Heritage, Scottish Enterprise and Landart.

Printed on recycled paper LLTNPA/03/11/CCB25,000 lochlomond-trossachs.org

Welcome to Luss Through village and glen... Out Of tHe darkNess sLates, miLLs aNd cOttages Around 1,500 years ago an Irish missionary, St Kessog, Luss folk, like others in the Highlands, arrived here bringing Christianity to the shores of Loch belonged to the extended family of the On the banks of Loch Lomond. He settled on the nearby island of clan. By the late 18th century the chief . At that time Luss was had become the laird and many Lomond, overlooking known as Clachan Dhu – the dark village villagers worked for him. There were tranquil wooded islands, – because it lay in the shadow of the several mills here including a corn-mill, the ancient settlement of surrounding hills. The saint was a sawmill and even a cotton-mill. martyred and his body embalmed in Around 1850, the laird cleared their Luss was rebuilt in the 19th sweet herbs. Legend has it that the old, turf-thatched cottages and built a century. One hundred years earlier, the herbs grew and covered his grave, giving rise to a new new model village for his workers. name for the village from the Gaelic word lus , meaning introduction of sheep to Luss Glen changed A rich seam of blue-grey slate runs through the village herb. the fate of Highlanders forever. and many villagers worked in the slate quarries. You’ll still find the slates on the roofs of many Glasgow Luss Village Paths explore this conservation village, with The present church dates from 1875, though there’s tenements. As you walk along the its pretty streets bedecked with flowers, long beach and probably been a church here for many centuries. Look Quarry Path, look out for mounds of ancient graveyard. They range from a level 15-minute around the churchyard – some of the stones are very old. slates. These were the ones that the stroll through the village to a 1-hour walk through the The earliest are the two 7th or 8th workers threw away. village and surrounding countryside. century slabs with simple crosses at the entrance to the church. There’s Why not take some time to also an 11th century Viking hogback get to know it? grave.