Taynuilt
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Get in
From central Scotland by car, follow A85 / A82 through Crianlarich and Tyndrum then west on A85 towards Oban. Citylink Bus 976 runs four times a day from Glasgow Buchanan Street via Tarbet & Arrochar and Inveraray to Taynuilt, taking 2 hours 40 min and continuing to Oban.
Trains from Glasgow Queen Street run up The West Highland Line via Dumbarton and Crianlarich to Taynuilt, taking 2 hours 45 min and continuing to Oban. They run every three hours or so M-Sat, with only three on Sunday.
Get around
The ironworks can be reached by foot, car or bicycle; a lane branches off A85 to run through the village. Buses and trains run along the valley but you really need a car to see Cruachan and the castle.
See
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address: Taynuilt PA35 1JQThis complex was built in 1753 to make pig iron, because the area had lots of water, and wood to make charcoal to fire the furnace. A major product was cannonballs. When more efficient blast furnaces opened in the lowlands, the works became unprofitable and closed in 1876.
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phone: +44 1866 822618address: Dalmally PA33 1ANBen Cruachan is "the hollow mountain", with a hydro-electric power station deep inside. A weird experience where 20th century massive engineering meets Peer Gynt's "Hall of the Mountain King".
- You can also hike to the dam above, or ascend Ben Cruachan (3694 feet / 1126 m).
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address: Dalmally PA33 1AFPicturesque ruin of a four-storey tower, a redoubt of Clan Campbell. In 1760 it was wrecked by a massive thunderbolt, with a tower turret blown away to sit upside down in the courtyard. When first built around 1450 it was on a small island, but the loch water level was later drained so it became a peninsula - usually. High water levels occasionally flood the access path under the railway tracks and it returns to being an island.
Do
- Golf: Taynuilt Golf Club is a scenic 9 hole parkland course just north of the railway line; 9 holes £12, 18 holes £20.
- Taynuilt Highland Games are held annually in late July. The next event is tbc but probably Sat 18 July 2020.
- Loch Etive is a sea loch almost 20 miles long. Its scenic upper reaches have no roads and can only be accessed by boat. Boat trips run in summer but these depart from Dunstaffnage marina near Oban; it may be possible to negotiate a pick-up in Taynuilt. Boat hire is available at TFC Boats just west of the village.
Buy
Smoked salmon from the smokehouse at Inverawe, east of the river, open daily 09:00-17:00.
Eat
Robin's Nest Tearoom on village Main Street serves freshly prepared lunches and homebaked cakes. It's open Th-Su 10:00-16:30.
Sleep
- There's B&B at Brander Lodge on A85 east of the village, Ceo Mara Croft a mile west, and Tanglewood Lodge on B845 going south.
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phone: +44 1866 822437address: Taynuilt PA35 1JN10 room old coaching inn, now under new ownership, does pub grub.
- Several self-catering cottages, eg Bonawe House Cottages near the old furnace, and static caravan sites at Curacao in village centre and Loch Awe Holiday Park on A85 two miles east.
Go next
- West to Oban
- East to Crianlarich
- South to Inveraray